Discolored water from high iron levels isn't just an aesthetic issue. It can also cause structural changes in the water and increase their toxic effects on the body.
Water Quality
How to Remove Iron from Your Tap Water
6 min read
You turn on the tap, only to find that your water is a rusty-brown color and smells like rotten eggs...
Yikes!
It could be a sign that there’s too much iron in your tap water.
Iron can stain appliances, clog pipes and wreak havoc on your home.
Luckily, with the right treatment methods you can remove it for good.
Here’s what you need to know about iron and tap water:
Private well owners have it the worst…
Iron is the second most abundant mineral in earth’s crust, and it has a nasty habit of sneaking into groundwater.
When heavy rainfall flows through the soil it picks up iron deposits along the way.
By the time it reaches your well, it may already be high in iron and other heavy metals.
If you’re on a public water system, exposure to rusty, corroded pipes can threaten your water too.
As they start to rust, aging iron pipes leave brown-colored particles in your water.
Iron comes in three different forms: ferric, ferrous and bacterial, and they all require different treatment methods to remove.
We’ll cover these treatment methods soon, but for now let’s take a closer look at water to lookout for:
- Yellow, reddish-orange or brown colored water
- Smells like rotten eggs
- Reddish-brown spots on laundry
- Sinks, showers, fixtures and appliances with rust stains
- Low water pressure from clogged pipes
The bottom line is, discolored water and clogged pipes are bad for your home.
Clogged pipes mean soap scum, scale buildup, lower water pressure and higher utility costs.
Here’s water you have to look forward to if your water is high in iron:
Appliances that use water can develop bright red and yellow stains, and you might notice orange streaks in your toilet bowl or unsightly rings in your shower.
Iron-rich water can turn a pleasant cup of tea into a brown, metallic-tasting drink, and cooked pasta and vegetables can end up brown and bitter.
As iron particles flow through your plumbing, they clog pipes and lower the entire house’s water pressure, including the showerhead. Nobody likes a weak shower!
Worst of all bacterial iron leaves behind a thick slime that stains everything from appliances to laundry.
Iron doesn’t just stain appliances — it also stains skin and hair.
Showering with iron-rich water can make hair brittle and lifeless and turn light-colored hair orange.
Plus, iron dries out the skin and aggravates conditions like acne and psoriasis.
On the brightside, drinking low to moderate levels of iron is not dangerous. After all, iron is an essential mineral in the right doses.
With that said, iron is still regulated as a secondary contaminant by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) because high can be toxic to some individuals.
People with the genetic condition called hemochromatosis are the most at risk. High iron prevents their body from properly absorbing iron, leading to liver damage, pancreatic problems, and even death.
- Slight discoloration can show up at levels as low as 0.05 ppm.
- At about 0.3 ppm (parts per million), iron can turn water yellow, stain clothes, and ruin the taste of tea.
- The recommended daily requirement for iron ranges between 10 to 50 mg per day depending on bodyweight. If you’re taking iron supplements, 1 mg per kg of body weight is considered a healthy dose for most individuals.
- 200-250 mg per kg of bodyweight is the average lethal dose, but you shouldn’t have to worry about that from contaminated water unless you have hemochromatosis.
Iron comes in three main forms, each with its own challenges for removal.
The three main types of iron are:
- Ferric iron does not dissolve in water. It has a bright orange or reddish color and is the simplest form of iron to remove.
- Ferrous iron does dissolve in water and may even look crystal clear, but when it’s exposed to the open air it turns reddish-brown and tastes funny.
- Bacterial iron is the smelliest, nastiest and trickiest to remove. It occurs when bacteria bonds with iron and forms a bright red sludge. Bacterial iron sticks to appliances pumps and plumbing fixtures. It can also make you sick.
The first step is to have your water professionally tested by an EPA-certified lab.
They should be able to tell you exactly which types of iron you’re up against so you can treat your water appropriately.
Sediment filters trap rust, dirt and debris.
They can remove low levels of ferric iron but will not remove ferrous or bacterial iron.
If you want to remove higher levels of iron, protect appliances from staining, or improve the taste of your water, you’ll have to upgrade to a different treatment method...
Water softeners use ion exchange resins to remove low levels of ferrous iron.
They also eliminate a range of hard minerals, including magnesium and calcium.
If you have hard water that contains iron, installing a water softener is your best bet.
Ion exchange resins cling to iron so that they can be easily removed.
But what if your test finds ferrous iron or large ferric iron particles?
In that case, you should install both a sediment filter and a water softener. Another option is to install a reverse osmosis (RO) system, but more on that in a sec...
Manganese greensand is one of the most effective ways to remove high levels of ferrous and ferric iron.
It works by using an oxidizing filter to convert ferrous iron into ferric iron.
The ferric iron is then removed before it can enter your house and damage your pipes.
Birm is another type of oxidizing media that removes ferrous and ferric iron.
Keep in mind, though, that birm only works in water that has high pH levels.
Fortunately, most birm filters add calcite, a compound that raises pH so that ferrous iron can be easily removed.
KDF filters use zinc granules to reduce ferric iron, chlorine and heavy metals.
They work best in homes that have low water pressure, low flow rates and low water volume — this is because KDF needs to be in contact with the iron for a longer period of time in order to be effective.
Bacterial iron is the worst and is a serious health threat.
To remove bacterial iron from your well, you’ll have to treat it with high concentrations of chlorine.
Shock chlorination breaks the bacteria’s bond with iron so that it can be removed with a water softener, oxidizer, or sediment filter.
Chances are, though, that you’ll need all of the above in order to remove high levels of bacterial iron, which is where RO systems come to save the day…
RO systems combine sediment filters, activated carbon, ion exchange resins, and an RO membrane to remove all three types of iron.
The sediment filter traps large iron particles, the activated carbon removes chlorine, ion exchange resins remove ferrous and ferric iron, and the RO membrane kills and removes bacterial iron.
Best of all, high-end RO filters can remove up to 99.9% of all harmful contaminants, including arsenic, lead and radionuclides.
Iron-rich water puts a lot of wear and tear on your filters, so they’ll need to be replaced regularly.
Fortunately, Cloud Water Filters use built-in software to track water usage and automatically ship replacement filters right to your door.
They even sync to an app on your phone so that you can monitor your water quality 24/7.
Click here to learn more.
