How to Select Filters for Drinking Water Iron, Silt, Dirt, or Sulphur Odors InspectAPedia® -
Use of filters to remove aesthetic water contaminants like minerals, hardness, sediment or iron
Use of water softeners to remove sulphur odors or other aesthetic water contaminants
Water treatment equipment choices, pros and cons of each water purification method
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Here we discuss using sediment filters or water softeners as options for correcting unsanitary or unsatisfactory aesthetic contaminants in drinking water such as sediment, dirt, sulphur odors, or minerals. This series of articles explains many common water contamination tests for bacteria and other contaminants in water samples.
We describe what to do about contaminated water, listing common corrective measures when water test results are
unsatisfactory. We include water testing and water correction measures warnings for home owners and especially for home buyers when certain conditions are encountered, with advice about what to do when these circumstances are encountered. Readers should also see our introductory article on FILTERS for WATER. Our page top photo shows iron stains on a bath tub. Also see DRINKING WATER PURIFICATION for a discussion of various methods used to purify emergency drinking water.
How to remove aesthetic water contaminants and treatment systems: sediment, iron, odors, taste:
Sediment filters and Iron filters
Paper or charcoal or in some cases ceramic filters are installed at the entry point of water into the building to remove sediment, iron, and similar debris.
TIP: when your water pressure declines or your pump begins clicking on and off rapidly, check to see if the filter has become very clogged and change it out. We once replaced a pump pressure switch only to discover that the problem was a clogged filter.
The water filter shown at left is for sediment in the water supply. The cartridge can be changed to handle odors (see Sulphur Odor Filters) below;
The installation of a water filter may affect the water flow rate and pressure in a building, particularly if the filter has become clogged.
The frequency with which the water filter must be changed depends on the filter type and the level of particles or contaminants that the filter is removing from the water supply.
See WATER FILTERS for details about cartridge type water filters.
Indications that the water filter needs to be changed include
Passage of sediments, debris, or odors through the water filter
Sulphur odor filters or Sulphur Treatment Systems
If your water smells like "rotten eggs" the problem is likely to be sulphur dissolved in the water. The level of odor often varies seasonally as the level of the water table changes
in the ground. You may also notice that the sulphur or rotten egg smell is much worse when water is first run in a building after you've been away several days.
Our photo (left) shows sulphur-bacterial staining in a toilet tank. This cosmetic staining often accompanies high sulphur odors in water and can be addressed by well-established water treatment methods.
While a chlorine injection system will reduce low levels of sulphur odor in water, potassium permanganate ("Green sand" in the words of my Culligan™ man) is used in a treatment system where this problem is severe.
Odors in Drinking Water, provides more detail on the causes of odors in water, health risks associated with certain odors in drinking water, and various methods of treatment for water odors - how to get rid of the smell in water.
Water Softeners to Treat Hard Water, Lime, Mineral Deposits, Clogged Piping
Water softeners remove minerals (mostly calcium and magnesium) from a "hard" water supply.
If your
water is hard (measured in "grains of hardness") you want a water softener installed not only for aesthetic reasons (like getting a good lather when shampooing your hair) but also to avoid clogging the water supply piping
with minerals (especially the hot water and very especially where tankless coils are used to provide hot water).
Most water softeners
work by an ion-exchange process: swapping a small amount of salt or sodium into the water to cause calcium and manganese to precipitate out as dirty sludge (which is periodically removed by back washing the
treatment system).
If building occupants require a zero level of sodium in drinking water they may want to install a reverse osmosis point of use supply treatment or in some homes people simply run a water supply line from ahead of the water softener to a single faucet to be used for drinking water.
For complete details about using and maintaining water softeners see the articles listed below:
Bleach: Use chlorine (bleach, sodium hypochlorite) to purify the water. (see warnings just above). Permanent well water chlorination systems are discussed at CHLORINATORS & CHARCOAL FILTERS.
Chlorination: where electrical power and water pressure are present and the equipment is already installed, a chlorinator or water chlorine injection treatment system, usually combined with a charcoal filter for water treatment may be functional. See CHLORINATORS & CHARCOAL FILTERS for details.
Giardia in Drinking Water - a review of the health hazards & typical equipment costs for portable and whole house water treatment to remove Giardia cysts from drinking water
Iodine: Use Iodine tablets or a liquid tincture of iodine to purify the water for emergency use (see warnings just above)
Hydrogen peroxide may be used (maybe) to purify water for emergency drinking use. [The concentration and exposure time data are still needed for this application.]
Water purifying filters: Use a filter designed for water purification, particularly ceramic filters and silver-ceramic filters. See WATER FILTERS for a separate discussion of home water filters used for sediment, odors, etc.
Use a water purifying pump such as models sold by camping equipment suppliers to purify the water - typically these pumps use a ceramic or other filter
Use a water distiller such as a home or portable distillation unit (our photo just above/left shows a Sears® Kenmore home water distiller) (You'll need electrical power or a source of heat to distill water). This device processes about one gallon of water per cycle. We have been using this Sears Kenmore water distiller, model 5000 for more than fifteen years without a hitch. A disposable charcoal post-distillation filter is available for use in the drip spout of the unit - a potential source of contamination if it is not changed occasionally.
Reverse osmosis: use a Reverse osmosis water filtration system if water pressure is available or if a portable R.O. system is available. See REVERSE OSMOSIS WATER TREATMENT for details. RO treatment systems may work where there is no electrical power provided that you have water pressure, such as in some municipal water situations.
Vinegar is sometimes used as a vegetable wash and may be effective against some microorganisms in water - we have not yet found authoritative data on this application.
Mixed oxidants electrochemically generated from brine have been used for water disinfection
Halogenated resins have been used for water disinfection
Home Made & Expedient Water Sterilization Methods: Matthew Stein describes a variety of home-made, expedient, and partly effective water filters and water treatment methods in When Technology Fails. With plastic and a few sticks you can build a solar water sterilizer (solar water disinfection or SODIS systems).
Stein also explains that slow sand filters have been used for partially cleaning and treating water for a very long time. A crude home made charcoal filter will remove some odors, bad tastes, organic toxic chemicals, and radioactive fallout. Mr. Stein also describes sari water filters used in Bangladesh after flooding, but includes a critical warning that filtering water through cloth is by no means really safe.
Our favorite of his suggestions is using a plant to form a water collector and filter system, an idea which reminds us of native Americans who knew how to obtain water from desert barrel cactus. We enjoyed this book and provide this purchase link for it.
Basic water purification procedures that can be used in an emergency are described just below. If community or private wells are back in operating and providing water, do not assume that the water is sanitary and ok to drink until responsible authorities have said so. Even then, local water pipes in a building may be unsanitary and additional cleaning or disinfection may be needed. See WELL CHLORINATION SHOCKING PROCEDURE and See WATER TESTS, CONTAMINANTS, TREATMENT for advice on using a private well for drinking water.
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Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair
Our recommended books about building design, inspection, and repair, and about indoor environment testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore.
Potable Aqua® emergency drinking water germicidal tablets are produced by the Wisconsin Pharmacal Co., Jackson WI 53037. 800-558-6614 pharmacalway.com
Principles and Practice of Disinfection, Preservation and Sterilization (Hardcover)
by A. D. Russell (Editor), W. B. Hugo (Editor), G. A. J. Ayliffe (Editor), Blackwell Science, 2004. ISBN-10: 1405101997, ISBN-13: 978-1405101998.
"This superb book is the best of its kind available and one that will undoubtedly be useful, if not essential, to workers in a variety of industries. Thirty-one distinguished specialists deal comprehensively with the subject matter indicated by the title ... The book is produced with care, is very readable with useful selected references at the end of each chapter and an excellent index. It is an essential source book for everyone interested in this field. For pharmacy undergraduates, it will complement the excellent text on pharmaceutical microbiology by two of the present editors."
The Pharmaceutical Journal: "This is an excellent book. It deals comprehensively and authoritatively with its subject with contributions from 31 distinguished specialists. There is a great deal to interest all those involved in hospital infection ... This book is exceptionally well laid out. There are well chosen references for each chapter and an excellent index. It is highly recommended." The Journal of Hospital Infection.: "The editors and authors must be congratulated for this excellent treatise on nonantibiotic antimicrobial measures in hospitals and industry ... The publication is highly recommended to hospital and research personnel, especially to clinical microbiologists, infection-control and environmental-safety specialists, pharmacists, and dieticians."
New England Journal of Medicine: City Hospital, Birmingham, UK. Covers the many methods of the elimination or prevention of microbial growth. Provides an historical overview, descriptions of the types of antimicrobial agents, factors affecting efficacy, evaluation methods, and types of resistance. Features sterilization methods, and more. Previous edition: c1999. DNLM: Sterilization--methods.
Handbook of Disinfectants and Antiseptics, Joseph M. Ascenzi (Editor), CRC, 1995, ISBN-10: 0824795245 ISBN-13: 978-0824795245 "The evaluation of chemical germicides predates the golden age of microbiology..." -
This well-focused, up-to-date reference details the current medical uses of antiseptics and disinfectants -- particularly in the control of hospital-acquired infections -- presenting methods for evaluating products to obtain regulatory approval and examining chemical, physical, and microbiological properties as well as the toxicology of the most widely used commercial chemicals.
When Technology Fails, Matthew Stein, Chelsea Green Publisher, 2008,493 pages. ISBN-10: 1933392452 ISBN-13: 978-1933392455, "... how to find and sterilize water in the face of utility failure, as well as practical information for dealing with water-quality issues even when the public tap water is still flowing". Mr. Stein's website is www.whentechfails.com/
General water testing and corrective measure advice: contact your local health department.
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