We were told after getting rust stains in the sinks and toilets that we have excess iron in the water. Hence the softener guys put in an expensive iron filter that we rent, and so we'd like to end that arrangement.

Then the builder from next door said that sometimes iron in the water can be from sediment or build up in the basement well tank, (which I'd say is 20+ years old) and I should get after it there.

My question....is this true? How would I know for sure and what do I do? Thanks very much!

 

In the simplest of description there are 2 types of iron found in water, soluble and insoluble.

Soluble is fully dissolved in the water, when it is exposed to air it comes out of solution and becomes insoluble.

So an iron filter, and to a lessor extent a water softener, removes the soluble iron.

What your referring to is insoluble iron that has oxidized and may be present in the tank.

If your get rust stains in the toilets and water tastes bad that is the soluble iron and needs a filter/softener to remove.

If your getting red water that would be stuff that might be in the pressure tank but I'll bet you simply have high iron in the water that needs to be addressed.

You can buy your own equipment to resolve, I suspect in the long run that will be cheaper. A water test is the first step to know what you have and what it's going to take to resolve!