"Rotten egg" odor water treatment options

[WillC91]

Hey, I'm having odor issues with my drilled well and I'm having trouble finding definitive solutions on google. Generally I'm looking for a way to reduce or remove the smell completely with a limited budget and space may also be a concern (plumbing is in a crawl space). Solutions or suggestions are much appreciated, the problem has become an issue for my family.

- Both the hot and cold water smell of rotten eggs and the hot is much stronger
- The odor has become worse over the past couple of months
- A water test showed total coliform bacteria present but no e.coli
- Currently only using a sediment filter for rust/sediment
- Installed a new hot water tank ~4 months ago, new water pump ~1 year ago

 

[Reach4]

1. If you have a submersible pump, I suggest you sanitize your well. https://terrylove.com/forums/index....izing-extra-attention-to-4-inch-casing.65845/ is my writeup. It's inexpensive to try that.

2. A powered anode can help with the hot having extra H2S. I like the Ceranode with the long electrode rather than the cheaper short-probe versions.

3. There are various H2S treatments. Mine use Centaur Carbon, and a bleach solution to regenerate every 3 days. There are others.

I am not a pro.

 

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[WillC91]

Thanks,
I used bleach on the well and hot water tank. After 2 days it still seems to be odor-free, but I noticed some grey water came out of my hot water tank upon refilling (out of the open faucet). Could this indicate I should replace the anode in the tank or is that normal?

Also, I noticed my pump seems to come on for about 2 seconds, fill then drain rapidly, and repeat. In total the cycle only lasts around 6 or 7 seconds under load. Is this generally bad for my system?

 

[Reach4]

Thanks,
I used bleach on the well and hot water tank. After 2 days it still seems to be odor-free, but I noticed some grey water came out of my hot water tank upon refilling (out of the open faucet). Could this indicate I should replace the anode in the tank or is that normal?

I would flush your WH. see https://terrylove.com/forums/index.php?threads/proper-way-to-flush-a-hot-water-heater.79444/ , especially #7.

Also, I noticed my pump seems to come on for about 2 seconds, fill then drain rapidly, and repeat. In total the cycle only lasts around 6 or 7 seconds under load. Is this generally bad for my system?

Yes.

Check and fix your air precharge. That is done with the water pressure zero. It could be your tank needs replacing. In that case, some air can help temporarily anyway.

 

[WillC91]

Alright great, yes the air precharge was far too low and it seems to be cycling for longer and less often now.

Sorry for the confusion, what I mean is that I flushed my WH and upon refilling some grey water sputtered out of my tap when it was nearly full. Seemed distinct from the normal brown/red water I'd normally see following a flush.