Rusty well water and pool needs to be topped off

[DiverGirl1972]

A little background:

We moved at the end of last summer to the home we’re currently in. Our area has had record amounts of rain and it’s been wreaking havoc in all sorts of ways (rockslides, sink holes, flooding, etc…) throughout the area. We do not have any areas that seem to flood on our property, but a lot of rain takes its toll.
About a week ago, we thought we noticed a slight yellow hue to our well water. A few days ago, my bf checked the filter and it was filled with dirt and mud. We also noticed that the filter looked WAY beyond it’s useful life. We were able to flush that out, but when we tried to get the filter out but the casing, it is absolutely stuck. It says “hand tighten” on the piece, but this thing is seemingly fused on. Who knows how long it’s been since they changed the filter. As we didn’t want to break anything, we stopped trying.

My bf has a theory about the water table being much higher due to the rain and it has now been exposed to rusty pipes, which is getting into the water. Because the filter is shot, it’s coming into the house this way. Regardless, we do have plans to get a plumber out next week to get it fixed and we’ll also be testing the water on Monday as well for any pathogens.

On to the actual point of my post:

My pool needs to be topped off soon (it’s not at dangerous levels yet), but I’m worried about possibly putting a bunch of iron into the pool. I’ve never had an issue with it and don’t want to. I am currently working on some stains on my liner, some of which have improved greatly after rubbing with vitamin c.

Should I try to hold off (hoping we can get the filter replaced within the next couple of days) and hope I get some rain (there is a chance in the forecast) or is it worse to let the water get too low on the skimmer and deal with the consequences?

 

[Richard320]

If forced to fill, stuff a plastic bucket full of polyester batting and run a trickle of water through it to hopefully catch all the Iron. See If you’ve got iron in your fill water, use Polyfill to remove it

 

[DiverGirl1972]

Well, we were lucky to have a bit of a reprieve after getting another inch of rain last Saturday, but my water levels are heading down again and due to a crazy work schedule this week, I simply haven't had the time to look into rigging up something like the polyfill-in-a-bucket as outlined in the above article.

We have opted to replace our water filtering system and water softener (including a neutralizer, as the pH out of the tap was 5.6). Our iron tested at .15 mg/L out of the tap. Unfortunately, we are waiting to be scheduled for this work, so it could take another week or so.

I wondered if anyone has used a pre-fill filter that attaches to the garden hose and if so, did it work? Here is a link to one my boyfriend was looking at:

Pure Start Pool Pre-Fill Filter | Pool Pre Fill Filters |

Thoughts? Experiences?

 

[duraleigh]

I think a .15mg/l is the equivalent of .15 ppm......I am not sure, though.

If that is the case, you shouldn't have to worry about iron stains. Generally speaking, .3 ppm (double your amount) is considered a threshold for concern.

 

[Shirker]

Just out of curiosity... Why are you losing water with so much rain? Do you have a leak?

 

[DiverGirl1972]

Thanks, Duraleigh! The main reason I was concerned is that since we’ve recently had the water issues, we have now been experiencing rust stains in our toilets. We never had them before and our water softener hasn’t been in use since we moved in last July. I figured if this issue could stain the toilet, it could also create some issues in the pool. I’ve had a great first TFPC summer (have only added LQ all season since adopting this methodology) and I just don’t want to do anything to mess it up.

Shirker, nope, no leak....just normal evaporation. The local area and surrounding counties as a whole have received a lot of rain over the past month (which we believe has contributed to our well issues). Just in a two week period starting toward the end of July, the local area received approx. 13 inches of rain. This hasn’t necessarily translated to 13 inches directly onto our property (and into our pool), but we have had to drain the pool a few times this summer. For example, last Saturday, the weatherman reported that our area had received 3” of rain, but our pool water levels were only about an inch higher. I was mighty thankful for that inch, though

Then we'll go through a stretch of hot, sunny days, and then I have to top it off again. With our heater set to 90 degrees and high air temps (plus a boyfriend and dog splashing water out of the pool!), I can lose up to ¼” of water on a given day and that is normal for us.

 

[duraleigh]

Well, I'll bite......why are you not using your softener when you are getting iron stains in the toilet?

 

[DiverGirl1972]

HA! I should have clarified....the previous owners hadn't been using it and we just kept running things the way they did. We're not even sure it works, but we're replacing the unit and will be using the softener moving forward. They did have a filter unit set up where the water runs into the house, but it's rough looking. It's hard to believe it was doing much of anything. We're replacing that with a two filter system as well. Until recently, we had no iron staining in the bowls so we didn't see the need at the time.

We're still finding things that weren't exactly "meticulously maintained" by the previous owners...

 

[duraleigh]

I understand. When you get your new filter system, I would connect it to an outside spigot so you can add iron-free fill water to your pool. Your house system won't have the capacity to refill the entire pool all at once but adding a little at a time, you will eventually have iron free water.....no need for any other type of filtration or sequestrant.

Do you have your own test kit so you can test for
FC
CC
CH
pH
CYA

 

[DiverGirl1972]

Oh, I guess I assumed that the filter would also cover the outside spigots (not really knowledgeable about all things plumbing). I was sure to explain to the water specialist that one of my concerns was ensuring iron didn't get into the pool, so when he was giving us a quote on a system, I thought it would cover this. He actually told me he has a pool and understood my concerns...

I will be sure to follow up with them to ensure there is a solution in place for the water that goes into the pool.

I do have and actively use the TF-100 test kit.

Current results are:
FC 8
CC 0
CH 325
TA 60
pH 7.5
CYA 50

On an interesting note, my bf didn't tell me that he had actually ordered that pre-fill filter I mentioned above ( Pure Start Pool Pre-Fill Filter | Pool Pre Fill Filters | )

It came last night, so I decided to give it a try and put it through an unscientific experiment. Recently, when we fill the dog bowls, the water has turned a yellowish color after sitting for a bit when the iron oxidizes. Last night, I washed out the big stainless steel water bowl, hooked the filter up to the garden hose and filled it the bowl. This morning, the water was clear, so it is obviously removing the majority of it! I am topping off the pool now using the filter, so I'm pretty comfortable with this solution, at least for the short-term.