Whole house water filters

[thatguy]

In an earlier post i noted we had some well issues causing the water to be muddy.. The water coming into the house is finally clearing up BUT the filters (standard 2.5"x10") are still getting clogged with a very fine mud paste about every 2 to 3 days..
`
I had been using a spun polypropylene filter (smooth on the outside) - I got these on ebay and they were a graduated filter 30/20/10 micron rating..

Lately I have been using some pleated 20 and 30 micons filters. Due to the wife watering the garden and such it has been hard to determine if they last any longer than any other filters though..

My other choice is a wound string polypropylene filter..

I like the idea of the multiple layer filters, but I may move up to a 20 or 30 micron final size

Any thoughts/experiences of what would be the best filter to use? OR should i just buy the cheapest filter i can find and keep changing them out regularly?

thanks

Brian

 

[Hawghauler]

I used the very large string filters with great success to cure sediment issues also. I separated the garden spigot from the filter so I would not be filtering the garden water. Today I have a different well and need an entirely different filtration to soften and get the sulpher out. I even switched to a ROWPU for drinking.

 

[mrennie]

I too have the hose faucets plumbed ahead of the house filter, as there is no need to filter or treat the raw water used for watering the lawn or gardens.

If $$ permits, it may make sense to install 2 filter housings, and use a 30 or 20 micron in the first and a 5 or 10 in the second. That way you can get a handle on what is actually plugging the filter (either large or small sediment) and replace the filter as required.

 

[Mousefield]

If $$ permits, it may make sense to install 2 filter housings, and use a 30 or 20 micron in the first and a 5 or 10 in the second. That way you can get a handle on what is actually plugging the filter (either large or small sediment) and replace the filter as required.

Before we put in a new $6,000.00 system (down to .14 micron) I used a two filter system as described above. The 1st filter would be a larger micron opening and then the second would filter down to 1 micron. Unfortunately my "shale water" or "rock flower" water would still come out of our taps grey at times as the particles are very small. I used graduated micron sizes in both the filter and in my case lasted 3-6 weeks depending on water usage.
As a note we use creek water for outside use so the filtered water was for 3 dwellings. You should still try and figure out what the mud paste is and how it is getting into your water. I would try the different filters and see which one works best for your application.

 

[tanglefoot]

Our house is on a rural water supply. The water comes from deep wells and is heavy in sodium and boron. I don't have a practical way to install a whole-house filter for all the incoming water, so I put one on the cold-water line where it goes into the water heater and on under the kitchen sink on the cold line. The icemaker is double filtered because there is a filter in the fridge.
Butch

 

[beppington]

I too have the hose faucets plumbed ahead of the house filter, as there is no need to filter or treat the raw water used for watering the lawn or gardens.

What about washing your car, I mean tractor :thumbsup:, with gritty water?

 

[Egon]

very fine mud paste

That paste may be clay particles that are very small in size and do not settle out very quickly if ever.

 

[Mousefield]

That paste may be clay particles that are very small in size and do not settle out very quickly if ever.

Our well is down 160 ft with the first 18ft through clay and the rest shale. Shale is compressed clay and yes it is very difficult to filter out the very fine particles. These particles , in particular the very fine ones, will not settle out for a long time. The filter system we now have is called an Aquacore, great to have crystal clear water. :licking:

 

[Kays Supply]

I have had experience with this many years ago. This site has a brief article about it. Water Quality: Suspended Particles in Well Water, well casing, partial collapse

 

[Rob-D]

I have a well here and what I did was run a filtered spigot on my kitchen sink, the kind with the little lever on it. This is called POU (point of use) and it is the most cost effective (read cheap). The best way I've found when you have lots of particles in the water is to use double or triple filters gradually working down to about .5 mcrons. The finer filters are the most expensive so you don't want them to be filtering large particles that will clog them prematurely.
I'd start with a 10 or 20 micron filter depending on how bad the water is. If it's clogging to fast go to a more open weave filter and use three filters in series.

The last thing in my line is UV. UV doesn't kill bacteria, it kills its ability to reproduce.

I did my whole filter system for under 100 bucks, add another 300 to 400 forthe UV which still isn't bad for what you get. I have to replace the UVbulb every two or three years. Also you want the UV to be the last thing in the line.

I change coarse filters every 6 mos. or so fine filters less.

If you're handy you can get the filter assemblies at Home Depot pretty cheap and plumb it yourself.

hope this helps,
Rob