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Default Full house cartridge filters - life span?

We have a rural cabin with a well, which unfortunately taps a pretty
mean iron vein. Our tap water had significant metallic taste and
water would eventually leave a pink residue as the iron oxidized. It
is potable, just not pleasant.

I plumbed in a whole-house filter that runs water from our pressure
tank through a large cartridge filter before hitting our pipes. We
have been using a larger pore carbon filter for the unit (options
include just particle filters, down to tiny pore options). The
resulting water is clear, tastes and smells great.

We can get to this cabin only on weekends, and I have noted that we
get about 6 weeks of decent filtering from a cartridge before it needs
changing. We do have a tap filter on the kitchen sink for drinking
water, but I prefer to keep the iron out of the hto water tank and
faucets where possible.

So my question is: When we leave the place for 4-5 days at a time, is
it better to leave the filter cartridge in place, or remove it until
we return. The first choice would leave it sitting in iron rich
water, possibly clogging it up. The second allows it to dry out, but
perhaps also letting the iron "set" in the filter pores.

We asked the place where we buy filters, and their "tech" saild it
really didn't matter for that lenfth of time. But for $65 a pop for
the cartridges, I'd like to see if we can get as much use from them as
possible.

Anybody been down this road and have any first hand info to share?

Tnx
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Default Full house cartridge filters - life span?

On Sep 8, 10:24*pm, gwandsh wrote:
We have a rural cabin with a well, which unfortunately taps a pretty
mean iron vein. *Our tap water had significant metallic taste and
water would eventually leave a pink residue as the iron oxidized. *It
is potable, just not pleasant.

I plumbed in a whole-house filter that runs water from our pressure
tank through a large cartridge filter before hitting our pipes. *We
have been using a larger pore carbon filter for the unit (options
include just particle filters, down to tiny pore options). *The
resulting water is clear, tastes and smells great.

We can get to this cabin only on weekends, and I have noted that we
get about 6 weeks of decent filtering from a cartridge before it needs
changing. *We do have a tap filter on the kitchen sink for drinking
water, but I prefer to keep the iron out of the hto water tank and
faucets where possible.

So my question is: *When we leave the place for 4-5 days at a time, is
it better to leave the filter cartridge in place, or remove it until
we return. *The first choice would leave it sitting in iron rich
water, possibly clogging it up. *The second allows it to dry out, but
perhaps also letting the iron "set" in the filter pores.

We asked the place where we buy filters, and their "tech" saild it
really didn't matter for that lenfth of time. *But for $65 a pop for
the cartridges, I'd like to see if we can get as much use from them as
possible.

Anybody been down this road and have any first hand info to share?

Tnx


My experience with water filters is: buy the 2 for $4 ones at Walmart
and change them once a month. We do that with 2 people 5 cows and 50
trees pulling on the water supply. The setup I finally ended up with
was 4 filters, 2 pair in parallel. That makes for 2 that get change
monthly and 2 that get changed 2 times a year. You can get by with a
lot cheaper filter if you strain it twice.
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Default Full house cartridge filters - life span?

On Sep 8, 11:42*pm, Eric in North TX wrote:
On Sep 8, 10:24*pm, gwandsh wrote:





We have a rural cabin with a well, which unfortunately taps a pretty
mean iron vein. *Our tap water had significant metallic taste and
water would eventually leave a pink residue as the iron oxidized. *It
is potable, just not pleasant.


I plumbed in a whole-house filter that runs water from our pressure
tank through a large cartridge filter before hitting our pipes. *We
have been using a larger pore carbon filter for the unit (options
include just particle filters, down to tiny pore options). *The
resulting water is clear, tastes and smells great.


We can get to this cabin only on weekends, and I have noted that we
get about 6 weeks of decent filtering from a cartridge before it needs
changing. *We do have a tap filter on the kitchen sink for drinking
water, but I prefer to keep the iron out of the hto water tank and
faucets where possible.


So my question is: *When we leave the place for 4-5 days at a time, is
it better to leave the filter cartridge in place, or remove it until
we return. *The first choice would leave it sitting in iron rich
water, possibly clogging it up. *The second allows it to dry out, but
perhaps also letting the iron "set" in the filter pores.


We asked the place where we buy filters, and their "tech" saild it
really didn't matter for that lenfth of time. *But for $65 a pop for
the cartridges, I'd like to see if we can get as much use from them as
possible.


Anybody been down this road and have any first hand info to share?


Tnx


My experience with water filters is: buy the 2 for $4 ones at Walmart
and change them once a month. We do that with 2 people 5 cows and 50
trees pulling on the water supply. The setup I finally ended up with
was 4 filters, 2 pair in parallel. That makes for 2 that get change
monthly and 2 that get changed 2 times a year. You can get by with a
lot cheaper filter if you strain it twice.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -


Same boat here. I'm in a rural area and have well water, but
unfiltered it has a lot of metals in it. I also have the pink residue
that you mentioned.

I have a whole-house filter, and have been using filters that are
supposed to last for 6 months, but I can taste a difference in the
water after 4-6 weeks.

For me, the 2 for $4 filters from Wally World last about a week. I get
the ones from Lowes that are more like 2 for $12; I figured that $12
for 2 or 3 months isn't horrible.

I had a very feasible solution presented to me a few weeks that I
intend to try, and it may help you, too. The suggestion was to buy a
water heater and connect it to the cold pipes, but don't hook up the
heating elements. This way, the tub will fill with water, and all of
the heavy elements will sink to the bottom while the pipes pull from
the top! I use the same logic when I change the water in my fish
tanks, so this seems like a good long-term solution for a few hundred
dollars (or less).

To answer your actual question, though, I would think that removing
the filters would give them more life, but I've never been in your
position so I can't be sure.

HTH,

Jason
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Default Full house cartridge filters - life span?

gwandsh wrote:
We have a rural cabin with a well, which unfortunately taps a pretty
mean iron vein. Our tap water had significant metallic taste and
water would eventually leave a pink residue as the iron oxidized. It
is potable, just not pleasant.

I plumbed in a whole-house filter that runs water from our pressure
tank through a large cartridge filter before hitting our pipes. We
have been using a larger pore carbon filter for the unit (options
include just particle filters, down to tiny pore options). The
resulting water is clear, tastes and smells great.

We can get to this cabin only on weekends, and I have noted that we
get about 6 weeks of decent filtering from a cartridge before it needs
changing. We do have a tap filter on the kitchen sink for drinking
water, but I prefer to keep the iron out of the hto water tank and
faucets where possible.

So my question is: When we leave the place for 4-5 days at a time, is
it better to leave the filter cartridge in place, or remove it until
we return. The first choice would leave it sitting in iron rich
water, possibly clogging it up. The second allows it to dry out, but
perhaps also letting the iron "set" in the filter pores.

We asked the place where we buy filters, and their "tech" saild it
really didn't matter for that lenfth of time. But for $65 a pop for
the cartridges, I'd like to see if we can get as much use from them as
possible.

Anybody been down this road and have any first hand info to share?

Tnx


I only use a sediment filter and with just wife and I living here change
every 6 months. Carbon will absorb tastes and odors but will not last
as long if impurity level is high. The carbon will not remove iron and
if main concern is drinking and cooking water, you could just rely on
tap filter. I have a friend with cabin with same situation and he does
not filter water but brings in spring water from on site spring for
drinking. See no reason to remove filter when water is not running.
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Default Full house cartridge filters - life span?

On Tue, 8 Sep 2009 20:24:57 -0700 (PDT), gwandsh
wrote Re Full house cartridge filters - life span?:

We can get to this cabin only on weekends, and I have noted that we
get about 6 weeks of decent filtering from a cartridge before it needs
changing. We do have a tap filter on the kitchen sink for drinking
water, but I prefer to keep the iron out of the hto water tank and
faucets where possible.


Six weeks seems very short to me. Is it possible that you have a
toilet leak that is allowing a lot of water to pass through the filter
while you are gone?


So my question is: When we leave the place for 4-5 days at a time, is
it better to leave the filter cartridge in place, or remove it until
we return. The first choice would leave it sitting in iron rich
water, possibly clogging it up. The second allows it to dry out, but
perhaps also letting the iron "set" in the filter pores.


How about installing a shut-off valve at the outlet from the pressure
tank and leave the cartridge in place?
--
I filter all messages from google groups.


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Default Full house cartridge filters - life span?

On Sep 9, 1:34*am, Jason wrote:
On Sep 8, 11:42*pm, Eric in North TX wrote:



On Sep 8, 10:24*pm, gwandsh wrote:


We have a rural cabin with a well, which unfortunately taps a pretty
mean iron vein. *Our tap water had significant metallic taste and
water would eventually leave a pink residue as the iron oxidized. *It
is potable, just not pleasant.


I plumbed in a whole-house filter that runs water from our pressure
tank through a large cartridge filter before hitting our pipes. *We
have been using a larger pore carbon filter for the unit (options
include just particle filters, down to tiny pore options). *The
resulting water is clear, tastes and smells great.


We can get to this cabin only on weekends, and I have noted that we
get about 6 weeks of decent filtering from a cartridge before it needs
changing. *We do have a tap filter on the kitchen sink for drinking
water, but I prefer to keep the iron out of the hto water tank and
faucets where possible.


So my question is: *When we leave the place for 4-5 days at a time, is
it better to leave the filter cartridge in place, or remove it until
we return. *The first choice would leave it sitting in iron rich
water, possibly clogging it up. *The second allows it to dry out, but
perhaps also letting the iron "set" in the filter pores.


We asked the place where we buy filters, and their "tech" saild it
really didn't matter for that lenfth of time. *But for $65 a pop for
the cartridges, I'd like to see if we can get as much use from them as
possible.


Anybody been down this road and have any first hand info to share?


Tnx


My experience with water filters is: buy the 2 for $4 ones at Walmart
and change them once a month. We do that with 2 people 5 cows and 50
trees pulling on the water supply. The setup I finally ended up with
was 4 filters, 2 pair in parallel. That makes for 2 that get change
monthly and 2 that get changed 2 times a year. You can get by with a
lot cheaper filter if you strain it twice.- Hide quoted text -


- Show quoted text -


Same boat here. I'm in a rural area and have well water, but
unfiltered it has a lot of metals in it. I also have the pink residue
that you mentioned.

I have a whole-house filter, and have been using filters that are
supposed to last for 6 months, but I can taste a difference in the
water after 4-6 weeks.

For me, the 2 for $4 filters from Wally World last about a week. I get
the ones from Lowes that are more like 2 for $12; I figured that $12
for 2 or 3 months isn't horrible.

I had a very feasible solution presented to me a few weeks that I
intend to try, and it may help you, too. The suggestion was to buy a
water heater and connect it to the cold pipes, but don't hook up the
heating elements. This way, the tub will fill with water, and all of
the heavy elements will sink to the bottom while the pipes pull from
the top! I use the same logic when I change the water in my fish
tanks, so this seems like a good long-term solution for a few hundred
dollars (or less).

To answer your actual question, though, I would think that removing
the filters would give them more life, but I've never been in your
position so I can't be sure.

HTH,

Jason


That would likely work well, you are essentially making a home brew
sand filter. I have a commercial sand filter as my primary. You have
to set up a schedule for purging it, but with the capacity of a water
heater, that could be quite a while. My sand filter holds about 2
gallons, and needs flushed weekly for top efficiency. I got tired of
doing it manually and put a motorized valve on a timer to take care of
that. i tried several sprinkler valves, but none could handle the
chunks & soon failed.
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Default Full house cartridge filters - life span?

On Sep 9, 4:50*am, Caesar Romano wrote:
On Tue, 8 Sep 2009 20:24:57 -0700 (PDT), gwandsh
wrote Re Full house cartridge filters - life span?:

We can get to this cabin only on weekends, and I have noted that we
get about 6 weeks of decent filtering from a cartridge before it needs
changing. *We do have a tap filter on the kitchen sink for drinking
water, but I prefer to keep the iron out of the hto water tank and
faucets where possible.


Six weeks seems very short to me. Is it possible that you have a
toilet leak that is allowing a lot of water to pass through the filter
while you are gone?



So my question is: *When we leave the place for 4-5 days at a time, is
it better to leave the filter cartridge in place, or remove it until
we return. *The first choice would leave it sitting in iron rich
water, possibly clogging it up. *The second allows it to dry out, but
perhaps also letting the iron "set" in the filter pores.


How about installing a shut-off valve at the outlet from the pressure
tank and leave the cartridge in place?
--
I filter all messages from google groups.


Thanks to all. To summarize a few responses:

We have tried sediment filters, but our main purpose was to remove
smell and taste from the water supply. For some reason this seems to
greatly reduce the suspended iron in the water, although technically
carbon filters don't do a lot for disolved metals. The sediment
filters plugged up in a few weeks, but certainly are a lot cheapter
than the carbon ones.

When we leave the place, we often have sprinklers on a timer, so
indeed I have set up a set of valves to bypass the filter. In that
case the water comes straight from the pressure tank to the pipes for
the outside taps. The sprinklers need the full pressure, and I see no
reason to filter that water.

I hadn't considered adding another filter in-line with the current
one. Not sure about 2 for $4 filters - the ones I use are about 24"
high and 6" diameter, is that what Wally World is offering?

As for a full-on filter system, we also considered that. The place is
remote enough that our visits are sparse in the winter, and we do not
keep it heated. Any water system addition would need to be dead easy
to drain and maintain, which is why we have avoided one of the more
permanent filtering options.

So far it seems folks think it is fine to leave them in place during
absences. Interesting stuff.
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Default Full house cartridge filters - life span?

On Tue, 8 Sep 2009 20:24:57 -0700 (PDT), gwandsh
wrote:

We have a rural cabin with a well, which unfortunately taps a pretty
mean iron vein. Our tap water had significant metallic taste and
water would eventually leave a pink residue as the iron oxidized. It
is potable, just not pleasant.

I plumbed in a whole-house filter that runs water from our pressure
tank through a large cartridge filter before hitting our pipes. We
have been using a larger pore carbon filter for the unit (options
include just particle filters, down to tiny pore options). The
resulting water is clear, tastes and smells great.

We can get to this cabin only on weekends, and I have noted that we
get about 6 weeks of decent filtering from a cartridge before it needs
changing. We do have a tap filter on the kitchen sink for drinking
water, but I prefer to keep the iron out of the hto water tank and
faucets where possible.

So my question is: When we leave the place for 4-5 days at a time, is
it better to leave the filter cartridge in place, or remove it until
we return. The first choice would leave it sitting in iron rich
water, possibly clogging it up. The second allows it to dry out, but
perhaps also letting the iron "set" in the filter pores.

We asked the place where we buy filters, and their "tech" saild it
really didn't matter for that lenfth of time. But for $65 a pop for
the cartridges, I'd like to see if we can get as much use from them as
possible.

Anybody been down this road and have any first hand info to share?

Tnx



I might tend to agree with the tech. But, I'm sure the manufacturer
will give the correct answer. Iron ions are not likely to clog a
filter. Allowing a water filter to dry out numerous times may damage
it.
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