New Katalox Light AIO and Kinetico 2060S Softener Questions

[Charlie Bosco]

So I'll start off with the fact I have been fighting Sulfur smell for a while and I believe I FINALLY have a handle on it. I inherited this system with the house I bought 3 years ago.
Initial Setup flowed this way.
Well Pump, Pressure Tank, Small GE House Filter with 5 micron, Kinetico Softener, another empty GE House Fiter cansister for adding chlorine pellets to flush Carbon Filter, 1.5CF Backwashing Catalytic Carbon filter, to house.

I have since added a 50 micron Spin down filter in front of the 5 micron filter before the water softener. This was just to make the small filter last longer.

I recently replaced my Carbon filter with a 1.5cf KL 2510 AIO system yesterday. It was a direct replacement since the all I had to do was slip the new filter into the existing bypass valve. Did 2 Backwash cycles and went live. Welp.. I made a stupid mistake and just pulled the drain line from the existing mechanical 2510 off the carbon filter. When I did the first backwash all I was able to pull was 5 gpm using a timed bucket fill. Did not know how to get more. After researching "STUMBLED" on the fact that the backwash GPM is regulated by that little effing DLFC washer. This is not really talked about much. I went and looked at the one that was included with the KL 2510 and it was 700 (7gpm) the one from the Carbon Filter was 500(5gpm) I swapped this morning and fired up another backwash and holy hell, it came out like crazy with a bunch more grey sediment..

Now that I have the Stink and the backwash resolved...I realized I have another issue.. The Kinetico.. It backwashes by usage and not a timer. And since it was installed BEFORE the original Carbon Filter it kicks into regen when it hits its preset limit. This most likely wreaked havoc on the Carbon Regen when they were both going at the same time. When I tried to backwash the KL filter this morning I heard that Softener kick into regen. I immediately bypassed it till the regen finished.

The big question here is can I assume the person who put the original setup together was an idiot? IT seems that the logical way to set this up is to pull it all apart and have it Flow this way..

Well Pump, Pressure Tank, 50 Micron Spin Down, remove GE filter and add a Big Blue 4.5"x20" 5 Micron Filter, Katalox AIO Filter, Water Softener.

Thoughts, comments??

 

[Bannerman]

For KL in a 10" tank, the recommended Backwash flow rate is 5.4 - 8.1 gpm so your 7 gpm DLFC is within that range, assuming it is actually flowing 7 gpm to drain. In addition to the DLFC restrictor, your well pump and the plumbing feeding the filter will also need to support that flow rate so the small GE sediment filter maybe a restriction particularly when the filter is saturated with sediment or other debris.

While a larger capacity sediment filter should reduce the flow restriction through the filter, is sediment actually apparent in the incoming water? You said there is a spin down filter located after the pressure tank which should be catching the majority of sediment if any. Unless there is visible debris leaking through the spin down, a further filter is likely not needed.

A KL backwash filter before the softener will provide 5 microns of filtration through the media. Debris trapped by KL will be flushed out to drain during each backwash cycle so the potential for flow restriction due to oversaturated filter media will be eliminated.

This thread may be of interest particularly post #10: https://terrylove.com/forums/index.php?threads/new-well-water-is-cloudy-treatment-options.86040/

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Reach4]

Now that I have the Stink and the backwash resolved...I realized I have another issue.. The Kinetico.. It backwashes by usage and not a timer. And since it was installed BEFORE the original Carbon Filter it kicks into regen when it hits its preset limit. This most likely wreaked havoc on the Carbon Regen when they were both going at the same time.

Don't worry about that. The odds of that happening at the same time is minimal.

Well Pump, Pressure Tank, 50 Micron Spin Down, remove GE filter and add a Big Blue 4.5"x20" 5 Micron Filter, Katalox AIO Filter, Water Softener.

Well Pump, Pressure Tank, 50 Micron Spin Down, Katalox AIO Filter, [possible air remover **], Water Softener, Big Blue 4.5"x20" 5 Micron Filter


** remove air from pipes after AIO filter air release air
https://terrylove.com/forums/index....system-after-air-injection-iron-filter.74384/
#11 and #18.

 

[Charlie Bosco]

For KL in a 10" tank, the recommended Backwash flow rate is 5.4 - 8.1 gpm so your 7 gpm DLFC is within that range, assuming it is actually flowing 7 gpm to drain. In addition to the DLFC restrictor, your well pump and the plumbing feeding the filter will also need to support that flow rate so the small GE sediment filter maybe a restriction particularly when the filter is saturated with sediment or other debris.

While a larger capacity sediment filter should reduce the flow restriction through the filter, is sediment actually apparent in the incoming water? You said there is a spin down filter located after the pressure tank which should be catching the majority of sediment if any. Unless there is visible debris leaking through the spin down, a further filter is likely not needed.

A KL backwash filter before the softener will provide 5 microns of filtration through the media. Debris trapped by KL will be flushed out to drain during each backwash cycle so the potential for flow restriction due to oversaturated filter media will be eliminated.

This thread may be of interest particularly post #10: https://terrylove.com/forums/index.php?threads/new-well-water-is-cloudy-treatment-options.86040/

Thanks for the reply.. I forgot to clarify something.. I have practically zero iron in my well water.. The lab test showed .0172 mg/l and no bacteria. The hardness is 305 mg/l so I am only fighting H2S and hard water with a small amount of well silt..

So far so good. The KL is doing a great job. The water smells clear and showers are nice again. No sputtering from the faucets. The water is just aerated like the city water used to look like up north.
While my spin down is only 50 microns there is still some sediment in the GE filter. This is why I plan to add a Big Blue so there is no restrictions during backwashes.

I noticed a few things.
My toilet tank is now loosening up some film and debris during flushes. Thinking the aeration is cleaning it now.

The water while it does not smell at all is drinkable but has an off taste. Not sure if its the 8.2PH that I am now at or the catalyzed H2S. I read it takes a few weeks to stabilize. I am doing an extra backwash each night for the next week. Then let it go back to every other night.

So now I am left with a spare 1.5cf tank with mechanical 2510 head. I am dumping the Carbon and cleaning it out for possible reuse. Would it make any sense to refresh the tank with new Catalytic Carbon and add it after the KL? Any other way to best deploy this tank? or just keep it as a spare?

Lastly and sorry for all the questions.. But you guys are a plethora of knowledge. I am a firm believer in If you teach a man to fish.

I read that US Water does not sell KL anymore and has downplayed aeration systems. They showed pictures of a slugged up system. So my thoughts are.. I have no iron why should I care. and 2... Maybe they this way they can sell a ton of H2O2.
I went with KL because I did not want to keep adding chemicals and not have to replace the media every other year. Hoping I made the right choice.

 

[Bannerman]

The water while it does not smell at all is drinkable but has an off taste. ... Would it make any sense to refresh the tank with new Catalytic Carbon and add it after the KL? Any other way to best deploy this tank?

Your are accustomed to your drinking water being filtered through a large volume of carbon. Although your water treatment is being performed by other methods, carbon is still the best media for improving taste, odor and color.

Now with KL in use, Catalytic Carbon is likely not needed but you could fill the spare tank with regular granular activated carbon which should remove any 'off taste' and odor to improve the water quality to be similar to as you have been accustomed to.

Regular GAC is less expensive than CC and although GAC filters are often sold with only an In/Out head that provides no method to regularly backwash the media, periodic back washing is recommended to enhance the performance of the carbon and to assist to extend the carbon's usable lifespan.

New Katalox Light media will often raise pH initially, but that will usually gradually decline to be virtually equal to the pH of the raw water over time.

 

[ditttohead]

LOL. you are correct, selling tons of H2o2 is the plan. KL has a tendency (as do all manganese dioxide ore based medias) to have difficulty over time with H2S. I would keep the Catalytic tank going. Rebed it and put it online.

 

[Charlie Bosco]

LOL. you are correct, selling tons of H2o2 is the plan. KL has a tendency (as do all manganese dioxide ore based medias) to have difficulty over time with H2S. I would keep the Catalytic tank going. Rebed it and put it online.

Since the Carbon tank only had a backwash, there was no real way to catalyze since there was no real oxygen being introduced. the media was pretty well spent as it was over 10 years old. Even periodic chlorine would only last a few days or a week.

So the more I think about it.. refilling the Carbon tank with Catalytic Carbon and using it after the KL may quite honestly give me the perfect scenario.. also realizing that the softener is before all those tanks may increase the lifespan of the KL and Carbon media. Again, I am not fighting any iron.. ONLY h2s and hardness.

Now that the carbon tank would be fed with clearly aerated water from the KL AIO. This should kick off any final catalyst and scrubbing to make the water perfect. I am guessing the need to backwash that tank may only need to be done once a week or even 2??

So what Carbon do you suggest to reload it with?

 

[ditttohead]

There are several good carbons but their are some problems going on right now... I will PM you.