[CaroleW]

Why after three days did my water start smelling? They put a chlorinator on the well to get a sample that was clean. The smell is sickening and the water coming from the cold tap is very warm. You don't need hot water to take a shower the cold is so warm. HELP!

[twinkiedooter]

If you just had this well installed I would highly suggest that you call out the well driller and the folks who hooked this unit up for you as they did something wrong. If the water was coming out of the faucet okay and then somehow got changed, something is definitely not right. Don't try and fix it yourself. Call out the people who did the work and insist they correct the problem immediately.

[CaroleW]

TY Twinkie... I have a call into the driller now. They have been out a few times. It took them 6 days to get a sample to pass for FHA and that only happened after the chlorinator was put on. I can only hope since it is so new they will keep on it until they figure it out and fix it. Only been here 10 days and the water has smelled since the 4th day I moved in.

[twinkiedooter]

Let me know what the driller says. Possibly they didn't go down far enough to get good water or the plumber hooked up the lines wrong. If it took them that many times to get a good sample something is definitely not right. You didn't say what area you lived in. When I worked at a new mobile home dealer here in Ohio the well drillers sometimes had to go down much farther in some areas to get "good" water. The driller may not have access to other well information in your area regarding at what depth the wells had to be dug. Any good well driller can get access to this info. Ask the driller when he does show up what is the depth of my neighbor's well for a 5 mile radius. This will give you an idea of just how deep your well should be.

[CaroleW]

Twinkie,

The well guy showed up and the chlorinator stopped working again. I know my well is 80 feet deep. I don't know about the other wells in the area. When I came home from work yesterday the water smelled much better. The chlorinator keeps malfunctioning and when that happens the water stinks. Just keeping my fingers crossed that this fix lasts. This will be the third fix in 11 days.

[speedball1]

What area do you live in? Does the water smell like rotten eggs? I would question my nearest neighbor to see if they have had a problem. I live in Florida where we have "sulfur water". I've worked on toilets that smelled better. If you, indeed, have sulfur water there is a aeration system to remove the odor but first make sure of what you have and get back to me. Regards, Tom

[CaroleW]

I live in central Texas. Before the well guy came back out yesterday, it smelled like sulfur mostly. They fixed the chlorinator AGAIN and for 1 day now it doesn't smell. I am having someone come out and test the water and find out exactly what is in the water. Will probably end up having some kind of filtration and/or UV purifier put in. Can't live here the rest of my life, and haven't even made my first mortgage payment, and not be able or be afraid of the water. I appreciate all the input as this is the first time in my life I have not been on city water..

I was told the ground in this part of Texas holds hydrogen sulfide so that may be the biggest part of it.

[speedball1]

You have options. Here in Florida we use aeration treatment for our stinky water.( See image) Water treatment options for removing hydrogen sulphide
Chlorination and sand filter (see image)One method for removal of H2S is to install a chlorine feeder and a sand filter. The H2S is oxidized by the chlorine and any insoluble sulphide particles that form are removed by a sand or crushed anthracite filter. Approximately 2 mg/L chlorine must be added to remove 1 mg/L H2S. It may be necessary to install a small cartridge filter containing activated carbon on the drinking water tap to eliminate the chlorine taste. A full sized carbon filter is often used to remove the chlorine from the distribution system. This is an excellent alternative for situations where the water contains some iron along with the H2S.
Chlorination and activated carbon filter
The second method is to install a chlorine feeder and an activated carbon filter. As with the previous method, the H2S is oxidized by the chlorine and the insoluble sulphide particles are removed by the activated carbon filter. This filter also removes any residual chlorine that is left after oxidization of the hydrogen sulphide. An activated carbon filter requires a lower backwash rate than a sand filter, but a sand filter has a higher maximum service flow rate. This system is most appropriate in situations where there is only H2S present and no significant amount of iron. The chlorinator shown in Figure 1. is wired to the pressure switch so that the chlorinator is activated when the water pump switches on. The retention tank is installed to ensure sufficient mixing and contact time to complete the oxidation process. It should be large enough to retain water for at least 5 minutes at peak filter capacity (as a minimum, a 42 gallon retention tank is recommended). A valve should be provided at the bottom of the retention tank to drain any sediment. Chlorine test valves should be installed just after the pressure tank and just before the activated carbon filter. These are needed to help check the chlorine level in the treatment system.

Aeration
Aeration is accomplished by spraying water into a ventilated storage tank. The H2S is gas separated from the water as it is sprayed and drawn off as a gas by the ventilation system. Aeration will remove most of the H2S but chlorination may still be necessary. Some sulphide odors will remain due to the high pH of most Alberta waters. The lower the pH the better this system will work. A second pressure system is required to pump the water from the storage tank into the distribution system. Although they are not intended for the job, some aeration type iron filters have been used to successfully remove small amounts of H2S. There must be a much higher level of iron than H2S in the water for this to work successfully.
Manganese greensand iron filter
A properly maintained manganese greensand filter will effectively remove low levels of H2S, typically less than 2 mg/L. This type of filter oxidizes the H2S and filters out the resulting sulphide particles. It is very important that these filters have an adequate supply of water for backwash and are adequately regenerated with potassium permanganate. H2S requires 3 times the oxidizing power that iron does so the greensand filter must be regenerated more often than it would for an equal amount of iron. Manganese stripping, from the manganese greensand, can also occur. This stripped manganese can cause black staining. A chlorine feed system is usually the better choice.
Alternative systems
Other oxidizing agents besides chlorine can be added to the water to oxidize H2S. These include hydrogen peroxide, potassium permanganate, and ozone. Filtration will still be required after any of these have been added
Good luck, Tom