We have a new house on a shallow well (36" diam, 50' deep, 20' of water, pump 11' off bottom, ~1000 gal ). We called a local Kinetico dealer to come out and provide us with a water analysis and an estimate. I thought the estimate was a high, but further research online revealed that Kinetico = quality. We decided to go with the quote.
During the water analysis, I only recall the dealer running 3 tests. one came back clean and the other two were Iron and pH.
Iron = 10ppm+ it was off his charts, so he wasn't completely sure what it was.
pH = 2.5
Does not have a smell beyond the high-iron
Our system configuration installed 3.5 months ago - (Also, I had the hardest time finding prices online, so I'm posting here for the uninformed)
Whole House ($4300 installed)-
Kinetico Neutralizer (Uses calcite to solve pH so Iron Buster could do its job)
Iron Buster (to remove iron, approved for up to 10ppm)
Kinetico well-water softener (condition water and remove iron not picked up by iron buster)
Point of Use ($1200 installed) -
Kinetico K5
The water is horrible. This configuration has failed considerably. The only thing that works well is the K5.
Observed problems with the water.
brownish/yellowish in tint
stains everything it comes in contact with. toilets, clothes, dishwasher, sinks
clear out of faucet, turns cloudy as it rests
(we have since purchased iron and pH test strips)
iron = .03 - .06
pH = 6.5
Without going into a tremendous amount of detail, the dealer is having health issues and as a result is going through bankruptcy. He's helped a little but is unreliable to say the least. When describing the issue to him over the phone, he believes the issue to be tannins. He has us run some tests to see what bleach does. It seems to attach to the tannins and fall out. He says to fix this we have to spend another $1,200 for a clorinator, retention tank and carbon filter.
The dealer comes by to see how bad it "really" is. He's shocked at exactly how nasty the water really is. Apparently our water is some of the most challenging he's seen.. His comment: "If it were my well. I'd poor 2 gal. of bleach to try and get some of that stuff to fall out and recycle it for 2 days."
We did 3 gal and honestly, it showed hope. The water was clear, not drinkable, but least it was clear. Perfect pH, zero iron, zero tannins. He was concerned about damaging the resin in the softener with bleach, so we bypassed the iron buster and the softener. In the house, it didn't even have a chlorine odor. At least it wouldn't stain everything. That in combo with the RO, livable.
That lasted for 2 days. Water started getting a tinge of yellow... progressively got worse over a day. Began staining toilets again. Tried the process again... 1/2 gal bleach, didn't seem to improve. Tried 1 gal more (1.5 total). Small improvement, but it all seems very much like guesswork. (I've since read that shock chlorination is only good for disinfecting)
I tried calling the dealer today and his VM box is full. During all this, the RO filters decided to give out. No drinking water now. I can't even get ahold of him to get filters and I can't find them online (which is just stupid)
I'm at my wits end. I can't even get the water tested now because any results will be tainted by bleach. The dealer had 100% access to my water prior to me dropping $5500. He said $5500 worth of equipment would fix the problem. It didn't. While that may not seem like a lot to some, it's a lot for us. We seriously cannot afford to drop another $1,200... esp. w/o guarantees that it will solve the problem. I feel swindled. I asked about a refund and starting over... his mention of bankruptcy squashed that idea. I'm stuck.
I know I've rambled...
Any thoughts are definitely appreciated.
DS
During the water analysis, I only recall the dealer running 3 tests. one came back clean and the other two were Iron and pH.
Iron = 10ppm+ it was off his charts, so he wasn't completely sure what it was.
pH = 2.5
Does not have a smell beyond the high-iron
Our system configuration installed 3.5 months ago - (Also, I had the hardest time finding prices online, so I'm posting here for the uninformed)
Whole House ($4300 installed)-
Kinetico Neutralizer (Uses calcite to solve pH so Iron Buster could do its job)
Iron Buster (to remove iron, approved for up to 10ppm)
Kinetico well-water softener (condition water and remove iron not picked up by iron buster)
Point of Use ($1200 installed) -
Kinetico K5
The water is horrible. This configuration has failed considerably. The only thing that works well is the K5.
Observed problems with the water.
brownish/yellowish in tint
stains everything it comes in contact with. toilets, clothes, dishwasher, sinks
clear out of faucet, turns cloudy as it rests
(we have since purchased iron and pH test strips)
iron = .03 - .06
pH = 6.5
Without going into a tremendous amount of detail, the dealer is having health issues and as a result is going through bankruptcy. He's helped a little but is unreliable to say the least. When describing the issue to him over the phone, he believes the issue to be tannins. He has us run some tests to see what bleach does. It seems to attach to the tannins and fall out. He says to fix this we have to spend another $1,200 for a clorinator, retention tank and carbon filter.
The dealer comes by to see how bad it "really" is. He's shocked at exactly how nasty the water really is. Apparently our water is some of the most challenging he's seen.. His comment: "If it were my well. I'd poor 2 gal. of bleach to try and get some of that stuff to fall out and recycle it for 2 days."
We did 3 gal and honestly, it showed hope. The water was clear, not drinkable, but least it was clear. Perfect pH, zero iron, zero tannins. He was concerned about damaging the resin in the softener with bleach, so we bypassed the iron buster and the softener. In the house, it didn't even have a chlorine odor. At least it wouldn't stain everything. That in combo with the RO, livable.
That lasted for 2 days. Water started getting a tinge of yellow... progressively got worse over a day. Began staining toilets again. Tried the process again... 1/2 gal bleach, didn't seem to improve. Tried 1 gal more (1.5 total). Small improvement, but it all seems very much like guesswork. (I've since read that shock chlorination is only good for disinfecting)
I tried calling the dealer today and his VM box is full. During all this, the RO filters decided to give out. No drinking water now. I can't even get ahold of him to get filters and I can't find them online (which is just stupid)
I'm at my wits end. I can't even get the water tested now because any results will be tainted by bleach. The dealer had 100% access to my water prior to me dropping $5500. He said $5500 worth of equipment would fix the problem. It didn't. While that may not seem like a lot to some, it's a lot for us. We seriously cannot afford to drop another $1,200... esp. w/o guarantees that it will solve the problem. I feel swindled. I asked about a refund and starting over... his mention of bankruptcy squashed that idea. I'm stuck.
I know I've rambled...
Any thoughts are definitely appreciated.
DS
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