Well advice

[Gonsalviz]

I have a well at 25 meters. The water is salty. Not extreme but still. And it smells of chemicals. Sorry my nose cannot say what kind of chemical but since I am surrounded by rice fields, fertilizer of strong concentrations would be my suspect.

Would a deeper well get me to cleaner water?

[Kwasaki]

Difficult to know l filter water from my Well before it gets to my storage tank.

[Strange]

Difficult to say, but it may be more economical (and healthier) to filter the water instead of drilling again. There are good whole house filtration systems in thailand now. 

[Gonsalviz]

45 minutes ago, Strange said:

Difficult to say, but it may be more economical (and healthier) to filter the water instead of drilling again. There are good whole house filtration systems in thailand now. 

Already have multiple filters but this is strong. My resin tank and a huge charcoal tank do not rid the water of the smell. and I get severe buildup on the shower glass. I have another triple filtration cartridge system that does the trick for inside the house but max life on that is about 3 months. I would guess the big resin and charcoal tanks lasted about that long. All is filtered before the storage tank. The water that goes inside the house is filtered again by the 3 (2) cartridge filter.

 

I back flush regularly. Not sure I am doing it right but neither are the Global house people that installed them.

Is it time to replace the resin and charcoal in the tanks already? Been about 8 months max.

Edited October 14, 2016 by Gonsalviz
Addition.

[Strange]

3 hours ago, Gonsalviz said:

Already have multiple filters but this is strong. My resin tank and a huge charcoal tank do not rid the water of the smell. and I get severe buildup on the shower glass. I have another triple filtration cartridge system that does the trick for inside the house but max life on that is about 3 months. I would guess the big resin and charcoal tanks lasted about that long. All is filtered before the storage tank. The water that goes inside the house is filtered again by the 3 (2) cartridge filter.

 

I back flush regularly. Not sure I am doing it right but neither are the Global house people that installed them.

Is it time to replace the resin and charcoal in the tanks already? Been about 8 months max.

 

OK have you at least tried to bypass the large outside filters just to make sure that the smell isn't coming from (or being exacerbated by) the filters? There should be a bypass valve on there. Gotta get through the whole storage tank of water to make sure. 

 

You have 2 filters outside and 1 is charcoal and the other is what? You said resin but what is the media? Its important. 

 

When you back flush, it should have a drain line, does it? 

 

Using these filters require a certain supply pressure to function properly including the back flush process. What kind of pump and pressure is the supply? Does it say on the filter what the pressure should be?

 

Your main complaint is that the water smells like chemicals and leaves a residue, but otherwise its clear? Toilets staining? Lift the back toilet lid and see if its got a water stain. What color is it? Is the stain dry or slimy? 

 

Edit:

 

There is no funk growing in the storage tank right?

Edited October 14, 2016 by Strange

[carlyai]

'Bore dan' or water from the aquifer has come up on Thaivisa before.

I have asked before on this forum about finding out aquifer locations in Isaan, and had some good replies.

Seems there are some salt contaminated aquifers around.

Evidently there have been extensive aquifer mapping and studies done and the information is probably kept in the hydrology department in the 'Chang Wat'.

Why i say this is (after all the correct things you have done), you may need to find what your aquifer water source to your 'bore dan' is like. The information may show levels that the bore depth needs to be.

My short term memory was destroyed years ago, but if you search TV under 'aquifers' you may find the thread and how to get you aquifer info.

I had a lot of iron in my bore water that precipitated when the water hit the air. The bore water first went into a ss 3000 l tank, where a lot of the iron settled in the tank, and from there to 2 large backwashable carbon and zeolite (something like that) filters then to a big blue sedement filter. After this to the house drinking water a RO unit.

This fixed my problem, but for you, seeing you have played with the filter solution (and maybe need to fine tune as a responder has said), you may need to do more.

Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk

[Gonsalviz]

16 hours ago, Strange said:

 

OK have you at least tried to bypass the large outside filters just to make sure that the smell isn't coming from (or being exacerbated by) the filters? There should be a bypass valve on there. Gotta get through the whole storage tank of water to make sure. 

 

You have 2 filters outside and 1 is charcoal and the other is what? You said resin but what is the media? Its important. 

 

When you back flush, it should have a drain line, does it? 

 

Using these filters require a certain supply pressure to function properly including the back flush process. What kind of pump and pressure is the supply? Does it say on the filter what the pressure should be?

 

Your main complaint is that the water smells like chemicals and leaves a residue, but otherwise its clear? Toilets staining? Lift the back toilet lid and see if its got a water stain. What color is it? Is the stain dry or slimy? 

 

Edit:

 

There is no funk growing in the storage tank right?

The resin seems to be tiny plastic beads that flow.

 

The rest of the stuff I'd have go back and look then get back to you.

[Strange]

9 minutes ago, Gonsalviz said:

The resin seems to be tiny plastic beads that flow.

 

The rest of the stuff I'd have go back and look then get back to you.

 

Sounds like activated charcoal and something to soften the water. 

 

Do do you have a pic of the setup outside? Would give a better idea as to what global house sold you. Curious to know if they are properly sized for a whole house. 

[Artisi]

You asked if drilling deeper will result in better quality water - maybe - maybe not.   Check with your local authority if they have any documented information of the aquifers in your region. The local well drillers are probably only capable to drilling to "X" depth and that is what they do - it's gets you water and that's all they are interested in - they give you water - you pay your money - irrespective of the water quality.

It is very likely there are quiet deep aquifers in many areas of Thailand with good quality water - BUT - unless some of the local people have drilled below the normal 30 / 40 / 50 meters or the local authorities have good info - it's all a guessing game.  

In some parts of the world water well are drilled  hundreds and sometimes thousand of feet below ground level.

[Boksida]

^ Drilling water wells to depths of 600 metres is now common practice in Bangkok.

[Gary A]

I live in Loei province. We had a local driller who promised good water regardless of the depth. He hit a good strong source at 26 meters but he wasn't satisfied. He said the water was too hard, whatever that means. He ended up at about 50 meters and the water is very good. A one HP submersible cannot pump it dry. So, the answer is yes, deeper can provide better quality water.

[Strange]

3 minutes ago, Gary A said:

A one HP submersible cannot pump it dry. So, the answer is yes, deeper can provide better quality water.

 

It can, sure, but there is no way to know. Its a crapshoot wether deeper will get you anything. The local drillers will know more than any of us on here but the problem is they are biased unless you can get a payment guarantee for drilling deeper and finding BETTER water than OP has now. 

 

I mean the drillers could move 20 meters away from the existing well and find a nice clean supply/aquifer just as easily. 

[Strange]

I mean for the cost of a new well or drilling deeper, a whole house reverse osmosis system might be a better option. 

 

Plus, if OP is using a Jet pump now, going any deeper will require a submersible pump and the outlay involved. 

 

Yes a jet pump will "work" at 25 meters just not efficiently at all. A slow stream out of a 1/2" hose but nonetheless working and slowly filling a storage tank. 

[Gary A]

37 minutes ago, Strange said:

 

It can, sure, but there is no way to know. Its a crapshoot wether deeper will get you anything. The local drillers will know more than any of us on here but the problem is they are biased unless you can get a payment guarantee for drilling deeper and finding BETTER water than OP has now. 

 

I mean the drillers could move 20 meters away from the existing well and find a nice clean supply/aquifer just as easily. 

 

I think it is always better to get a well regarded local driller. He will pretty much know the depths and what to expect. There are a lot of cowboy drillers who don't care about the quality of the water.The driller we used ended up about fifty meters from the spot where I wanted the well to be. It worked out very well so I was satisfied. The submersible pump is down about 36 meters deep. I don't know why they didn't put it deeper but the well is very strong so I guess they knew what they were doing.

 

ADDED - The water has no odor at all and it tastes fine. I wanted my wife to get the water tested but she insists that the water cannot be used for drinking. I think she is wrong but she knows EVERYTHING.  This water is only used for irrigation, so it doesn't matter.

Edited October 20, 2016 by Gary A
information

[kannot]

2 hours ago, Boksida said:

^ Drilling water wells to depths of 600 metres is now common practice in Bangkok.

amazed ,i went down  80  metres in prachuap and  though that  was deep

[Gary A]

I have a friend who is located about 20 kilometers south of Pattaya. They were in rock quite deep and lost the drill bit. They couldn't retrieve it and had to move and start again. I think they ended up about 120 meters deep. He does have good water. I don't remember the exact cost but at the time, I thought it was very expensive.

[Gonsalviz]

On 10/15/2016 at 0:28 AM, Strange said:

 

OK have you at least tried to bypass the large outside filters just to make sure that the smell isn't coming from (or being exacerbated by) the filters? There should be a bypass valve on there. Gotta get through the whole storage tank of water to make sure. 

 

You have 2 filters outside and 1 is charcoal and the other is what? You said resin but what is the media? Its important. 

 

When you back flush, it should have a drain line, does it? 

 

Using these filters require a certain supply pressure to function properly including the back flush process. What kind of pump and pressure is the supply? Does it say on the filter what the pressure should be?

 

Your main complaint is that the water smells like chemicals and leaves a residue, but otherwise its clear? Toilets staining? Lift the back toilet lid and see if its got a water stain. What color is it? Is the stain dry or slimy? 

 

Edit:

 

There is no funk growing in the storage tank right?

The resin tank is supposed to just grab dirt on it's way by. Then the water goes to an activated charcoal tank. Both are large and my house is very small. 3 people using water. One is the FIL and his water comes out of the main tank after the resin and charcoal. The water into the house is again filtered by a Camarcio 3 stage filter. 9 micron, then a 5 micron and a third filter of charcoal. Operating pressure is 1.8 bar to 8 bar. The house pump is running at less than 2 bar. The jet pump is what runs through the resin and charcoal tank prior to the holding tank.

There is a place for a drain line on the resin tank but as with many things in Thailand the pipe was never installed and the water from the back flush just runs onto the cement. The filtering tanks are fine. I have drained both and there is nothing out of order there.

There is a stain at the waterline in the toilet tank. Couldn't call it dry or slimy. It is brown and rubs off. Don't know about in the

storage tank but my guess that there is.

I don't think the well is in an aquafier at all. I think I just have the local water table filled with generations of fertilizer etc for the rice fields.

Sorry I don't get back here too much. Been travelling.

Edited October 23, 2016 by Gonsalviz

[carlyai]

If the stain is brown, could be iron in the water.

Another way to check is to look at the leaks aroung the pump (come on we all have leaks ) and see if they are a brown colour.

If it is iron in the water it shouldn't be causing a smell, and if you put the tank straight from the jet pump, this will act as a settling tank for the iron in the water.

Have the filters on the output of the tank and change the ball type medium to zealite (I think it's called).

If your water us 'hard' you may need to keep the balls and add the extra tank.


You can buy a well test kit from the states, not cheap, but good to know what your water is composed of. Buy 2, cheaper.

Before I put my filters in I tested my water with the kits and bought the filters accordingly.

I am not a well or anything expert, just what I have discovered in my building journey. [emoji3]


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[Gonsalviz]

On 10/23/2016 at 11:28 PM, carlyai said:

If the stain is brown, could be iron in the water.

Another way to check is to look at the leaks aroung the pump (come on we all have leaks ) and see if they are a brown colour.

If it is iron in the water it shouldn't be causing a smell, and if you put the tank straight from the jet pump, this will act as a settling tank for the iron in the water.

Have the filters on the output of the tank and change the ball type medium to zealite (I think it's called).

If your water us 'hard' you may need to keep the balls and add the extra tank.


You can buy a well test kit from the states, not cheap, but good to know what your water is composed of. Buy 2, cheaper.

Before I put my filters in I tested my water with the kits and bought the filters accordingly.

I am not a well or anything expert, just what I have discovered in my building journey.


Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk
 

 

Called zeolite. Where would one purchase this animal? I am sure there is nothing like that in my area of Isan. (Kalasin) Maybe Khon Kaen. That is only 60 km away. Yes the water is hard but I am more concerned about the chemicals. I am sure there is iron in the water but other places I have live have much more. It is def not iron smell. Smells like chemicals. Fertilizer in large quantity. Sorry, I don't have leaks. Not one. I make sure of that.

That is a mistake I made. I didn't test the water. I just (trusted) the local people. I actually think the well is in the local water table, not an actual aquafier because others in the area don' have this smell. I will check more on that.

[Strange]

2 minutes ago, Gonsalviz said:

Called zeolite. Where would one purchase this animal? I am sure there is nothing like that in my area of Isan. (Kalasin) Maybe Khon Kaen. That is only 60 km away. Yes the water is hard but I am more concerned about the chemicals. I am sure there is iron in the water but other places I have live have much more. It is def not iron smell. Smells like chemicals. Fertilizer in large quantity. Sorry, I don't have leaks. Not one. I make sure of that.

That is a mistake I made. I didn't test the water. I just (trusted) the local people. I actually think the well is in the local water table, not an actual aquafier because others in the area don' have this smell. I will check more on that.

 

Id look into a reverse osmosis system. There are some on lazada that are about 300GPD (1100 Liter per day) for like 12-13K baht. This would be enough for a family of 4-5 for just the house. Water the garden & stuff with unfiltered water. 

 

This is the same system they use in the water machines dotted all over the place filtering Klong water & Government water to drink. Same system that offshore ships use to make their own fresh water out of salt water as well. 

 

They require good pressure and maintenance. But there is always going to be maintenance with a filtration system. 

 

Just a point to look at. 

[Gonsalviz]

32 minutes ago, Strange said:

 

Id look into a reverse osmosis system. There are some on lazada that are about 300GPD (1100 Liter per day) for like 12-13K baht. This would be enough for a family of 4-5 for just the house. Water the garden & stuff with unfiltered water. 

 

This is the same system they use in the water machines dotted all over the place filtering Klong water & Government water to drink. Same system that offshore ships use to make their own fresh water out of salt water as well. 

 

They require good pressure and maintenance. But there is always going to be maintenance with a filtration system. 

 

Just a point to look at. 

I already looked about that but was told there are huge energy requirements IE Huge electric bill. I might still do it if I knew the electric bill would not go sky high. 

 

1100 liters would not fill my tank and it gets filled atleast  once a day. Sometimes more. I'd have to have a separate tank for the R/O water but as I said, if it doesn't go through the R/O I can't use it for anything but washing clothes. I have animals but they can't drink it. I have a garden but It would die. I have a separate water access (from the local reservior) for the animals but it is not piped. I have to carry it. I am actually using the local 19 liter bottles to water the chickens. So far rain water for the sheep but that won't last long since the rain has stopped.

I am open to ideas.

Edited October 26, 2016 by Gonsalviz
Additional info.

[Gonsalviz]

53 minutes ago, Gonsalviz said:

Called zeolite. Where would one purchase this animal? I am sure there is nothing like that in my area of Isan. (Kalasin) Maybe Khon Kaen. That is only 60 km away. Yes the water is hard but I am more concerned about the chemicals. I am sure there is iron in the water but other places I have live have much more. It is def not iron smell. Smells like chemicals. Fertilizer in large quantity. Sorry, I don't have leaks. Not one. I make sure of that.

That is a mistake I made. I didn't test the water. I just (trusted) the local people. I actually think the well is in the local water table, not an actual aquafier because others in the area don' have this smell. I will check more on that.

Why would need the charcoal tank if I just filled it with zeolite, would that not be the same or better?

[carlyai]

Called zeolite. Where would one purchase this animal? I am sure there is nothing like that in my area of Isan. (Kalasin) Maybe Khon Kaen. That is only 60 km away. Yes the water is hard but I am more concerned about the chemicals. I am sure there is iron in the water but other places I have live have much more. It is def not iron smell. Smells like chemicals. Fertilizer in large quantity. Sorry, I don't have leaks. Not one. I make sure of that.
That is a mistake I made. I didn't test the water. I just (trusted) the local people. I actually think the well is in the local water table, not an actual aquafier because others in the area don' have this smell. I will check more on that.

Hi

Got the zealite from Khon Kean, in fact I was there to visit my wife's sister at the private hospital and saw this little filter shop. His window display looked good, everything straight and good welds, so eventually got him to do the job. Good job and price too.

After a while the iron in the water started to leave this brown stain on the shower floor tiles. That's what lead me to investigate it. The bore water was lovely and clear until it hit the air.

Anyway, I think you need to buy a couple of those well test kits on ebay. As I said, bit expensive, then you know exactly what your water is.

I think there is also a place in Khon Kean that analyses water.

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[Gonsalviz]

7 hours ago, carlyai said:

Hi

Got the zealite from Khon Kean, in fact I was there to visit my wife's sister at the private hospital and saw this little filter shop. His window display looked good, everything straight and good welds, so eventually got him to do the job. Good job and price too.

After a while the iron in the water started to leave this brown stain on the shower floor tiles. That's what lead me to investigate it. The bore water was lovely and clear until it hit the air.

Anyway, I think you need to buy a couple of those well test kits on ebay. As I said, bit expensive, then you know exactly what your water is.

I think there is also a place in Khon Kean that analyses water.

Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk
 

I have been told that KKU can do water analysis. I see that pools filters use zeolite. I know one in KK. This smell has been in the water since I started this project 1 year ago. It got pretty good for a while but I think the smell of the water overwhelmed the charcoal.

 

I have checked the charcoal tank. That water comes from the resin media tank the through the charcoal. There is no residue from the drain.

[Gonsalviz]

8 hours ago, carlyai said:

Hi

Got the zealite from Khon Kean, in fact I was there to visit my wife's sister at the private hospital and saw this little filter shop. His window display looked good, everything straight and good welds, so eventually got him to do the job. Good job and price too.

After a while the iron in the water started to leave this brown stain on the shower floor tiles. That's what lead me to investigate it. The bore water was lovely and clear until it hit the air.

Anyway, I think you need to buy a couple of those well test kits on ebay. As I said, bit expensive, then you know exactly what your water is.

I think there is also a place in Khon Kean that analyses water.

Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk
 

Which private hospital would that be? RAM or BKK?

[carlyai]

I think it was Bkk.

Just talked to SWMBO and she said the place was not near the hospital but near the hotel we stayed at.....

I think the name of the filter place was Mong Khong.

Probably got their card at home but we won't be back there till next week. If you want their contact pm me.



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