Looking for advice / critique on my residential well water filtration system

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YevC

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I'm looking for some feedback on my planned well water filtration system. I tried to be as detailed as possible without writing a wall of text. Any feedback is highly appreciated!

House:

  • 4 bedroom / 2 bathroom / 1 2 person whirlpool/jacuzzi/jetted tub
  • Used as a short term rental (AirBnB) so will occasionally have 10+ people for 2-5 days in a row.
  • Well ran dry July of last year (2020), was fracked and has been performing well since.
My current setup:
aR7nC.jpg

  • Culligan 10" x 2.5" filter housing
  • Currently use Culligan standard duty 10 micron string wound sediment filters
0j1vj.jpg


Problems:
  • Water has a some dissolved iron, it comes out clear but after sitting for a while it stains toilet bowl and tub. My home water test didn't detect any iron, where as Culligan came out to test my water and found it to be 0.2
  • The string wound filter has no rubber seals on top or bottom so it lets through sediment from time to time. This may not be a problem after all, as after posting this on another forum, someone suggested that my filter housing appears to be installed backwards. They were right - I have since put it on correctly.
  • The big one: during excessive water use (filling jacuzzi & multiple showers within a short period of time) the water level in the well drops - a lot of sediment and brown water comes up, the filter let's through a bunch of the sediment and no longer filters out the brown color. The water will eventually clear up, however, the damage is already done (clogged faucet aerators, shower heads, stained toilets, etc).
  • I have tried installing a culligan 5 micron filter - however, there was a noticeable change in water pressure from 2 people using the water for 2-3 days. Pulling it out, it was completely clogged up with iron/rust/brown silt(?).
  • I had culligan come out to test my water - they didnt find anything significant except that they claim the PH of the water is 6.1 - when I tested it with my home test I found it to be 6.5 - 7.5ish (not sure which one is more accurate... and I'm hesitant to trust the culligan guy 100% as he's trying to sell me a $2000 system). In addition, I haven't had any issues with pinholes, etc. - so not sure if this is a problem worth solving at this point. I'm mostly concerned with sediment and color.
  • kao6XrO.jpg
Solution:
  • I'm essentially looking to upgrade my filtration system to what this guy did on youtube:
    , however, I'm trying to figure out the specific micron sizes for each stage for normal filtration and to handle the occasional high sediment and brown water "events" as described above (without clogging up the whole system).
  • The plan is to have 2 spin down filters (I'm thinking first 200 microns to capture really big stuff, the second 50 micron - not sure) and then 2x 4.5" x 10" filters (thinking 25 micron & 5 micron or maybe 25 micron & gradient 25=>1 micron - I don't know, trying to figure this part out).
This is what the sediment currently looks like after an excessive use / high sediment "event", with a sharpie for scale:
WJM7T.jpg
53k54.jpg


Which of these is a better filter stack for this size sediment (keeping in mind, there's almost none - unless people overuse the water which can happen once every 1-2 months). Or would you suggest a better filter stack?

  • 200 micron spin down > 100 micron spin down > 50 micron polypropylene > 5 micron polypropylene
  • 200 micron spin down > 100 micron spin down > 50 micron polypropylene > 25-1 micron gradient polypropylene
  • 100 micron spin down > 50 micron spin down > 25 micron polypropylene > 5 micron gradient polypropylene
  • 200 micron spin down > 50 micron spin down > 25 micron polypropylene > 5 micron polypropylene
  • 200 micron spin down > 50 micron spin down > 25 micron polypropylene > 25=>1 micron polypropylene
A few additional questions:

  • Does it make sense to install a shut off ball valve, spigot and pressure gauge between each filter?

  • My water lines are 3/4" - does it make sense to use 1" pipe to plumb the filtration system so I'm not losing pressure due to inside diameter of pex?
Thank you in advance!
 
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Reach4

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Culligan 10" x 2.5" filter housing
A housing that takes 4.5x20 cartridges would be expected to hold maybe 6x as much. I am using PENTEK-DGD-5005-20 cartridges.

Does it make sense to install a shut off ball valve, spigot and pressure gauge between each filter?
You want some kind of bypass I would think. A boiler drain valve lets you sample, but you could also mount a GHT pressure gauge. In a pinch you could even bypass between two such valves with a hose and a female-female adapter. While I keep spare O-rings, such a thing would be my emergency bypass. I do have valves blocking my filter housings each way.

One philosophy is to put your filter cartridge after the softener. Any broken beads would be caught there. Any particle that are under 60 microns and get stuck in the softener during service would probably backwash out.
 

YevC

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A housing that takes 4.5x20 cartridges would be expected to hold maybe 6x as much. I am using PENTEK-DGD-5005-20 cartridges.

How about 4.5x10? What kind of housing are you using? I would prefer to get clear housings because I'd like to be able to see when a filter needs changing (and they also look pretty cool!) but it seems that most 20" housings are opaque - clear ones have really mixed reviews (mostly poor).

One philosophy is to put your filter cartridge after the softener. Any broken beads would be caught there. Any particle that are under 60 microns and get stuck in the softener during service would probably backwash out.

So I don't have a softener - don't think I need one. If anything I may need a neutralizer for the PH, but I'm not sure I want to spend on it at the moment. Mostly looking to battle the occasional burst of sediment and "dirty" water.
 

Reach4

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How about 4.5x10? What kind of housing are you using? I would prefer to get clear housings because I'd like to be able to see when a filter needs changing (and they also look pretty cool!) but it seems that most 20" housings are opaque - clear ones have really mixed reviews (mostly poor).
I have opaque Pentek Big Blue 4.5x20. I bought an array of 3 before deciding to get my backwashing iron+H2S filter, which now sits in front. I keep the first housing empty now, and I could keep two of them empty... but have not so far. A wye strainer before that backwashing filter probably would have been better. Clear housings are said to be less durable, but they do seem to have some big advantages. Pressure gauges on either side to monitor drop would tell part of the story, but looking at the sediment would seem to be helpful.

So I don't have a softener - don't think I need one. If anything I may need a neutralizer for the PH, but I'm not sure I want to spend on it at the moment.
I suggest that you get a cheap electronic pH meter. Get a buffer salt package for probably 6.86 pH, and make up the 250 mL calibration solution via Ebay. You can use a gram scale to measure the 250 ml of distilled water, rather than a graduate. Use a clean jar with a screw lid. Before each use, calibrate the meter with the single calibration screw. Store the meter with the tip dipped in buffer solution that you put in the meter cap, and store tip-down.

The meters are often sold with buffer salt packets to make the solution.
 
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Valveman

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Filters are a last resort. You should always try to reduce or eliminate the sediment coming from the well when possible first. Sometimes simply pumping the well hard for a good length of time, and maybe shutting if off for a while and then running it hard again will help develop the well better and slow or stop the sediment. Then if the well only make sediment when the water level is pulled down, then don't let the water level pull down. You can use a cistern tank to fill slowly from the well. Then a booster pump can draw clean water from the cistern and fill as many hot tubs as you want to fill quickly.

LOW YIELD WELL_ CENTRIFUGAL_PK1A.jpg
LOW YIELD WELL_and storage with two PK1A one pipe.jpg
LOW YIELD WELL_SUB_PK1A.jpg
 

YevC

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Filters are a last resort. You should always try to reduce or eliminate the sediment coming from the well when possible first. Sometimes simply pumping the well hard for a good length of time, and maybe shutting if off for a while and then running it hard again will help develop the well better and slow or stop the sediment. Then if the well only make sediment when the water level is pulled down, then don't let the water level pull down. You can use a cistern tank to fill slowly from the well. Then a booster pump can draw clean water from the cistern and fill as many hot tubs as you want to fill quickly.

Thank you for that - I do know that in the long run, I either need to setup some sort of local water storage or dig my well deeper. At this time, I do not have the time, money or space to do either. At this point I am consciously trying to treat the symptom rather than the cause.
 
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