diggity
Member
Hi - so I'm the guy who asked some questions about a treatment system for a high iron/high hardness, low pH system a few weeks ago. A recent water test is below - copied from my original post, BUT... with a more accurate pH measurement (long story, I have had several pH tests, one of which I didn't believe, but turned out to be right). Anyway, here are the measurements:
Coliform: 0
Sodium: 157 mg/L
Potassium: 6.45 mg/L
Copper: ND
Iron: 18 mg/L
Manganese: 5 mg/L
Magnesium: 39 mg/L
Calcium: 252 mg/L
Zinc: 0.16 mg/L
pH: 5.32
Turbidity: 200 NTU
TDS: 1,795 mg/L
Alkalinity: 20 mg/L
Chlorine: ND
Chloride: 426 mg/L
Hardness: 792 mg/L
Nitrate: 4 mg/L
Nitrite: ND
Ammonia: 10 mg/L
Sulfate: 534 mg/L
Current system:
Well -> acid neutralizer -> pressure tank -> sand filter -> softener
Right now we have a big softener, which is removing most (but not all) of the iron. A few weeks ago, I said I was in the process of replacing the calcite in the acid neutralizer, which I did. However, it has not changed the pH very much, according to my test strips. The pH after the neutralizer is maybe a quarter point higher than before, and that's it. I'm thinking that there's just too much acid for the calcite to neutralize and/or the flow rate may be too fast. Anyway, now I'm wondering if I should use a sodium carbonate injection system to moderate the pH, instead of the calcite? But I'm still confused about what the ideal pH would be for the softener, especially considering how much iron we have ... I don't want to foul the resin or reduce its efficiency. I read that softeners work better at a low pH, but iron removal occurs best at a high pH. So I'm scratching my head. Any advice is appreciated - thanks!
Coliform: 0
Sodium: 157 mg/L
Potassium: 6.45 mg/L
Copper: ND
Iron: 18 mg/L
Manganese: 5 mg/L
Magnesium: 39 mg/L
Calcium: 252 mg/L
Zinc: 0.16 mg/L
pH: 5.32
Turbidity: 200 NTU
TDS: 1,795 mg/L
Alkalinity: 20 mg/L
Chlorine: ND
Chloride: 426 mg/L
Hardness: 792 mg/L
Nitrate: 4 mg/L
Nitrite: ND
Ammonia: 10 mg/L
Sulfate: 534 mg/L
Current system:
Well -> acid neutralizer -> pressure tank -> sand filter -> softener
Right now we have a big softener, which is removing most (but not all) of the iron. A few weeks ago, I said I was in the process of replacing the calcite in the acid neutralizer, which I did. However, it has not changed the pH very much, according to my test strips. The pH after the neutralizer is maybe a quarter point higher than before, and that's it. I'm thinking that there's just too much acid for the calcite to neutralize and/or the flow rate may be too fast. Anyway, now I'm wondering if I should use a sodium carbonate injection system to moderate the pH, instead of the calcite? But I'm still confused about what the ideal pH would be for the softener, especially considering how much iron we have ... I don't want to foul the resin or reduce its efficiency. I read that softeners work better at a low pH, but iron removal occurs best at a high pH. So I'm scratching my head. Any advice is appreciated - thanks!