blowin
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drinking-water purification : advice neededI have a new bore-hole producing water which requires bio-chemical treatment to bring it fully up to EU standards for drinking water .
An EVH test states that it contains a bacteria count which must be reduced to zero . This includes e-coli which apparently needs a full minute of boiling before you can kill it that way .
The quantities of Iron as Fe and Manganese as Mn are off the scale . I guess it is nice to know that there is hardly any Cadmium , Lead or Arsenic , tho' .
Daily volume is moderate -- only 2 in the household .
Does anyone have any experience / recommendations ? Many thanks
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The French WWOOFer
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well blowin
I could help you if you could tell me which forms of Mn and Fe you have and in what scale of concentration.
Iron is quite easy to treat : 2 different options:
You could inject air buble to oxydise the Fe2+ in insoluble Fe3+ or/and rise the pH to make it precipitate.
For Mn it's another story cause you need much more powerfull oxydant than the oxygen from the air.
Tell me more about your analysis results and I'll tell you more surely if it's worth treating it.
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blowin
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Hi TFW , the report only says "Iron as Fe " and " Manganese as Mn " . I will phone and ask them to be more specific . Could you let me know what the answers might be ? ( eg "Fe in the form of **** -- presumably a range of numbers ??? " ) . That might help me to sound like I know what I am talking about ! 
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The French WWOOFer
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Iron could be in 2 different forms in the water witch are the ions Fe2+ and Fe3+ (and the first one is much more soluble)
Iron is not that much of a problem because it is not harmfull concerning health; the only problem is the taste it gives to the water and as well the redish color it could gives to the clothe you wash with such water containing iron.
Manganese is usually found in water as the solube form of Mn2+ ions. I can't remember if this one is harmfull but I'll try to tell you as soon as possible.
Moreover, both of them ions should have concentretions ranging from few mg per litter to no more than hundred mg per litter.
Well, I hope this few information could give you a better idea of what to look for.
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blowin
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Many thanks TFW .
The lab results do not differentiate between the various forms . All they will say is Fe and Mn . Will that make much difference to what I have to do in order to remove the stuff ?
I am not familiar with the units of measure . The results are given as :
- Iron as Fe ; Parametric Value = 200 ; Units = ug/L ( the first letter is more like something Greek , a "y" with the tail on the leading edge ) ; Result = 201 .
- Manganese as MN ; Parametric Value =50 ; same units ; Result = 1140 ( yes , that is 1140  ) .
They do go on to say that neither are harmful in these concentrations but I have still got to get them below their parametric values or I don't get the grant .
Cheers . 
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The French WWOOFer
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this unit (µg/L) means micrograms per litter that is to say a million time lower than a gram per litter (0.0000001 g/L = 0.0001 mg/L = 1 µ g/L)
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wayland
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How deep is this bore hole blowin?. Was it lined?. I am no expert of course. I can understand the mineral content being what it is but the water should be ancient so to speak. So where is the bacterial contamination coming from? I say this as we have lived in two places with bore holes both of which were 160 feet deep. I was told by the tester that the water took 2K years to reach us. and this makes it pure.
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blowin
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Hi TFF -- your question has set me on the right course and google has filled in a few gaps in my extensive lack of knowledge .
The forms of both Manganese and Iron appear to be the "soluble" type . I can't see it in suspension ( the water is crystal clear ) and it doesn't settle to the bottom of the jug . Not quickly , anyway . I will leave some for a couple of days and see what happens .
We don't appear to have a problem from the mucous type and there is no odor either , so that is something 
I was surprised that there are so many different methods to tackle the problem , and was alarmed at how expensive they all look ! So , to begin the process of elimination :-
- The staining of laundry and surfaces ( eg bath ) which is commonly associated with high concentrations is is not in fact an issue .
- I would prefer not to use soluble chemicals ( even salt ) .
- I have room to build a shed to house bulky equipment eg precipitation tanks, if necessary . In other words I don't need to pay a premium for minaturised technology or useless cosmetic enhancements .
Any more thoughts would be gratefully received
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blowin
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Hi , W ,
The hole is 140 ft deep . The top 25 ft or so -- from the surface down to the bedrock ---- has an outer casing of steel pipe . The full depth is lined with plastic pipe .The lowest 30 ft of the plastic liner has been perforated but it is intact above that ie: the water should only get in from deep down the hole .
That doesn't fully eliminate the possibilty of contamination by surface water because there was a complication during the drilling . Basically there was 10 ft of mud , then a boulder about 5 ft thick , then another 10 ft of mud and , finally , solid bedrock . The guy had to widen the top 25 ft of the hole so that he could push a steel liner down thru the boulder and the mud underneath it , so it could make a seal against the bedrock . I wonder if he actually got down that far . Or maybe some crap dropped in there when he was widening the first hole ? Sheep do occasionally cross that ground but not very often .
Alternatively the problem is not in the well-water but in the equipment which is used to extract it -- submersible pump , black hosepipe , pressure chamber . The pipe would be the most likely source of contamination , particularly if it had been stored outside in a yard . Apparently bacteria can build up a thin film which can't simply be flushed out . I would have to run sterilizer thru it to eliminate that possibility .
Or , of course , it could be something completely different .
Just to be clear -- I am not suggesting that either of the contractors were at fault . They have both been in the business for years and seemed to know what they were doing .
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blowin
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A friend used these guys for the whole system inc drilling the well , pumping and purifying . They may not be the cheapest but they did a good job , on time , and tidied up the site behind them .
West Water Systems 094 938 0856 , Brickens , Clare Morris , Co Mayo info@westwatersystems.ie
I will be asking them to quote for purification . Will post up the results .
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