Any information about water purification for my well water appreciated (vanity)

mysel | 7/26/10 | me

[Ravi]

Anyone with any particular guidance? I'm building a house in SW fort worth and not sure what I need to do with this well water.

[ExGeeEye]

What is in it?

[hole_n_one]

A very deep subject.

[Palladin]

If you have Culligan down there, call them. They’ll analyze your water and tell you what you need.

It’s well worth whatever you pay for a conditioning apparatus.

[BipolarBob]

Most well drilling companies have insight on what water you have. Depending on hardness and impurities they should give guidance on what purification is needed. Have the county run your sample through (for free) and see what’s in it. It may simple or elaborate.

[Husker24]

Just get it tested, I have a well and I dont use any purification.

[cripplecreek]

I ran my sewer down into mine.

I’ve got chunky but flavorful water.

[hole_n_one]

Well,.....

[Squantos]

Have it tested and then use it ...... Bet the well water is better than city water any day. Here we have a well and city water and we don’t use city water at all. But do get it tested ........very important for a “city” well where contamination is much more a risk. If ya suspect it at all just use it for landscaping or filter it with a reverse osmosis for drinking water and ice maker.

Just my SWAG on the issue.......

[Tainan]

County should do a complete analysis for you for no charge.
Call your local Extension Agent Office.
Its one of the things they do.

[waterhill]

How deep? Take into consideration the local gas wells...

I would love to have well water, but I am on the western side of a limestone rift...so close yet so far away... Ozarka wells arent but 10 miles away.... I do have millions of gallons of salt water beneath my feet.... good luck with this...

[org.whodat]

Just get it tested, I have a well and I dont use any purification.

Bingo!!!

[Ravi]

Thanks for all the advice!

[La Lydia]

One thing you need to make sure to find out is the pH of your well water. Acidic water can erode the plumbing in your house. If it is acidic, you can get a device treat it.

[stevio]

Test your well, but consider a reverse osmosis system. The best drinking water you can have.

[Tainan]

Another thought, one house I had had 'city water' hooked up to it. But it also had a well from when it was first built back in the early '50s and no 'city water' was extended.

I used the well water for yard and garden watering, washing the car, cleaning off the lawnmower, watering flowers. Things like that.

It was safe to drink but it just made sense ($$) to use it for that stuff since it was free. And also, it was not subject to the rare 'water restricted use' days.

[hole_n_one]

For those that have more than one.............

[mamelukesabre]

For a shallow mind.

[umgud]

Call the EPA, they will fix you right up.

[James C. Bennett]

Use a reverse-osmosis system for the best purification.

[Rodamala]

Contrary to what is being said here, my advise to you is to be EXTREMELY CAREFUL with having any testing of your well water done... especially by any local government agency.

They very well may say you have 1 ppm over some bogus local limit set on Unobtainium concentrations and force you into remediation of the well and in the end completely destroy the value the property.

I would buy a kit and test it myself, or ask local well drillers for some feel on mineral content in that aquifer.

[davius]

First, you need to submit a sample to either a commercial lab or your state human services division. For about 125 bucks they will tell you if it is potable and whatever minerals are present. If it is truly contaminated, you may need to run additional tests for hydrocarbons and/or heavy metals. Once you know what is in the water, then you can proceed to treatment. That can range from salt treatment to correct brackish water, the addition of chlorine to counter bacterial problems, or the knowledge that you can’t use the water for anything but showers and washing clothes. Most mineral content won’t harm you but it can make the taste and appearance unpleasant. A charcoal filter on the faucet may correct it or it may not. First principal, find out what is in the water. Find out before you spend another dime on whatever you’re doing. Oh yeah, if you’re in a granitic area you might want to run a radon test too. Water is just too basic to leave to chance.

[Ravi]

Thanks again and lots of information to process.

[smokingfrog]

http://www.twdb.state.tx.us/publications/reports/GroundWaterReports/GWDatabaseReports/GWdatabaserpt.htm

http://www.tgpc.state.tx.us/Drilling.htm

[hellbender]

Water treatment companies would love to sell you an elaborate treatment system. Do not believe that hard water is bad for you. It's actually good for your health, and prevents corrosion of your plumbing; it's only negative is that it might form deposits on your fixtures. If that's more important that your health, go right ahead and spend thousands on water treatment.

If you have a modern well, constructed according to current standards, you probably do not need water treatment.

[Doc91678]

Obviously your first move is to have the water tested. Walk through the Yellow Pages for water testing labs.
It shouldn't cost much.
Then you'll know what to do. They'll help you solve any problems if there are any.

[UB355]

I have to bleech mine twice a year due to [natural] iron bacteria.

[hole_n_one]

It's a bit nutty

[UB355]

I have to bleech mine twice a year due to [natural] iron bacteria.

[Little Bill]

The best advice that I can give, after playing with water in a lot of power plants, is get it tested and find out what you have and how much of it you have. The solutions may range from nothing to something more complex.

Nasty water can wreak havoc with heating and cooling systems, hot water heaters, and other heat exchangers. If you find out that you need some equipment talk to a lot of people and do not over buy.

[glorgau]

. Do not believe that hard water is bad for you.

Nope, it's not bad for you but it does leave deposits all over everything - your dishes, dishwasher, fixtures, your body when you shower or bathe. My well has very hard water and taking a shower in that stuff unsoftened was just plain uncomfortable.

[hellbender]

Well, nothing in life comes without a price. What is more important: some mineral deposits on your sink, or your health? Water treatment companies would love to sell you softeners, but soft water is not good for you, and it is more likely to corrode your plumbing, exposing you to nice stuff like lead. Not to mention that water treatment puts you on a treadmill of paying for chemicals and other expenses forever.

[Secret Agent Man]

Others have mentioned you should be able to get it tested by your local government to see what issues, if any, exist and would need to be resolved.

I would say regardless, since you are doing new home construction now, get a whole house reverse-osmosis system put in place. Also even with a septic system, you may want to include a backflow diverter on your main line out to the septic tank, in case anything would go wrong so it doesn’t go back into your house.

[skookum55]

it's only negative is that it might form deposits on your fixtures.

Don't forget that you also have to spend a long time rinsing the soap off your body.

[hellbender]

I rinse soap off my body every time I take a shower. No problem there. It’s not so easy to get rid of the sodium which soft water puts into your system, let alone the lead which soft water leaches out of soldered copper plumbing.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

USGS National Water Quality Assessment:

http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/

Arsenic in ground water of the United States:

http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/trace/arsenic/

Texas Groundwater Protection Committee

http://www.tgpc.state.tx.us/WaterWells.htm

[raybbr]

What is “iron bacteria”? Never heard of it.

[eyeamok]

I have the answer for you, this is what I did for my well water which smelled and was real hard.

Purchase
1 water softener kit if really hard $600
1 750 gallon storage tank $400(or larger if you want)
1 or 2 GE Merlin On Demand R/O units $300 each 600 gallon per day each
1 grundfo on demand well pump with built in pressure tank $400 110v

Go from Well to softener then to R/O to Tank, Tank to pump to house. R/O water to the whole house and it is perfect for 2 years now.

[Lmo56]

Contact your local agricultural extension office - they test water and then will tell you what you need ...

[US Navy Vet]

Call the county health department and ask who in you area does water testing. There may be nothing wrong with your well water(it may be a little hard but a softener will take care of that).

[skookum55]

In really hard water one spends more time rinsing than cleansing. You may be lucky in that your water is not that hard -- I'm talking water hard enough to drive nails with.

Lead leaching is likely only a problem in an old home. The amount leached from modern copper plumbing is probably not a hazard, unless you buy into USEPA propaganda. Heck, my plumbing is PVC.

I have no problem if you desire to drink and clean and bathe is hard water. A lot of people pay to drink mineral waters, and if you don't mind a body lined with soap scum and yellow clothing, I don't mind your body being lined with soap scum and you wearing yellow clothing.