Is Your Water Contaminated With Iron

If you've ever lived where iron was a problem in the water, you were probably happy if you were able to move away! Iron in water for household systems is one of the biggest nuisance and cause some refuse to live in certain neighborhoods.

Iron problems with water in two different ionic forms. Ferrous iron or iron (II) oxide (Foe) is the first. Water from the tap contains Foe is clear and colorless. But Foe oxidizes quickly when exposed to air and forms iron oxide, or Fe (III) oxide or Fe2O3. This iron connection is reddish brown and used as a cheap red paint pigment. This kind of iron caused the stain in the tub, sink and toilet.

This iron also stains laundry. Whites lose their whiteness and this dingy color can not be easily removed. It takes only 3 parts of iron per million to cause these spots problems. When we lived in the country for good water, I found my white shirts gradually lose their whiteness, especially the sleeves. The water was not clear or bad taste, but the presence of iron appeared in the laundry. The problem was finally solved by adding borax to the whites' laundry.

Staining is a bother, but also iron, leaving an unpleasant metallic taste to water. Speaking of dyeing, iron also reacts with tannins in coffee, tea and alcohol, producing an undesirable gray or black appearance.

Here is a simple test to see what kind of iron (if any) you may have in your water. Fill a clear glass with water and let it sit for fifteen to twenty minutes. If all the visible iron drops to the bottom, you have ferrous iron in the water. They are about five microns or less, large enough to be filtered.

If so, a cartridge filter as an activated carbon or charcoal filter will remove iron and clean up the water. The particles will lodge in the filter and can be backwashed or scrubbed out when the filter is cleaned.

On the other hand, if the particles do not fall to the bottom, so a cartridge filter is unlikely to be able to remove them. You must then turn to a plasticizer or an iron removal system. Discussing this is beyond the scope of this article.

Filtering your water with an activated charcoal filter cartridge has added bonuses. Whether iron is a problem with the water, many other pollutants, including some which are harmful, is also removed. These include heavy metals, pathogens and bacteria, chlorine and chlorine compounds, nitrate and nitrite, and many hydrocarbons.

Yes, our bodies need iron, but not in the form present in contaminated water. Iron oxide ruins flavor and stain clothes and plumbing fixtures. Removing iron (III) from your drinking water through a cartridge filter is a relatively inexpensive solution.