Hey guys, I spoke to Bill the other day and he recommended that before i add more salt to my softener, I regenerate it three separate time with a 1/2 cup of iron out diluted in a half gallon of cold water and add it to my brine tank. We are currently getting help with you for helping us solve out iron problems as my birm tank is not working as it was a bad purchase.

OK. So we did this three times and then added salt and regenerated it to soften the water. Now the water is really bad. Our bath water is really not even clear and the water in out toilets is yellow. What is going on? Did we jar the system so bad with the iron out that it is cleaning our pipes now? Please help as we thought by doing this we would actually help the condition of our water temporarily until we get the right iron removal equipment from you.

We have had a few posts so you can preview them before answering if need be. There are a lot of details in them you may need to know. Any help here would be very much appreciated. You should have our water samples Friday. Thanks guys. -G

Answer: The coloration in your water is due to iron that was fouling the resin bed.  The Iron Out treatment loosened some of this iron, and the residual that was not removed during backwashing is passing into your household water supply.  This will clear after time, or you can place the unit into backwash (normally stage 1 of the regeneration cycle), unplug the unit, and leave it in backwash for about 30 minutes.  Reconnect the power, and allow the softener to complete the regeneration cycle.  Then run both your hot and cold water until the line are clear.  We’ll look for your samples.

This is the letter we are including in out water sample we are sending you. If you had time look this over and give us any feedback that would be great. I know it will depend on the water test, but some of these could be a yes or no answer.

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Dear CAI Technologies, Please take a minute and read this whole letter BEFORE giving us a solution. Enclosed you will find two samples of our water. Bottle “A” is from the outside hose that is untreated and bottle “B” is from the kitchen sink after running it for a few minutes with Softened water. Can we have the results from this test and is this a good test that you do? We have had cheap city test done, and they are not accurate.

I spoke with Bill on Tuesday and have submitted two questions to the forum and thank you for answering them.

We are looking for the right solution to fix our water problem. There is too much iron in our system. We need a financially reasonable solution with long-term benefits and cost effective upkeep. We will soon have a 2700 sq. ft house with three full baths, a air bubble bath tub, and a new kitchen with new appliances. We also have an older hot tub outside that we stopped using because we could not control the iron in it. We would like to use it again. The problems we have with our water is:

1. Dirty rust stained dishes from the dishwasher. Dishes are ruined as well as the inside of the dishwasher is discolored. We use iron out a lot there.
2. My wife’s color treated hair lasts about two weeks and the salon products do not work at all.
3. We can no longer buy white clothes and they do not stay white.
4. We do not have clean bath/shower water. It is always questionable and discolored and gross. It smells like heavy iron.
5. Our hot tub has too much iron in it so we no longer use it.
6. Our small child’s pool water last about 2 days in the summer.
7. From time to time we have a horrible egg smell when we use the washing machine (not every time).
8. We have whitish brownish calcium(?) deposits around our shower heads. It can be scraped off, but it is hard to do and is a pain in the butt.

Can you provide a “fluoride treatment plan option” so we can add fluoride to our reverse osmosis system so my kids can have fluoride? Is it cheaper to have delivered water? We do have a radon issue that we are currently going to fix. Does this affect our water? We look forward to hearing from you. Thanks in advance.

OK. I have been told to put the atomizer valve back into the system so the iron can get bigger with the air being entered into the system. This will help my style of iron trap really pull the iron out better than it is now because it will be bigger and easier for the iron trap to grab.

I have also added a 1/2 cup of “iron out” to my salt tank and regenerated my softener to help pull any iron out that the iron trap was letting through. I may add a 1/2 cup every two months or so to help keep my softener clean. Just an extra step to help. Is this worth it?

I was told that the “Iron Breaker” would not solve my problem by another company that sells them in my area. He also told me that my copper pipes are really old and that I was the first homeowner to address the iron problem, so, the pipes have iron in them on the walls. This has built up over many years. I can attest to this build up. I have had to remove copper pipe and they were coated with iron. It flushed out easily so I do not know why it does not flush out on its own. “Maybe it is” he said.

OK. With this done and my media in the iron tank changed about a year ago, am I on the right track? We are going to be doing an addition and the copper pipe work will need to be replaced. I am trying to get it all replaced so we can start fresh.

I was also told to “not shock the well” as this is the last resort and iron is not bacteria, so the shock treatment will not help that.

Any recommendations on what I can do or is there anything that will help make my system better and the iron go away for good, other than what I was planning an above?

Last question, I am going to send you two water samples for testing. One from the “Y” screen that will have iron in it and one from the water source after the iron trap and softener. Are these the two areas you would want me to take the samples from? If not, where should I take them from?

What will you test for? There was one guy on here who had his water tested for 12 different things. Can you do that for me so we have a complete test to rule out any other problems or concerns?

Thanks in advance for your time. I do really appreciate it. –G

Answer: The inline atomizer (venturi) may be causing the oxidized iron particulate to agglomerate and form larger particles that are easier for your “iron trap” to capture, but these devices can cause other problems.  Inline venturies (also called micronizers) severely restrict the internal pipe diameter at the point of installation, creating substantial backpressure, and possibly causing well pump failure over time.  Precipitated iron may clog the well supply line and pressure tank.  It is also likely that the iron deposits you are finding within your piping are due to the heavy precipitation caused by this device, and not just that the pipes are older.

We would recommend that you continue to treat your softener with Iron Out as this will aid in the removal of accumulated iron from the resin bed.

We are not sure why you were told the Iron Breaker would not resolve the problem, but proper application of this system depends on the available flow rate, iron concentration, type of iron present, and pH level of your water.  It is possible that one of these variables would prohibit the use of an Iron Breaker, but it is important to remember that this system works in the same way as your atomizer (oxidation by air), but without any the disadvantage as mentioned above – possibly your pH or available water flow rate is too low.

If you send our laboratory a sample of your water for our free analysis, we will measure, hardness, iron (and iron species), pH level, and total dissolved solids (TDS).  Instructions for sampling your water and the mailing address are available on any of our websites.  Based on this analysis, we will be pleased to make an equipment recommendation for your application – be sure to let us know what equipment is already installed, your pipe diameter, and the number of residents in your home. Take a sample of your raw water with all treatment equipment (including the atomizer) off line. Thanks!