Looking for whole-house filtration / softener system, and a water test
I live in Cypress, TX (just outside of Houston) and get city water. I would like a whole-house water treatment system to do two things: 1. filter out chlorine and other chemicals. 2. soften the water. I'm a beginner here, but it seems like this means I need a conditioning system - one with a softening component and a filter component. My first question is where I can get an independent water test. My second question will be what system to get ... but I understand you need the test results first. Thanks in advance for any help you're able to offer. Seeing that you are on city water, the city will have the test results you need. Some cities post the results online. Post the results here, how many people in the family, house size and the inlet pipe size and we can advise on different way to treat the water. Here's a link to the latest water test for my MUD: Harris County 173 water test Here's a list of the contaminants/chemicals from the report, along with the highest levels for each: Arsenic - 2.9 ppb Barium - 0.122 ppm Fluoride - 0.70 ppm Nitrate - 0.74 ppm Selenium - 10.0 ppb Beta / Photon Emitters - 4.0 piC/L Chloramines - 3.20 ppm Trihalomethanes - 21.3 ppb Haloacetic Acids - 18.6 ppb Atrazine - 1.4 ppb Carbon Tetrachloride - 0.8 ppb? Hexachlorocyclopentadiene - 0.16 ppb Simazine - 0.16 ppb Bromodichloromethane - 9.9 ppb Bromoform - 0.7 ppb Chloroform - 14 ppb Dibromochloromethane - 3.9 ppb 1,2,3-Trichloropropane - 0.10 ppb Lead - 2.0 ppb Copper - 1.05 ppm Turbidity - 0.21 n-Nitrosodimethylamine - 0.0381 ppb Are there any more pages to the report? There is no data for hardness in the two pages you linked to. No, those were the only pages. I'll see if I can get more info. The hardness of the water in Harris County MUD No. 173 is 90.9 ppm or 5.32 grains per gallon. That report is from 2010. Anyway if the results are the same I would not really do nothing to city water. City water is good probably cant get any better. The only thing I like and offer on city water is carbon filtration to remove the clorine. You need to determine if you want whole house or piont of use. There are many oon the market. Below are some units I have used and like. Customer support is important. Apec has a great track record. Small whole house is here. 20 filter housing. Treats 100,000 gallons. Scroll down in link to see carbon filter. Will cost $100 bucks every 3 months or depending on water use. Premium Whole House Water Filters / Water Systems | APEC Water Under sink filter. Sediment and carbon. For drinking point of use. I use eagle springs. Change filter every 3 yrs. Eagle Spring Filtration, Inc. - Model 2020 Heres a larger whole house. treats 300k,500K or 1 million Gal. Eagle Spring Filtration, Inc. - Whole House Here is a 5-8 yr maintainance free unit with upflow design. No back washing. Premium Whole House Water Filters / Water Systems | APEC Water Mike NJ Mike, why would you say city water is good? Have seen city water at 30 grains of hardness. Would you not advise a softener? Almost 6 GPG is consider hard water and the OP would benefit with a softener. I have sold/installed whole house filter housing but don't care for them. The customers don't do the proper maintenance on them and it ends up causing more problems. As for the in/out carbon tank, that price is high. I sell a 1 cf carbon filter with a 5600 backwashing valve for less than that. 5.32 grains per gallon I would not waste money @ the above hardness. Thats what we are talkingin this post, not what is out there at other water sources. I dont suggest softning unless over 7gpg. IMO just a waste of money. Other opinions may vary but why go through the costs involved. On city water I unually only recommending chlorine removal. But of course if hardness levels are high softning is recommended. whole house filter housing but don't care for them They have thier place. I usually only use them for sediment removal. Just throwing options out there for the OP. Just my opinion. Mike NJ For general household use there is nothing really necessary in my opinion. But, if you want to improve the quality of your water you could consider whole house softening and point of use treatment for drinking water. Softening: While many people use water with 5-6 grains hardness without treatment I personally would chose to soften the water. Drinking water: you could consider a point of use filter system for drinking water that includes a carbon filter to remove the chloramines and most of the other organic compounds that show up in very low concentrations in your water report. I don't recommend whole house carbon filters--I believe that the benefit of residual chlorine or chloramines in keeping the plumbing system disinfected outweights any disadvantages and that if chlorine or chloramines bother you that point of use treatment is preferrable. I really appreciate the thorough replies. Thanks! I definitely want to remove Chlorine. We have RO on our drinking water, but there is a noticeable smell when we run a bath for our kids. We're also pretty anal about not wanting chemicals in our house. It seems like a carbon filter is the way to go. As for softening, we get mineral deposits on our sinks / dishwasher / etc., and it'd be nice to get rid of those. I also have neighbors who have put in whole-house softeners and really enjoy the difference. So, if you'd be so kind, could you recommend systems for the following options so I can compare costs? Carbon filter only, moderate upkeep required Carbon filter only, no / very minimal upkeep required Add a softener to option 1 Add a softener to option 2 Thanks in advance for your help! Still need to know the number in family, size of house and inlet line size. I sent you a private message. Four in family: two adults, one pre-schooler, one infant. Could have more kids in the years to come. House is 3 bedroom, 2 bath. Could add a bath in the future. What's the easiest way to find out my inlet line size? I take it the house is not pre-plumbed for a softener. Is home 2 story? Most likely it would be 3/4 out of the meter. The most it would be is 1. The only other way to be sure is to find the main line where it enters the house. Based on the info provided, 2 cf carbon and 1-1.5 cf softener with 1 valves will do fine. Mike, I apologize for being so gruff. You have every right to your opinion. I just couldn’t understand you saying city water is fine. I read an article yesterday that stated we are contaminating of drinking water everyday and who will suffer the most….Our kids and grandkids. The drugs people take (legal or illegal) are ending in the water with no one removing them prior to delivering it to a home. Biermech, gruff??? Oh please. I dont get offended by anyone on this site...LOL. I worked in a water treatment plant. Its just well water from an aquafier or resovoir. They treat it the same as well owners do. Only they add chlorine to kill any bacteria. Contaminated water is one thing such as bateria. Inconveinences are another, such as hardness and PH. City water is under a standard and must be followed. IMO its good water but you just need to get the chlorine out. Your a water guy, you know what chlorine does to you. Plus breathing in that hot steamy chlorine shower....let alone drinking it. Your skin is like a sponge. IMO everyone should drink RO water, and use whole house carbon filtraton to remove chlorine for bathing. Mike NJ Assuming I go with that sort of system (i.e., 2 cf carbon and 1-1.5 cf softener with 1 valves), where do I start? Call a local professional? Visit a supply shop? Shop online for all-inclusive systems? I'm comfortable with my diy skills, but I'd need detailed instructions for my first time around. Buy a separate softener and carbon filter--don't buy a unit that mixes carbon and softener resin in the same tank. While units with mixed beds save a bit of money at initial purchase they aren't worth the problems down the road. Carbon must be changed (rebedded) periodically (and typically much more frequently than softener resin) so having it in a separate unit is a great advantabe when maintenance is needed. I recommend backwashing carbon filters rather than upflow. If you want to do the installation yourself here are three online sources that offer good prices: Water purification, replacement filter cartridge, iron removal system, Fleck control valve www.qualitywaterforless.com Water Softeners, Softner Parts, Water Filtration | Discount Water Softeners If you are going to install it yourself, I will need some more info. As you look at your house, what side in the garage on left or right? Is the water meter on the left or right side of the drive way? If you can send pics that will help. Send them to affordablewtr@aol.com. I had three companies come out and provide quotes: A. Rainsoft EC4 + 1cu ft Carbon - $4,590. Installed in the garage. Lifetime warranty across the board (resin, valve int ext, treatment tank, brine tank, electrical). Can take system with me if I move. Includes a large soap/cleaner/etc package. More info. B. Vortech + Carbon pre-filter - $2,940. Installed on side of house with vent into attic drain. More info. C. Vortech dual-chamber - $2,395. Installed on side of house with vent out to street. Warranties: lifetime resin, 5 yr microprocessor timer and valve, 1 yr repairs. More info. My impression generally reflects the price. The Rainsoft place gave me a lot of information, was most professional, and clearly has the best warranty and installation configuration. The cheapest place was the opposite, and the middle was in the middle. Thoughts? Insights? I need to make a decision before the end of the month. In My opinion I dont like any of them. Rainsoft gave you a month??? Thats what happen to my neighbor. They did the soap test on him and 5K later he was suckered into it. They said buy now or price goes up. Anyway IM opinion you dont need a 45k grain softner. 32K for flow 24K for capacity. With your hardness I would do the 24K and that would probably regen every 9 days. Go bigger and you just dont regen often enough and will probably use more salt per regeneration. I suggest you educate yourself before you buy anything and dont fall for these sales pitches. Start here. with this calculator. And read the info. Water Softener Selection Calculator - Pick the Best Water Softener - Removing Iron - Potassium Mike NJ So, you recommend buying a softener and carbon filter on my own? And then installing them myself, I guess? Although I'm interested in doing that for the DIY fun and cost savings, I may not have the time. Could I have someone install them for me after I buy them? And if I have a plumber do that, wouldn't my cost end up about the same? Other questions: What 32k grain softener do you recommend? Which carbon filters? Is it worth the extra money to install the system in the garage? Are there pros/cons to draining out to the street vs catching a drain in the attic? Well look, There are alot of opinions on here and no two homes are alike in regards to needs or wants with water treatment. I can only tell you my opinion from a health point of veiw. From your test report, and that your city water is good IMO, I would just do a carbon filter to rid the water of chlorine. This will protect you and your family. Especially the young ones. You can get plumber to hook any unit up, It is fairly symple. I like apec products, plus this type of filter is an up flow design. No electric and no backwash. I think they warranty some 10 yrs. Media gets replaced 5-8 years just like any of the others. They through in a whole house sediment filter also. I think just with the carbon your water will improve greatly without a softner. You can always add a softner later. 10 GPM, Premium Green-Carbon-10 Water Conditioners-Whole House Water Treatment System | APEC Water They have a softner also that usues no salt or electric and no backwashing too. And its not one of those electrical magnetic softners. Theirs has a special media. See below. Anti-Scale Water Conditioner, Water Softener Alternative - 10 GPM, Futura Salt-Free Descaler; The Most Recommended Whole House Conditioning System | APEC Water I thought salt based units were banned in Texas??????? This type would be a good alternative. And yes you can get old technology online and install yourelf to save money. All those quotes are salt based. Pricey IMO. I think the apec syle no salt unit is better technolgy. So like I said you need to educate yourself. You may not want to lug salt or have a unit backwash..... 1. Rainsoft is a rip off IMO 2. Watts softner?????? Uggg.... 3. The consensus I believe is never buy a mixed bed system. Mike NJ You can buy a 1 cubic foot softener with a Fleck control head for $500 +/- complete and delivered to your home. 1 cubic foot is the appropriate size unless you have unusual fixtures like multiple head showers or large tubs, etc. Installation by a plumber typically is less than $500--but you would need to determine the price based on your specifi circumstances. While I don't recommend whole house carbon filters in circumstances like yours--I recommend point of use filters-- you can buy a backwashing carbon filter for $500-800 complete and delivered (size and flow rate treated determines cost). If the carbon filter is installed at the same time as the softener and in the same location it should add only marginally to the softener install cost. No salt softeners are unproven, don't soften, and, in my view, a waste of money if you want soft water because they don't soften the water (remove the hardness minerals). Bob, I see the electronic versions seem not to work, but I have been seeing the the media below latley. Have you seen any installs with this type of media? Like I said TX I thought banned salt based softners. Ceramic Modified acrylic copolymer Mike NJ Mike--the product itsn't advertised as a softener! The link you provide describes it as a SALT-FREE ANTI-SCALE Water Conditioner and Water Softener Alternative that conditions the water--what ever that means. I briefly looked into point of service carbon filters, but there were so many points of service. Two showers, five sinks, the dishwasher and the washing machine. And that'd also mean all of the chlorine went through the softener, and I hear that's hard on the resin. One of the companies that came out (the middle priced one) said installation would be ~$1,500 if I bought the tanks on my own. That is very high for an installation alone. You could call around and find a better price. If I could find a solid 1 cu ft carbon filter and 32k grains water softener, then I'd feel comfortable buying them and paying a plumber to install them. There are so many options, though, that I want some confirmation. What about these (from a supply place close to me)? Fleck upflow carbon filter Fleck 2510 SXT 32k grain water softener I have a system that uses 1 valve but 2 tanks (1 carbon 1 softener). I don't know post pics here but you can e-mail me and I'll send it to you to see what you think. It has a great factory warranty. My e-mail is affordablewtr@aol.com same area and looking for the same stuff. Let me know what you decide on Uriah923. Is your house pre-plumbed for the softner? Hi, If I want to install the water softener outside, can I put all the tank on the gound (grass) ? Do I need to build concrete fro them ? Regards, HI You don't have to. I use to buy AC pads to place the units on or you could bury the media tank a few inches to give it support.
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