ORANGE STAINING in your washer? Rusty stains in your toilet? These could be a sign of iron in your water. The good news is, low concentrations can be removed by a water softener. Higher concentrations would require the use of an iron filter, such as a Greensand Filter.
Source of Iron in Water: Iron is a naturally occurring element and makes up almost 5% of the earth's core. It is no wonder that it so often occurs in surface water and well water.
Symptoms of Iron in Water: Even though iron may not have any health affects, in water it can be very corrosive, causing damaged pipes and appliances. This can also cause pipes to leak, creating even more contaminants in the water. There are four types of iron that may contaminate natural groundwater sources. Each type of iron in drinking water can exist alone or in combination with the others.
Ferrous iron (also known as clear water iron) is ferrous bicarbonate. The water is clear and iron is in a dissolved state. To filter this type of iron, it must first oxidize, converting it to ferric iron.
Ferric iron, or ferric hydroxide, is visible in the water, giving the water a reddish tinge, which is why it is known as "red water iron." This is the kind of iron that can cause staining in sinks, washing machines, toilets and other places where the water comes in contact.
Organic iron (iron bacteria) is a group of bacteria that only need low levels of iron to create the organic molecules needed for their existence. Iron bacteria creates a gelatinous sludge on top of water. It will also create bad smelling drinking water. While looking at the top of a container of water, if the surface reflects a rainbow slick, it is likely contaminated with organic iron.
Collodial iron (known as dispersed iron) stays suspended in the water giving a red-pink look to the water.
Filtration Solutions for Iron: There is a variety of water filters for iron. Ferrous iron (clear water iron) can be removed and filtered with a water softener provided it is less than 0.5 ppm for each grain of hardness and the pH of the water is greater than 6.8. If the ferrous iron is more than 5.0 ppm, the iron water treatment solution must convert it to ferric iron by contact with an oxidizing agent such as chlorine, before it can be removed from drinking water by mechanical filtration. Ferric iron can be removed by mechanical filtration and iron water filters. Organic iron can be removed by an anion resin or by oxidation with chlorine followed by mechanical filtration. Oxidizing agents such as chlorine will also kill iron bacteria in water if it is present. Use an iron water test to determine the levels of iron in your water.
Filtration Solutions for Iron: There is a variety of water filters for iron. Ferrous iron (clear water iron) can be removed and filtered with a water softener provided it is less than 0.5 ppm for each grain of hardness and the pH of the water is greater than 6.8. If the ferrous iron is more than 5.0 ppm, the iron water treatment solution must convert it to ferric iron by contact with an oxidizing agent such as chlorine, before it can be removed from drinking water by mechanical filtration. Ferric iron can be removed by mechanical filtration and iron water filters. Organic iron can be removed by an anion resin or by oxidation with chlorine followed by mechanical filtration. Oxidizing agents such as chlorine will also kill iron bacteria in water if it is present. Use an iron water test to determine the levels of iron in your water.
Filtration Solutions for Iron: There is a variety of water filters for iron. Ferrous iron (clear water iron) can be removed and filtered with a water softener provided it is less than 0.5 ppm for each grain of hardness and the pH of the water is greater than 6.8. If the ferrous iron is more than 5.0 ppm, the iron water treatment solution must convert it to ferric iron by contact with an oxidizing agent such as chlorine, before it can be removed from drinking water by mechanical filtration. Ferric iron can be removed by mechanical filtration and iron water filters. Organic iron can be removed by an anion resin or by oxidation with chlorine followed by mechanical filtration. Oxidizing agents such as chlorine will also kill iron bacteria in water if it is present. Use an iron water test to determine the levels of iron in your water.