I have a relatively high concentration of clear water iron in my water
supply (well). I have been using a northstar water softener to help
mitigate the problem. This has been moderately successfull. The
softener model I have indicates that it can remove 5 ppm of iron.
Even with the water softener I am still seeing some iron staining,
particularly in my bath tub (more so when I run the jacuzzi jets). I
just had my water tested with the following results:

Without the softener:

9 grains of hardness
6 ppm iron

With the softener:

4 grains of hardness
1 ppm iron

It is my understanding that even 1 ppm of iron will cause staining.
So, I believe that my softener is doing everything it can but is
simply overmatched. The question I have is what my next step should
be? I have been looking at a more powerful softenere at Sears with
will clean out 8ppm of iron and costs about $550. Alternatively, I
could look at a more expensive iron filter and use it in conjuction
with my current softener. Or, would changing the resin to a "fine
mesh" be enough? Also, I currently use the Morton "Iron Free" pelets,
without them the problem is even worse. The big problem is that
trying any of these methods requires me to shell out a fairly large
amount of cash without even knowing if the problem will be resolved.
If anyone has any recommendations I would greatly appreciate it.
Specifically, any recommendations with brands/models would be
helpfull.

"Mike Hoffman" wrote
I have a relatively high concentration of clear water iron in my water
supply (well). I have been using a northstar water softener to help
mitigate the problem. This has been moderately successfull. The
softener model I have indicates that it can remove 5 ppm of iron.
Even with the water softener I am still seeing some iron staining,
particularly in my bath tub (more so when I run the jacuzzi jets). I
just had my water tested with the following results:

Without the softener:

9 grains of hardness
6 ppm iron

With the softener:

4 grains of hardness
1 ppm iron

It is my understanding that even 1 ppm of iron will cause staining.
So, I believe that my softener is doing everything it can but is
simply overmatched. The question I have is what my next step should
be? I have been looking at a more powerful softenere at Sears with
will clean out 8ppm of iron and costs about $550. Alternatively, I
could look at a more expensive iron filter and use it in conjuction
with my current softener. Or, would changing the resin to a "fine
mesh" be enough? Also, I currently use the Morton "Iron Free" pelets,
without them the problem is even worse. The big problem is that
trying any of these methods requires me to shell out a fairly large
amount of cash without even knowing if the problem will be resolved.
If anyone has any recommendations I would greatly appreciate it.
Specifically, any recommendations with brands/models would be
helpfull.

I suggest removing the iron before the softener but.. your current softener
is more than likely too small for your flow rate. IMO no regular softener is
going to treat 6 ppm of iron successfully for very long without problems;
especially the big box store brands. I and other independent dealers build
some that will but you have to know how to maintain them and do it
religiously. And for the money you mention, you can buy much higher quality
industry standard nonproprietary equipment which means you can get parts
anywhere and at less cost.

Gary
Quality Water Associates
www.qualiytywaterassociates.com
Bulletin Board www.qualitywaterassociates.com/phpBB2

"Gary Slusser" wrote in message ...
"Mike Hoffman" wrote
I have a relatively high concentration of clear water iron in my water
supply (well). I have been using a northstar water softener to help
mitigate the problem. This has been moderately successfull. The
softener model I have indicates that it can remove 5 ppm of iron.
Even with the water softener I am still seeing some iron staining,
particularly in my bath tub (more so when I run the jacuzzi jets). I
just had my water tested with the following results:

Without the softener:

9 grains of hardness
6 ppm iron

With the softener:

4 grains of hardness
1 ppm iron

It is my understanding that even 1 ppm of iron will cause staining.
So, I believe that my softener is doing everything it can but is
simply overmatched. The question I have is what my next step should
be? I have been looking at a more powerful softenere at Sears with
will clean out 8ppm of iron and costs about $550. Alternatively, I
could look at a more expensive iron filter and use it in conjuction
with my current softener. Or, would changing the resin to a "fine
mesh" be enough? Also, I currently use the Morton "Iron Free" pelets,
without them the problem is even worse. The big problem is that
trying any of these methods requires me to shell out a fairly large
amount of cash without even knowing if the problem will be resolved.
If anyone has any recommendations I would greatly appreciate it.
Specifically, any recommendations with brands/models would be
helpfull.

I suggest removing the iron before the softener but.. your current softener
is more than likely too small for your flow rate. IMO no regular softener is
going to treat 6 ppm of iron successfully for very long without problems;
especially the big box store brands. I and other independent dealers build
some that will but you have to know how to maintain them and do it
religiously. And for the money you mention, you can buy much higher quality
industry standard nonproprietary equipment which means you can get parts
anywhere and at less cost.

Gary
Quality Water Associates
www.qualiytywaterassociates.com
Bulletin Board www.qualitywaterassociates.com/phpBB2

Gary, thanks very much for the response. Is there a way you recommend
to "remove the iron before the softener"? And if so, is there a
product you recommend? If I go with a softener, I would certainly be
willing to consider an independent built system. I checked out your
website. Considering my situation, which softener would you
recommend? I live in a rural part of south west New York and don't
really have many independent dealers locally to work with.

As always your help is appreciated.

"Mike Hoffman" wrote
"Gary Slusser" wrote
"Mike Hoffman" wrote
I have a relatively high concentration of clear water iron in my water
supply (well). I have been using a northstar water softener to help
mitigate the problem. This has been moderately successfull. The
softener model I have indicates that it can remove 5 ppm of iron.
Even with the water softener I am still seeing some iron staining,
particularly in my bath tub (more so when I run the jacuzzi jets). I
just had my water tested with the following results:

Without the softener:

9 grains of hardness
6 ppm iron

With the softener:

4 grains of hardness
1 ppm iron

It is my understanding that even 1 ppm of iron will cause staining.
So, I believe that my softener is doing everything it can but is
simply overmatched. The question I have is what my next step should
be? I have been looking at a more powerful softenere at Sears with
will clean out 8ppm of iron and costs about $550. Alternatively, I
could look at a more expensive iron filter and use it in conjuction
with my current softener. Or, would changing the resin to a "fine
mesh" be enough? Also, I currently use the Morton "Iron Free" pelets,
without them the problem is even worse. The big problem is that
trying any of these methods requires me to shell out a fairly large
amount of cash without even knowing if the problem will be resolved.
If anyone has any recommendations I would greatly appreciate it.
Specifically, any recommendations with brands/models would be
helpfull.

I suggest removing the iron before the softener but.. your current
softener
is more than likely too small for your flow rate. IMO no regular
softener is
going to treat 6 ppm of iron successfully for very long without
problems;
especially the big box store brands. I and other independent dealers
build
some that will but you have to know how to maintain them and do it
religiously. And for the money you mention, you can buy much higher
quality
industry standard nonproprietary equipment which means you can get parts
anywhere and at less cost.

Gary
Quality Water Associates
www.qualiytywaterassociates.com
Bulletin Board www.qualitywaterassociates.com/phpBB2

Gary, thanks very much for the response. Is there a way you recommend
to "remove the iron before the softener"? And if so, is there a
product you recommend? If I go with a softener, I would certainly be
willing to consider an independent built system. I checked out your
website. Considering my situation, which softener would you
recommend? I live in a rural part of south west New York and don't
really have many independent dealers locally to work with.

As always your help is appreciated.

If the softener is too small, service flow rate wise, I would suggest a
special softener built to last while removing all the iron. If you're handy
(instead of good looking) and will install and then repair your own unit,
I'd be suggesting the most DIYer friendly control valve there is. If the
softener were large enough, then I'd need to know the answers to my
questions below before I could suggest what type of treatment would be the
best.

Yes you can email me with how many people use the water plus any additional
daily water use in gal/day for a garage horse etc.. And tell me what size
plumbing the softener is installed on and how many bathrooms. Also, how many
gpm that tub can flow with both hot and cold water on together. You measure
that with both the hot and cold water turned on full flow into a 5 gal
bucket in say 12 seconds. Then actually measure the water volume and
multiply by 5. Or use whatever time period you can and calculate gpm.

I'd also need to know if there is an oily film on the top of the water in
the lest frequently used toilet tank and when flushed, if you wipe the palm
of your hand on the side of the tank under the water line if there's any
snotty slime of any color. Not just a bit slippery from being wet feeling.
And what the bottom of the tank looks like, especially if there is a
fluffiness to the sediment.

Gary
Quality Water Associates
www.qualiytywaterassociates.com
Bulletin Board www.qualitywaterassociates.com/phpBB2