Water Softener filters


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Old 03-04-08, 12:04 PM
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Smile Water Softener filters

Hi!
I have well water with reddish/orange iron in it. My softener unit (Kinetico) had a leak so the servicemen came and reconnected that pipe. It still leaked so they came out again and offered me a spin down separator unit to replace my white 16 inch filter which I changed monthly. They put a whole new PVC pipe fitting on and removed the prefilter from the unit.They said to call them directly if there were any problems so I think they did this on their own. I started thinking this sounded shady so started looking into this spin down separator to see if it would get rid of the reddish iron that my old prefilter did. They left the box and it only states that it rids the unit of sediment. Thanks for any advice
Wooks
 
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Old 03-04-08, 03:47 PM
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Let me ask you a couple of questions.

Does thewater come out of the faucet/spigot colored or clear? Does the water come out with iron problems after the softener. Where was the pipe with the leak?

Why did you need to change the filter monthly? Was it clogged causing water pressure to drop?

I never cared for spin-down type filters unless you have visible dirt/sand coming up from the well. Even then, I would use the type that has a manual flush valve to clean it easily.

Hope we can help you here.
Andy Christensen, CWS-II
 
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Old 03-04-08, 07:18 PM
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Water Softener Filters

Hi Andy,
Thanks for the quick reply. The water comes out of the faucets clear. I don't know if there's an iron issue with the inside water as I've never had it tested but the prefilter I had on there was filthy rust colored every month so I changed it. The water pressure didn't seem to drop but it wasnt using any salt. The leak was in a metal connection in the first pipes coming out of the Kinetico tank which they replaced with all PVC pipes.
I never saw any visible sand or grit coming in but it's a closed system. Now with the spin down one which is clear, I will be able to see stuff and I think it has a flush valve. Was told to turn the valve on it once a week and it will flush out thru where the backwash water goes. I'm new at this well water stuff so please tell me if I haven't answered what you've asked. My main concern is getting rid of the iron and not sure this filter will do that.
 
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Old 03-05-08, 03:49 AM
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You're welcome.

Understanding iron is the first step. Most iron problems are caused by ferrous iron (clear water iron). This is iron from the source water that has yet to be oxidized, which turns it to rusty water like you might see from a dripping faucet or toilet tank. Then it becomes ferric iron.

Softeners are very good at removing ferrous but not ferric iron. Is the clear?

You softened water needs to be tested for iron. If it comes through it is because either your softener is not working or the iron has become ferric.

When you say it wasn't using 'any' salt (zero-zilch-nada-doughnuts, baby), then your softener is not working at all, and you will be able to see the damge caused by hard water easily in your home. Kinetico units are very salt efficient and people make that claim when compared with previous salt hogs they were used to.

Prefilters are supposed to get dirty. Depending on the type of sediment filter you used, the number of gallons used and the quality of water, sediment filters can last for months without needing to be changed or cleaned. In fact, a dirty filter can be more efficient than a clean ones in removing particulates until pressure drops noticeably, which you said you didn't have.

Now that you have a spin-down type, follow instructions and make adjustments as demands require.

I hope that helped.
Andy Christensen, CWS-II
 
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Old 03-05-08, 07:57 AM
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water softener filters

Thanks again Andy. I have a sprinkler system which doesnt go thru the softener. Where the clear water from the sprinkler hits my house, it's turning rust colored. Does that mean it oxidizes after it hits the house? OK, if that's true, why did the prefilter turn orange when the water was in a closed system and didn't oxidize? I have no sign of rust in the faucets or toilets but don't leave them dripping to form that kind of residue. The only sign I have of something being not right indoors is my laundry room has kind of an odor in there for a couple of days after I use the washing machine.
I checked with my local environmental health office and extension service and they only do bacterial testing on water. So looked up some test kits for iron and other minerals online and there are several. Which would you recommend?
 
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Old 03-15-08, 03:31 AM
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Angry Cannot get the rust out of my water. Help?

My husband and I moved into this house in June and I have never had this many problems with water! We have a sand filter, the rust filter and a water softener .(with rust remover salt) Guess what? Everything is still getting rust on it. Our clothes, sinks, toilet, tub and our hair. I'm beginning to look like a punk rocker. Not a good look at my age.

I did have the water tested and it's 7 parts per million of rust and hard water. The plummer said he has only seen one case of worse water than mine in 20 years. (good news, huh?)

Can anyone tell me what I should do?
 
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Old 03-16-08, 03:13 AM
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Originally Posted by brown81267
My husband and I moved into this house in June and I have never had this many problems with water! We have a sand filter, the rust filter and a water softener .(with rust remover salt) Guess what? Everything is still getting rust on it. Our clothes, sinks, toilet, tub and our hair. I'm beginning to look like a punk rocker. Not a good look at my age.

I did have the water tested and it's 7 parts per million of rust and hard water. The plummer said he has only seen one case of worse water than mine in 20 years. (good news, huh?)

Can anyone tell me what I should do?
Wow,there is a way to get that rust out and completely removed. There are a few other credible iron removal systems but the one I recomend is a unit by Hellenbrand. It's commonly known as an IC-10,which stands for Iron Curtain. The ten refers to the diameter of each 54 inch tall tank,it is a twin tank system. This unit uses oxygen and a mixed media bed to completely remove that rust and any smell that may be along for the ride well also be removed.
 
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Old 03-16-08, 02:52 PM
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Brown,

What type of plumbing do you have, copper, galvanized, plastic?

With a sand fillter, iron filter and softener it sounds like it should work. There may be a number of reasons why it is not.

Perhaps the system is under-sized or the media is exhausted. Can you describe in more detail the equipment? What is your pH?

At 7 ppm of iron, you DO have a challenge, but not impossible.

Andy Christensen, CWS-II
 
 

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