New Iron Filter still see Iron.

[Reach4]

I then tested for Iron. No Iron detected in my sample from the faucet, no Iron detected in my sample from the faucet that was brown from the bromine, no Iron detected in my sample after the Iron filter. I then tested the raw water and detected Iron. My test has a color wheel but I never saw an exact match to the color in my sample and the wheel but I would guess its less then 2ppm iron because after 2 the color wheel was way darker then the sample. Based on this I think my Iron filter is working to stop the Iron. My water softener is also filtering what ever is causing my water to turn brown when in contact with Bromine but it is causing the resin to become exhausted way earlier then the softener is programed for. I am going to need to get the softener regen dialed in to eliminate this issue.
Does my assessment seem logical? If my issue is not Iron then what is it?

2 ppm is a lot of iron. Your lab test from a few years ago showed 1.46 mg/L (ppm), so saying your iron test result out of your iron filter Is less than 2 ppm is not saying much. Maybe you were talking about your raw water.

If your softener is dealing with a residual of 0.3 ppm, for example, you would want to give your softener some help by adding treatment periodically.

I would expect bromine to turn ferrous iron containing water clear, after the ferric iron settles out to the bottom. Same with chlorine bleach.

 

[2004blackwrx]

Working night shift this weekend. I sampled from the faucet today after my regen last night. I got 2 grains of hardness. Also added bromine to a sample and water stays clear. Whatever is causing the bromine to turn the water brown is removed by Softener until the resin gets exhausted. I also sample right after Iron filter and I see 0 to a trace of iron, so I know the iron filter is removing the iron. If I add bromine to the Iron sample it will turn brown. So whatever is reacting with the bromine I do not believe to be Iron. Also the samples I take that turn brown never settle anything out even after a few days. I wonder what it is. Could it be Manganese? From my reading my ph may be too low for the katalox light to remove manganese. I turned my water softener grain setting to 35 and I will see how that does for me. Also my salt is set to 12. It was originally at 9 but my water guy had me move it to 12 when my issues started. From what I can tell I should be able to get clear water from getting right settings dialed in on the softener. My question is really figuring out what is causing the brown water and if I need to improve my setup because its relying too much on the softener.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Reach4]

I am suspecting the sample that turns brown with bromine is finely divided ferrous iron. Let is sit for a good while, I suspect the color will settle to the bottom. You might try that.

 

[2004blackwrx]

I am suspecting the sample that turns brown with bromine is finely divided ferrous iron. Let is sit for a good while, I suspect the color will settle to the bottom. You might try that.

I will take a sample and see how long it takes to settle out and keep you all updated. If it is very fine ferrous Iron is it normal for a test not to detect it? Also if it is really fine is there anything I can do about it besides just relying on the Softener to do the final clean up.

 

[Reach4]

Bromine in water, even distilled water, turns brown AFAIK, if you have enough. What happens if you add chlorine bleach rather than bromine?

 

[2004blackwrx]

Bromine in water, even distilled water, turns brown AFAIK, if you have enough. What happens if you add chlorine bleach rather than bromine?

I will have to get some chlorine to see. However I used these bromine tablets in my toilets for years without issues of streaking in toilets until November at which time I smelled the Iron in the water which led to me replacing the Culligan system. Also after a regen a bromine tablet sitting in a glass overnight does nothing but a few days later as the resin is used up in the softener a sample with bromine will turn brown within hours.

 

[Reach4]

Also after a regen a bromine tablet sitting in a glass overnight does nothing but a few days later as the resin is used up in the softener a sample with bromine will turn brown within hours.

There went my theory that it was the bromine itself producing the color.
So your thought that you are getting residual iron thru the softener makes sense. You will want to treat your resin with an acid-- Iron Out, citric acid (which smells better than IO) or phosphoric acid such as ResCare which can be metered in with a bottle and wick dispenser.

You will also want to increase the H (hardness) setting for the softener to cause it to regen more frequently.

For your try with chlorine, get a jug of chlorine bleach that lists a percent number on the label.

 

[2004blackwrx]

Its been a while since I last wrote but I want to give an update. I finally got my system running properly. My softner now regenerates about every 1000 gallons. If I go longer I still get the staining when the water mixes with chlorine or bromine. I ended up solving my issue by looking at my system carefully and putting together things I have read on this forum. In the end my issue was in the settings not matching the equipment. 1st I realized the drain flow control size in the system was not the same as in the setting which caused incomplete backwashes. After weeks of this not fixing the issue I dug deeper and noticed brine flow control setting didnt match what was actually in the equipment causing not enoigh brine to wash the resin. After I adjusted the settings to the actual equipment Itwas fine. In the end a easy fix but on a system that I bought that was supposed to be all preset it was easily overlooked. The water guy who sold me the system came to check my setup and found nothing. Later I told him what I found and he was shocked and said he never seen the system not setup right. His supplier is supposed to take care of that part. Long story short check your settings.

 

[Reach4]

It sounds like your softener is doing a lot of the iron treatment, rather than the iron filter.

 

[Bannerman]

Water conditions often change over time, so your 10-year old lab report may not represent current conditions.

While a comprehensive lab test maybe considered 'expensive', how much time and money have you spent on treatment methods that have been ineffective? While it's possible you may become lucky in finding an effective method, without knowing which conditions are present, identifying the appropriate treatment required can be comparable to throwing darts while blindfolded.

A 9 X 48" tank is suitable for only 1 cubic foot media.

The recommended service flowrate for a 9" Katalox tank is between 2.6 and 5.3 GPM, but with a significant level of iron and manganese, the usual flow rate to supply your home's fixtures maybe exceeding the effective removal rate for that quantity of Katalox media.

When obtaining a sample directly after the filter while there is no other water being utilized, the flow rate is likely significantly less than is supported by the media so the sample is testing with 0 iron. What if the sample is obtained while there is also flow to 1 or 2 other fixtures at the same time?

To enhance the effective performance of the 1 ft2 Katalox media, may require injection of hydrogen peroxide, chlorine or ozone to assist the Katalox media to further oxidize the significant iron and manganese before filtering out the resulting solids.

 

[Larrytove]

Any thoughts on this one? https://www.aquascience.net/katalox...x-54-tank-fleck-5600sxt-digital-control-valve

 

[Bannerman]

The optimal backwash rate for Katalox Light is 15 GPM/ft2 or slightly higher so for a 10" diameter tank, that calculates as 8.1 GPM +.

One of the Fleck 5600 ununfortunate limitations is a maximum 7.0 GPM drain flow rate limit which makes that valve a poor choice for a 10" KL filter system.