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saxon123 · Dec 9, 2011, 07:29 PM

Since Ihave a lot of black sediment in my well water filter and low water pressure, does that mean I need a new well?

mygirlsdad77 · Dec 9, 2011, 07:41 PM

I would start by changing the filter.

saxon123 · Dec 9, 2011, 08:03 PM

Thank you for your response. I have actually changed the filter 4 times in the last 24 hours. I just put a new filter in and about 30 minutes later, I had about 3 tablespoons of sediment in the bottom of it. I have cleaned the screens on the faucets- not sure what else to do...

creahands · Dec 9, 2011, 08:12 PM

How deep is well.

Ur pump is to deep in well. Raise pump about 2 feet and check for sediment. If still getting it, raise pump another 2 feet. It will pump some sediment until pipe clears.

Originally Posted by ;

It will pump some sediment until pipe clears.

Had same problem with my pump and the first 2 feet solved it. My well is 480 feet.

Chuck

saxon123 · Dec 9, 2011, 08:19 PM

Thank you Creahands! I don't know how deep the well is but I know that when we bought the house almost 20 years ago (first owners) that the builder commented several times that our well was very, very deep! I don't know how to raise a pump- is that something that I can do easily on my own?

ma0641 · Dec 9, 2011, 09:09 PM

It does sound like you are pulling up bottom sediment. What micron filter are you using? I have a lot of iron sediment in my well, I use a 20 micron and it lasts about 6 months. Some people use a 40 micron prefilter and a 20 micron finish filter. Chuck-480ft! WOW, I'd hate to pull that out. Mine is 225.

speedball1 · Dec 9, 2011, 09:38 PM

This "black sediment", is it little black particles? And are they hard or can you squeeze them? Back to you. Tom

creahands · Dec 10, 2011, 05:43 AM

Brian

Have a friend owns a well company. Am getting too old for that heavy work. Had grandkids run equipment.

Chuck

saxon123 · Dec 10, 2011, 11:23 AM

Speedball1/Tom,
Yes they are gritty black solid particles- like black sand. There is no odor to the water. We live in the blue ridge mountains in virginia and we just had torrential rain- rivers are running high. Would a well run dry under these conditions? The water pressure is low so that there is borderline amt of water for front load washer ( gives error message due to water level) and dish washer is not cleaning dishes well.

saxon123 · Dec 10, 2011, 11:25 AM

ma0641,

I am using the cylinder filters that look like twine/rope. Are there other filters I should be looking into?

Linda

jlisenbe · Dec 10, 2011, 11:53 AM

Might be a temporary situation caused by the large amount of rain. If I was you, I'd try simply running an outdoor spigot for several hours to see if you can clear out the particles. Might not work, but it's a cheap and easy option relative to pulling the well pipe up.

I wouldn't try pulling that wellpipe. Get a pro. If it gets loose and falls into the well, you've got about ten times more problem than you have now.

ma0641 · Dec 10, 2011, 01:04 PM

I use the 20 micron pleated paper type, they don't clog up as fast as the twine. However, I have a different problem as my particles are silty rust. You could have hematite or magnetite or maybe coal particles. Take some of the sand, let it dry and put a magnet to it. If it is true black and is strongly attracted to the magnet the particles you have magnetite. If not attracted, you may have coal dust. Admittedly if you have that much sediment, you do have a problem.