Housold Water From Lake.....filtering Issues?

[jaideeguy]

I've been using well water for the last 10 yrs and due to the extremely hardness, I am going to switch my source of househole water to a nearby lake. To illustrate the hardness of my well, it measures over 900ppm on a TDS meter, where the lake water is around 150ppm.....much softer and less problems with staining, plumbing and washing. This water will be used for laundry, dishes, topping off swimming pool and general household use.

We have drinking water delivered and that is used in all cooking and drinking, so the household water won't be consumed by humans.

The lake is topped of yearly by overflow from rice fields and pastures and is relatively clear and holds water all year.

Just wondering how I should treat the water for household use and what my concerns should be.

There may be pathogens, viruses but I think that chemical residue should be minimal because it is mostly runoff during heavy rains. Of course, I'll have a screen filter in the intake, then a smaller screen filter before the storage, but what is recomended between the holding tank and the house?? chlorine will kill bacteria, but what about viruses and parasites.??

The only exposure my family will have is brushing teeth, bathing and residue from washing dishes and vegetables......is that a concern??

Any tips appreciated.....

[Sheryl]

With a surface water source such as a lake, river, stream etc, contamination with both pathogens and chemicals (especially pesticides which can be washed in from nearby fields by the rain) are a significant concern.

A reverse osmosis filter will remove everything. A simple carbon filter will remove many, buit not all, pathogens and also organic chemicals. Seee http://www.purewaterproducts.com/articles/carbon

Personally, since it is for water that will be drunk or used in cooking, I would just go with a carbon filter (or carbon and resin if you want to further soften the water) but not use it for brushing teeth. Keep a bottle of drinking water in your bathrooms for that purpose instead.

[thaipod]

I think if you contact some of the water treatment suppliers you should get a better idea of what is available.

I've used a large sand filter for geneal cleaning for normal water use and a resin and carbon filter for the kichen, followed by a reverse osmosis system for drinking etc .

[canuckamuck]

I built my own sand filter with stacked concrete rings and very fine sand from a sandbar on our place. It has been working well to keep the water nearly perfectly clear even though the supply is a small stream that gets muddy when it rains. I haven't had the quality tested, but we have been using it for half a year now and we are quite happy with it. We don't drink it, but we do cook with it. I am thinking about adding an additional filter for the kitchen only.

I do a backwash about every three weeks.