You have a new home on well water. Now what?

We are asked this question every day by homeowners that lived with city water their entire lives and purchased a new home that has either a private well or community well water supply.  No need to panic! 

It will be OK.  I always joke with them that all they need is a water treatment 101 class and they will be ready for living with well water.  Maybe I am a little biased, being in the water treatment industry, but I have always believed we have a lot more control of the quality of our water with well water than you ever would with city water.  

With every home, that has a well, water testing is done as part of the real estate transaction to determine several things regarding the water.

1. Bacteria testing is done to determine if there are any harmful bacteria present in the well water which could be a health concern, such as Coli-form and E-Coli.  If present the well must be sanitized, flushed and re-tested until it is determined to be free of bacteria (potable water)

2.      Testing for Arsenic, Nitrate and Nitrite is also done. If any of these are over their limits (10ppm for Nitrate and Nitrites), (10ppb for Arsenic). Some form of water treatment needs to be done to bring the drinking water to acceptable levels before the real estate closing.  Other testing for low PH, Radium, Radon, Chlorides and Sodium may also be necessary depending on the state and area the home is in.

3.      A well inspection is performed to assure the well is sealed properly and there are no potential problems such as a cracked cap. Along with a visual inspection of the water itself. Is the water cloudy, dirty, sediment in the water, does it smell, is it rusty, etc.  Water chemistry from every well can vary greatly.  One well may have a high iron content, hydrogen sulfide and be extremely high in hardness while the well next door may be the same depth but the water may have very little iron but high hardness. 

This chart shows hardness levels and the levels which it can cause problems.

Most of the well water we test in Livingston, Oakland and Washtenaw County, MI will have hard water levels (calcium and magnesium) from 10 to 30 plus grains per gallon of hardness along with iron, manganese and more frequently hydrogen sulfide (smelly water).

Recently we installed a water treatment system for a customer in Brighton Michigan that purchased a new home with a private well supply.  They had never been on well water before so part of the water evaluation is showing them the problems hard water can cause over the short term and long term if left untreated. Although they mentioned the water problems were very evident even though they had only been in the home for one month. Water spots on the showers, sinks along with cloudy glassware and dishes out of the dishwasher. They also mentioned the bad effect the water had on their clothes after washing.  

Water analysis:                                                                                                                               Hardness 26 gpg, Iron 0ppm, PH 7.4, Manganese 0ppm, Hydrogen sulfide 0ppm, Arsenic 0ppb.           

3 people in the home with one more on the way!

When sizing water treatment systems for a home there are many parameters that need to be taken into consideration for the system to work properly and provide twenty plus years of reliable service.

1.       What is the water chemistry?  Iron, Manganese, Hydrogen sulfide, Hardness?  A thorough water analysis needs to be done and many times a sample may be sent to a third party lab if there are any signs of iron bacteria or possible arsenic issues.

2.       Does this water warrant a filtration system along with a softener or will just a water softener work fine on this water.

3.       The system needs be efficient for the household, be able to handle a growing family and busy household.  Undersized equipment saves money up front but costs a lot more in the long run with high salt usage, service issues and decreased lifespan of equipment.

4.       The flow rates (GPM) necessary to efficiently operate today’s household need to be taken into account for the proper water treatment system application also.  Too low flow rates in the house and someone could get scalded in the shower or when more than one person is using water some parts of the home may have very little water.  Such as when the dishwasher is running and someone wants to take a shower or running another sink causes a drastic loss of water volume and pressure in the house.

There are many different options for water treatment equipment but only ONE is the best, most efficient option.  For this household it was an Evolve Series EVRS 45k capacity water softener. These homeowners also chose to have a Reverse Osmosis drinking water system installed for quality drinking water.

There is a common misconception that water softeners (water treatment equipment) only lasts 10 years or so.  If the proper water treatment system is installed the first time it should last 20-30 years.

No need to fear your water! It can be the best water you will ever have, with very little maintenance and provide you the quality of water your family deserves and expects for many years.

Below is more information regarding topics discussed in this blog:

Where does your water come from:

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/download/wellcare_information_sheets/basic_well_information_sheets/Where_Your_Water_Comes_From_2014.pdf

Water Testing:

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/download/wellcare_information_sheets/for_healthcare_professionals/Testing.pdf

Water Treatment options:

http://www.awtworks.com/

Good day and good water to you!

Ray McConnell

Certified Water Treatment Specialist

Water and Our Health, What’s In Our Water? Howell

An Analysis of City Water and Community Water Supplies

In this continuing series of Blogs we are discussing water, water quality and various treatment methods that city and community water supplies use to treat their water before it is delivered to your home.  Today we are looking at the city of Howell, MI and the community wells that supply water to its 9400 residents.

Communities that use well water as their primary source of water have many different issues to address as it relates to their water.  As discussed in previous blog posts, the water chemistry from every well can vary widely.  Most of these community well supplies will have several different water wells in which their water is drawn from. The number of wells needed is dependent on the size of the community and water volume needed to service that community. This takes into account average daily usage per household and also peak periods of water usage along with the potential usage for fire fighting.  

The city of Howell has six different wells from which water is drawn.  These wells are up to 400 feet underground.  This is done to protect the water supply, to assure adequate water supply for future use and to assure some stability in the water chemistry.  IE: Hardness, Iron, Manganese, Arsenic, Radium, Etc.  The Howell water treatment facility has a 620,000 gallon ground storage reservoir along with a 300,000 elevated storage tank to service its 9400 residents and fire fighting needs.

The Howell water treatment plant employs a method of “Lime Softening” to treat the water.  Lime water (Calcium Hydroxide) is introduced into the water supply at the treatment plant which reacts with the Calcium and Magnesium (Hardness) in the water causing it to “floc” or fall out of the water.  The hardness falls out as scale and then is filtered out of the water.  This method of water treatment has actually been used since the 1800,s and was originally used in London, England to treat water drawn from the Thames River. Some of the primary reasons this method is used by community water supplies today are to control Arsenic, Iron, Manganese and Radium that may be present in the water supply as it is drawn from the ground.  Sulfuric Acid and Polyphosphates are added, after initial treatment, to control the PH and stabilize the water. Chlorine is added, as a disinfectant, as the water is sent to the reservoir tanks.  

All community and municipal water supplies have to abide by the National Drinking Water Standards set forth by the federal government. Arsenic is one of many contaminants regulated by these standards as are chemicals used to treat the water supply along with the by-products created when using disinfecting additives like chlorine.  Fluoride additives such as Hydrofluosilicic Acid have become an increasing topic of discussion and concern as many current studies have shown negative long term effects from these additives. Many cities across the US are now choosing to not add fluoride supplements to their water supplies.  

The Howell water treatment plant adds calcium (hardness) back into the water supply before it leaves the treatment plant. This brings the hard water levels back up to 6-7 grains per gallon. Six to seven grains per gallon of hardness is low compared to the 15 to 30+ gpg of hard water most homeowners have that live on a private well in Livingston County. Although 6-7 gpg of hardness may seem relatively low on the hardness scale, with a family of three people, on water that is 6gpg of hardness, in one year that family will have nearly 94 Lbs of rock through their household! 

How is this?  In one year 657,000 grains of dissolved rock (Hardness) will have gone through the home, leaving scale buildup behind. 7000 grains per gallon of hardness is equivalent to 1 lb of rock in the water. Therefore 93.86 lbs of rock will have gone through all the appliances, water heater, plumbing and fixtures in one year!  So it is easy to see that even at relatively low hardness levels there are still major concerns with hard water problems along with chlorine and other things added to the water supply. 

Community wells and city water suppliers go to great lengths to protect our water and provide better water for its customers. It can still be better and that is up to the individual households. There are many practical water treatment options to improve the quality of water and quality of life for you and your family such as whole house filtration for chlorine and hardness removal and point of use options for drinking water such as reverse osmosis drinking water systems.  The Evolve Series water treatment systems have many options to treat your specific water treatment problems and concerns.
Better Water, Better Life for you and your loved ones!

     

Information regarding topics discussed in this article is available in the links below.

City of Howell, MI 2013 Water Report:
file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Advanced%20Water/My%20Documents/Downloads/WaterReport%20(1).pdf

National Primary Drinking Water Standards:

http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/#Primary

Fluoride Information:

http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/basicinformation/fluoride.cfm
http://www.livescience.com/37123-fluoridation.html

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/download/wellcare_information_sheets/for_healthcare_professionals/Fluoride_WellWater.pdf

Disinfectants in drinking water:

http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/basicinformation/disinfectants.cfm

Water Treatment Solutions:

Whole house treatment :  http://www.awtworks.com/products/water-softeners/evrcs/

Drinking water treatment:  http://www.awtworks.com/products/reverse-osmosis/ultrowater/

Good days and good water to you!

Ray McConnell

Certified Water Treatment Specialist

Hard, Rusty, Smelly Water Problems?

All of us have hard water, to one degree or another, whether we live in a home with a private well, community well or city water.  The problem is each one of these water supplies has their own particular water quality issues. 

The water chemistry from a private well supply can vary greatly even during the course of one year. The change of seasons at times brings heavy rains, spring runoff from winter snows and drought conditions.  Any and all of these conditions will have an impact on the water chemistry and water quality of your well water supply.  Typically the shallower the well supply the more susceptible it is to these changing water conditions but all wells experience changing water tables and consequently a change in the water chemistry, usually for the worse, unfortunately.

This year (2014) has been a perfect example of this occurring in many wells throughout southeast Michigan.  With the drought conditions we experienced two years ago the water table dropped significantly causing many people to put in new wells.  Last winter we had a heavier snow fall then recent winters past and spring brought almost daily rain showers well into the summer bringing the water tables up to levels we have not seen in many years.  This "Water Cycle" brought a significant change to our water tables and in many cases a drastic change in the quality of the water from private and community well supplies.  All city water suppliers in southeast Michigan, such as the city of Detroit, MI and in particular the city of Ann Arbor, MI, deal with these same issues of changing water quality.  Ann Arbor draws their water from the Huron River and this spring the Huron River was at one of the highest levels it has seen in many years.  All the runoff that feeds the river brought a lot of sediment into the system.  The same can be said for the City of Detroit’s water source (Lake St Clair). Sediment, Silt, Turbidity, the potential for Algae blooms as the city of Toledo saw this year are all problems that these municipal water supplies have to contend with to supply potable / safe water to every customers home.

When such Water Cycles occur it is common to have higher Iron, Manganese, Hydrogen Sulfide and even harder water (Calcium/Magnesium) coming from your well water supply. Because of the natural cycle of water it is recommended to have your well water supply tested every few years to see if the water chemistry has changed. If so, what, if any, steps need to be taken to address new water problems that may be found. Private well supplies are also susceptible to bacterial contamination from many sources so it is also recommended to do a Bacteria test on your well supply every few years to assure no bacterial contaminants have entered the well.  If a positive test for Bacteria occurs the well can usually be treated to eliminate the problem.

The BIG picture of all this water stuff? Is it over blown at times? Yes.

Are there genuine concerns about what is in our water and how it affects us? Yes!

But reassuring ourselves we have good water and it is safe for our families brings us piece of mind, makes our lives easier and healthier. That we can all use a lot more of!

Here are several links related to topics discussed in this article and very useful information for every homeowner.

Where your water comes from:

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/download/wellcare_information_sheets/basic_well_information_sheets/Where_Your_Water_Comes_From_2014.pdf

Testing well water:

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/download/wellcare_information_sheets/for_healthcare_professionals/Testing.pdf

Homeowners guide to your well:

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/well-owners/wellcare-info-sheets/

http://www.awtworks.com/

Good days and Good water to you.

Ray McConnell,

Certified Water Treatment Specialist