Milky, smelly RO water

Users who are viewing this thread

SkyAce2004

New Member
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Location
Florida
I have a whole home RO system that treats our well water. The well water is pre-filtered, then processed by an RO where it's then stored in an aerator holding tank. The water is clear when being made and then its cleaned with a diluted chlorine agent inside the tank. From there, it's run through a carbon filter before entering the house.

However, recently the water in the holding tank has started getting cloudy. I emptied and cleaned the tank and had them re-filled. During the filling, the water was clear. 2 days later, it gets cloudy again. While the water is clear, it smells fine inside the house. After the water gets cloudy, there is a strong smell of sulfer in the house.

Any idea what would be causing the water to.get cloudy after 2 days of sitting in the tank? I live in Florida.

The attached photo is 2 day old water, can't even see the house pump inside the tank...

Thanks!
 

Attachments

  • 20160619_162838.jpg
    20160619_162838.jpg
    25 KB · Views: 194

Reach4

Well-Known Member
Messages
38,796
Reaction score
4,413
Points
113
Location
IL
I am not familiar with such systems. I would check the residual free chlorine level in the tank. If you don't have a test kit for that, you can get strips or other kit at a pool store.
 

SkyAce2004

New Member
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Location
Florida
I am not familiar with such systems. I would check the residual free chlorine level in the tank. If you don't have a test kit for that, you can get strips or other kit at a pool store.

Thanks for your reply. What's the ideal level it should be at?
 

Reach4

Well-Known Member
Messages
38,796
Reaction score
4,413
Points
113
Location
IL
Thanks for your reply. What's the ideal level it should be at?
Not sure. I am not a pro. I would think 1.0 to 2.0 ppm. You have limited contact time in your tank, so you would not want to go too low. You could bump that to 4 temporarily. Higher shortens the life of your GAC (granular activated carbon/charcoal) from what I understand.

If you see free chlorine getting past your GAC tank, time to replace the GAC.

If the chlorine level was OK, I wonder if this would be tiny gas bubbles coming out of solution. That would be nothing to worry about.
 
Messages
9
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Location
Grand Blanc, Michigan
I have a whole home RO system that treats our well water. The well water is pre-filtered, then processed by an RO where it's then stored in an aerator holding tank. The water is clear when being made and then its cleaned with a diluted chlorine agent inside the tank. From there, it's run through a carbon filter before entering the house.

However, recently the water in the holding tank has started getting cloudy. I emptied and cleaned the tank and had them re-filled. During the filling, the water was clear. 2 days later, it gets cloudy again. While the water is clear, it smells fine inside the house. After the water gets cloudy, there is a strong smell of sulfer in the house.

Any idea what would be causing the water to.get cloudy after 2 days of sitting in the tank? I live in Florida.

The attached photo is 2 day old water, can't even see the house pump inside the tank...

Thanks!

How old is the RO system and when was the last time you changed the filters including the membranes? It sound like you have sulfate reducing bacteria. You may need to change all the filters and sanitize everything, including the RO. Shock chlorinate the holding tank, household plumbing and rebed the carbon tank also.
 

Dan Brown

New Member
Messages
12
Reaction score
1
Points
3
Location
United Kingdom
Some great advice i see here, im not good at pools at all, but i think i get the "jist" of what to do if i ever have this problem.
 

Mialynette2003

In the Trades
Messages
944
Reaction score
17
Points
18
Location
Ocala, Florida
I'm wondering why the aerator. RO water should be free of anything that will cause a smell. Aerators remove smell. The type of chlorination system you have is primitive. You should have an injection pump. I have set up many whole house RO systems and have never seen what you are describing.
 
Top
Hey, wait a minute.

This is awkward, but...

It looks like you're using an ad blocker. We get it, but (1) terrylove.com can't live without ads, and (2) ad blockers can cause issues with videos and comments. If you'd like to support the site, please allow ads.

If any particular ad is your REASON for blocking ads, please let us know. We might be able to do something about it. Thanks.
I've Disabled AdBlock    No Thanks