water system for farm

[Robertbarlage]

got terrible hard water at farm what's the best system to put in just for house only

[Sheepwheat]

We like our rain water for home use. In summer, we use it exclusively. Course in winter we go back to well water. We have dugout water, but it gets pretty iffy in the winter. So using well water half the year at least is less bad on plumibing fixtures that all year. Our well water is hard, but not that bad.

[Robertbarlage]

rain water be great but in our area it didn't even do that last year .I hope that changes this year

[Sheepwheat]

rain water be great but in our area it didn't even do that last year .I hope that changes this year

Yeah, wasn’t sure where you are at. A couple thou sq feet of roof is a lot of water with each inch. I am not very knowledgable about softeners etc, so will defer to others on that... 😉

[poorboy]

Be very careful with rain water. Birds are some of biggest spreaders of disease and it is proven in lots of areas of the world that the people with the biggest health problems were/are the poor who collect water from the roof. Make sure you are chlorinating it or at least testing it.

[farmaholic]

I would make sure the water reaching the softener is pretty decent and not relying on it as a type of filter, doing a job it really wasn't designed for. That will make it work better and less maintenance. Size the softener according to how many people are in the house and the water hardness, if it's too small it will regenerate often.

We used to have an old one that regenerated on a schedule...whether it need it or not or when it needed it before the scheduled regen time, it wouldn't. I don't know if you can even get that style anymore....stay away even from a free used one.

Then there's metered softeners(measures gallon usage) you know the water hardness and the softeners capacity based on its size at the water's hardness. It will soften "X" gallons of water before a regen is needed(a mathematical calculation), set it lower than it's capacity for a buffer before it can't soften anymore.

Then there are sensing softeners, that somehow tests the water softness and I assume regen when the water begins to lose its softness, I have zero experience with these types. Maybe someone else can comment.

Are there any other methods other than ion exchange????

As mentioned in a different thread, know what your starting with and if something needs to be done before the softener.

Good luck

[BreadWinner]

I would recomend a whole house Reverse Osmosis. It cost close to 8 grand but, no more water stains, fixtures last forever, toilets stay clean, clothes wash excellent,waterheaters dont rot out, dishwasher lasts and dishes are clean. Coffee tastes great too!!!!

[farmaholic]

I might get the terminology wrong...

Seems deep glacial till aquifers are usually hard water , they say it depends on what the recharge water passes through before it reaches the aquifer.

Some people get decent soft water from shallow wells in sand but might have a poor pumping capacity.

I bet most times there are no options, you have to put up with the water in any well you can get.

[farming101]

We use something similar to this


Runs pretty cheap. You do have to haul salt
Likely need further upgrade for drinking such as a small RO
A local reputable plumber can set it up. Buy quality

[RedLentil]

Check out The Water Clinic.

[TSIPP]

I would make sure the water reaching the softener is pretty decent and not relying on it as a type of filter, doing a job it really wasn't designed for. That will make it work better and less maintenance. Size the softener according to how many people are in the house and the water hardness, if it's too small it will regenerate often.

We used to have an old one that regenerated on a schedule...whether it need it or not or when it needed it before the scheduled regen time, it wouldn't. I don't know if you can even get that style anymore....stay away even from a free used one.

Then there's metered softeners(measures gallon usage) you know the water hardness and the softeners capacity based on its size at the water's hardness. It will soften "X" gallons of water before a regen is needed(a mathematical calculation), set it lower than it's capacity for a buffer before it can't soften anymore.

Then there are sensing softeners, that somehow tests the water softness and I assume regen when the water begins to lose its softness, I have zero experience with these types. Maybe someone else can comment.

Are there any other methods other than ion exchange????

As mentioned in a different thread, know what your starting with and if something needs to be done before the softener.

Good luck

Sorry I’ve got nothing but I’m finally quoting the elusive farmaholic!

[sumdumguy]

After we found out that Pseudo Mona abscesses can come from inpure drinking water, we have an older style softener, then a 10 micron filter, then a 5 micron filter, then a UV light and we have a separate reverse osmosis system for drinking water at the fridge. Did we miss anything? The well water tests come back good but we don’t trust the water because a neighbouring town dumped their sewer in our creek that runs very close to our well five or so years ago.

[Rareearth]

Missed the carbon filter 😊

If using salt, potassium is much healthier than sodium ( costs more though)

[sumdumguy]

We had a carbon filter and when we went to change it, we cut it open and didn’t like the appearance of what accumulated inside. Maybe shouldn’t look?

[Guest]

Sorry I’ve got nothing but I’m finally quoting the elusive farmaholic!

yep , got all excited , thought farma and 101 were back !