Well water considerations while backwashing a Calcite filter

[TimKG]

I recently pulled the trigger and finally installed a downflow calcite filter in my home to address my 5.9 ph water.

My biggest concern with such a system has always been the wasted water when backwashing.

My well is only 100' with my static water level at around 75'. That's only about 112 gallons of immediate water in the well pipe. Without having any idea how quickly ground water flows back into my well when the water is used, I worry that the approximate 60+ gallons simply dumped upon backwashing will leave me in a bind.

My solutions are this:

1. It has me thinking that it would make more sense to reclaim the backwash water, which is clean, and run a connection BACK to my well head so i wouldn't lose a drop. Is this unreasonable to consider or technically even allowed?

2. Simply backwash less often like every 10 to 14 days. Since the water is clean, backwashing only seems to be to prevent compaction and channeling of the media in a downflow setup.
I've seen a lot of conflicting advice online on how often this is recommended.
My pressure gauges at the well pressure tank and after the calcite filter are consistently within 3 psi of each other even with 10+ days between backwashing. I've been testing this.

3. Abandon this system completely and research/install a soda ash system instead.
I'm actually leaning this way if i don't feel comfortable with wasting precious well water.
My water obviously got harder with the calcite filter but a water softener still feels optional. i went from 1.1 grains hardness to about 7.
Still i can't help wondering If I've simply traded one problem (low ph) for another (hard water).

Am I worrying un-necessarily? This really seems like a LOT of water to just throw away and not reclaim somehow.

Appreciate your thoughts.

-Tim

 

[Reach4]

It has me thinking that it would make more sense to reclaim the backwash water, which is clean, and run a connection BACK to my well head so i wouldn't lose a drop. Is this unreasonable to consider or technically even allowed?

Interesting idea. Initially I was thinking no, because you would be adding solids to the well. I still am thinking this could be a problem, but I am not sure.

I would tend to think that 99% of water flowing back into your well would take much less than a day. But I guess there could be really low producing wells. I would think that a shorter-duration backwash and fast rinse might be a better water saver, rather than less frequent backwash. But again, I don't know that one either.

You could get an ultrasonic well sounder and do your own studies. If a group of neighbors shared such a device, that could be economical enough.

Simply backwash less often like every 10 to 14 days. Since the water is clean, backwashing only seems to be to prevent compaction of the media in a downflow setup.
I've seen a lot of conflicting advice online on how often this is recommended.
My pressure gauges at the well pressure tank and after the calcite filter are consistently within 3 psi of each other even with 10+ days between backwashing. I've been testing this.

More than compaction, I think the purpose of the backwash is to prevent channeling.

Abandon this system completely and research/install a soda ash system instead.
I'm actually leaning this way if i don't feel comfortable with wasting precious well water.
My water obviously got harder with the calcite filter but a water softener still feels optional. i went from 1.1 grains hardness to about 7.
Still i can't help wondering If I've simply traded one problem (low ph) for another (hard water).

Interesting idea. It would be nice if there were a good market for gently used backwashing calcite systems locally.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[TimKG]

Interesting idea. Initially I was thinking no, because you would be adding solids to the well. I still am thinking this could be a problem, but I am not sure.

That's a decent point. Unsure how much worse adding already treated and moderately hard water water affects my well pump any more that it will affect my appliances and fixtures. So far I've suffered no ill effects from harder water.
I joke that if i want to get rid of any future calcium buildup, I can just switch the neutralizer into bypass and get all my acidic water back for a few weeks. that should eat it. =)

I would tend to think that 99% of water flowing back into your well would take much less than a day. But I guess there could be really low producing wells. I would think that a shorter-duration backwash and fast rinse might be a better water saver, rather than less frequent backwash. But again, I don't know that one either.

I installed a Clack head on my tank and sadly the shortest backwash duration it offers me is 10 minutes: 6 for backwash and 4 for rinse. can't change it. I considered a manual head but decided against it. Hindsight.

More than compaction, I think the purpose of the backwash is to prevent channeling.

I meant channeling as well, I edited my post to reflect that.


When we first moved in here, my friends brother visited and was freaking out when we let the kids frivolously run through a sprinkler to cool off on a hot summer day, being on a well and all. He ruined me in that moment! I never would have thought about it but now I'm neurotic! LOL

 

[Reach4]

If you have not run out of water, and your neighbors have not run out of water, then you are very unlikely to run out of water for a significant part of a day.

Put your discharge into a dry well or septic tank, and the water will be recycled into the aquifer eventually.

 

[Gsmith22]

in NJ (where I'm at), the state keeps well drilling records that includes location, depth, diameter, and flow of well at initial drilling. This is searchable online - maybe VA has that as well? In any event, I have a 590' well with static head around 90' because my well only flows 3gpm (per records). So the prior owner put in a massively deep well to essentially guarantee that the well couldn't be pumped dry. I've never had an issue. Your setup suggests a higher flowing well than mine (or the prior owner of my house was paranoid)

I opted for a soda ash system for all the reasons you state - I didn't want to add hardness after I had already taken it out with a softener and I was trying to limit how much water I use due to being on a low flowing well. I think it is a superior system to the calcite tanks.

 

[TimKG]

in NJ (where I'm at), the state keeps well drilling records that includes location, depth, diameter, and flow of well at initial drilling. This is searchable online - maybe VA has that as well? In any event, I have a 590' well with static head around 90' because my well only flows 3gpm (per records). So the prior owner put in a massively deep well to essentially guarantee that the well couldn't be pumped dry. I've never had an issue. Your setup suggests a higher flowing well than mine (or the prior owner of my house was paranoid)

I opted for a soda ash system for all the reasons you state - I didn't want to add hardness after I had already taken it out with a softener and I was trying to limit how much water I use due to being on a low flowing well. I think it is a superior system to the calcite tanks.

I've actually thought that if I can't come to terms with the water waste and switched to a soda ash system that i could just empty the calcite tank and re-use it as a holding tank for the soda ash conditioned water.

I'd still like to hear more thoughts on whether pumping the water back to the well is allowable or a bad idea. It might be one of those things that no-one quite knows for sure the repercussions of such a thing.

I'm considering a dry well too since i have a need for it anyway with rainwater runoff. I'm cool with the water getting back to the aquifer ultimately, I just don't love the idea that I wont get the benefit of it since my well is uphill from my house.

I've also considered and upflow head for my AN filter but there are some variables there that i can't quite know without actually doing it and deciding if it was worth it. I really don't want to re-plumb for an "experiment" and the moderate hardness will always be a factor. I have zero plans to consider a water softener and have to backwash/waste even more water!

 

[Reach4]

I've actually thought that if I can't come to terms with the water waste and switched to a soda ash system that i could just empty the calcite tank and re-use it as a holding tank for the soda ash conditioned water.

It seems to me that if you injected soda ash, the calcite would start being consumed much slower, and the amount of hardness added per gallon would decrease. Eventually the calcite would be gone. This is not to say that you should't remove the calcite in that case, but it would not be manditory.

I'm considering a dry well too since i have a need for it anyway with rainwater runoff. I'm cool with the water getting back to the aquifer ultimately, I just don't love the idea that I wont get the benefit of it since my well is uphill from my house.

Typically a dry well would not be able to handle the gutter volume from big rainstorm.

I've also considered and upflow head for my AN filter but there are some variables there that i can't quite know without actually doing it and deciding if it was worth it.

What would the purpose of that be? Usually upflow calcite is used by people who don't want to pay for a backwashing valve.

 

[Bannerman]

I just don't love the idea that I wont get the benefit of it since my well is uphill from my house.

While the top of the well maybe uphill, the location of water entry into the well maybe substantially lower than your home's elevation.

Back washing calcite every few days will often prevent the media from becoming a hardened lump of concrete.

Since a well recovery test is usually performed on a well when it is first drilled, if you don't have the report, perhaps the well driller retained a copy to share. Maybe the well recovery is sufficient enough so there is no issue, particularly as Back washing is usually performed while everyone is sleeping and the well will usually have adequate time to recover before water will again be consumed.

 

[ditttohead]

Uplflow calcite systems are typically recommended if you have a known, non variable flow rate application. ie: post RO treatment, or treating the water between your pump and your holding tank. This way the tank diameter can be sized based on your known flow rate. A downflow calcite is used for variable flow rate applications. If you run 8 GPM through a 10x54 tank upflow, you will likely get almost no pH correction as the calcite simply fluidizes and you contact with the calcite is negated.

I highly recommend a soda ash injection system with polyphosphate when you have low hardness. Why take great soft water and make it hard?? Like you said, you traded one problem with another.