Subject: home water treatment (pH)
From: Mike Schloss
Date: 11/9/2004 4:47 PM Eastern Standard Time
Message-id:

I have a question for anyone with knowledge of home water treatment.
I live in a home where water is provided by a well (no town water).
When we had the water tested originally it was slightly acidic but not
enough to warrant treatment. After we lived here for a while we
determined that the pH changes over time and in the winter the water is
acidic enough to warrant treatment. The water is also quite hard so we
had a softener installed by a local outfit. We discussed the pH issue
with the same guy and his recommendation was to install another tank
(like the softener) and this one would be filled with marble chips.
Water flowing through the tank would dissolve the marble and neutralize
the acidity. The softener would then remove the added calcium. There
would be a loss of pressure due to pumping the water through the
calcium. This would be in addition to the loss of pressure due to
pumping the water through the softener. Since our water pressure is
already lower then what we would like I asked him to look into
something else. He said that he could install a chemical injection
system that would meet our needs but it would require periodic
servicing to maintain proper pH. The servicing would be at add soda
ash and water to a storage tank periodically and occasional stirring of
the tank. Also, I would need to adjust the concentration in the tank
to regulate the pH of the domestic water as the water from the well
changed over time. The system was installed so that the soda ash
solution is injected into the pressure tank and the system ran OK for
about a year (warranty was for a year). There has been a repeated
buildup of crud (soda ash) on the pump fittings and the installer
explained that this is normal. I asked if we could use more soda ash
in the tank and reduce the pump speed or stroke to reduce the frequency
of having to refill the tank. I was told that according to the
installers contact at the pump company that the pump should always be
run at full speed and full stroke and he would/could not provide an
explanation as to why this might be true. Recently we noticed that the
pump was no longer pumping and is no longer under warranty. Upon
investigation of the service manual it appears that this pump requires
annual service (replace diaphragm). I am beginning to come to the
opinion that this pump is a piece of junk. Questions for the readers
a

1) Could anyone make a recommendation for a new pump? 220V 8gpd @ 80psi
I can do simple plumbing and electrical tasks myself. Any reason not
to do this myself?

2) Soda Ash seems a poor choice for reducing the pH. The stuff that I
get in the 50lb sacks seems to have a fair amount of insoluble crud
that collects at the bottom of the tank and makes it difficult to
stir. Wouldn't sodium hydroxide (lye) be a better choice. I know
that I need to be (more) careful with this (goggles and maybe gloves
and/or respirator).

Any recommendations?







I am runnign an injection pump here. I cannot recommend a pumpthat runs on
220v. I am running a Sears brand pump. I dont know who makes it ,but it runs
on 120V. On my pump I us eit at low to mid speed. I just up the concetraton of
the chemicals until I get the water the way i want it. I never liked running
at full speed since I had to make a new batch of chemicals up... To elimanate
the crud in the tank. I always mixed the soda ash in a bucket with hot water
then poured it into the main tank. I hope I helped. Paul