Gravel for water treatment , where to get

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jpatz18

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Im trying to find gravel, I received my softener. I looked to find gravel and can not find it except online. Is there anything I can buy at home depot or any other place like lowes?

Would Rock City 0.5-cu ft Pea Gravel or QUIKRETE 50-lb Drainage Rock be ok to use?
 
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ditttohead

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I would be wary of just buying any gravel. Gravel for water treatment does not have any leachable arsenic etc, and is usually certified by the NSF as such. Rock for underlayment, or for concrete fill has little need for any certifications of this type. Just a thought to consider. Look around for local water treatment dealers, they will usually have gravel in stock, and it is fairly cheap.
 

Bannerman

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Whatever gravel being used, should be rinsed with fresh water until all silt and debris is flushed away and the rinse water continues to flow clear from the gravel. The gravel should also be disinfected with chlorine solution.
 

ENIGMA-2

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Sorry for the newbie question, but what if any use, does putting gravel in a small residential water softener, perform? I read in another website that it was not needed in residential softeners, and that most commercial made softener's did not use any.
 

Bannerman

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Enigma - A gravel under bed is utilized to assist in distributing flow over the entire diameter of the resin tank below the resin, thereby utilizing more of the resin bed while in service. Backwash flowing upwards is also distributed below the entire resin bed, as opposed to only flowing up from one specific point in the center of the tank. The gravel in effect, expands the diameter of the bottom screen.

One further benefit is it keeps the resin away from the bottom screen. If the bottom screen is ever damaged for whatever reason, the gravel will help to prevent/reduce resin from exiting the tank and flowing into the plumbing system.

While some claim gravel is not needed in smaller diameter tanks less than 12", there are few benefits to not installing a gravel under bed. The benefit for online dealers in claiming it is not needed, is less shipping cost as shipping is often included in the system price and gravel is heavy.

In most commercial softeners, a gravel underbed is used but as they typically have a large diameter valve mount, a large diameter lateral distributor could be utilized: http://www.seawaterroplant.com/sale...ressure-tanks-hub-and-lateral-8-laterals.html as opposed to the small diameter cone shaped basket screens used in residential units: http://www.apswater.com/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=315&cat=Domestic+Distributors,+Baskets+and+Auto+Turbulators+and+Assemblies
 

ditttohead

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Virtually all commercial softeners use gravel under bedding. These websites use this bad claim so as to lessen their shipping cost in a desperate effort to be $1 cheaper than the next online dealer. Most online resellers of water treatment equipment have learned that if you are not the cheapest, sales will fall. Unfortunately water treatment equipment has many places where companies can save a lot of money by using lower end junk. Cheap mineral tanks, no gravel, low quality bottom screens, junk resin, etc. are just some of the ways online companies have learned to save a few bucks. Even the use of counterfeit valves and components from China has been found recently. The web site that claims gravel is not needed, while the claim from a technical standpoint may be factually correct, the rest of the claims are poorly thought out and expressed. Yes, you can build a system without a gravel bed, but no, it is not a good idea unless you are using a vortech tank design, which has its own unique issues that we wont go into here.
 

Reach4

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I read in another website that it was not needed in residential softeners, and that most commercial made softener's did not use any.
You may be thinking of http://www.softenerparts.com/kb_results.asp?ID=147 which says
The main problem I have with the use of Gravel( that is Not needed ) in residential size tanks is the fact that once you have added the Media to the Tank, should you ever remove the Valve from the Tank, and the Pipe slides up an inch or two ( which is common ) you will NOT be able to put the Valve back on the tank, until you have dumped everything out, put the pipe back on the bottom of the tank, and added the "media" back in.​

I don't see how you would shove that pipe back into place with resin there without damaging something, even if there was no gravel. But then I have not ever tried such things.
 

_John_

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you can run a hose down the riser to get it back in place (essentially you backwash it back in place).

Not to be practiced regularly, as if you crack the riser bad things happen...but sometimes neutralizers are installed without a dome hole tank or really small tanks where no dome is available.
 
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