Rusty water: causes, cleaning methods, tips and tricks

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:45

Water quality is highly dependent on the impurities it contains. Engineering systems, through which water reaches the consumer, as a rule, are outdated long ago. Pipes rust and, as a result, the concentration of iron increases. But not only pipe corrosion is a problem - metal impurities are also present in the water itself. How to protect yourself and purify water at home?

What is the danger of rust?

When there is an increased concentration of iron in water, it has a characteristic smell, taste and color. The allowable rate is 0.3 mg / d³. If we talk about the harm that rusty water can cause to human he alth, then this is:

• damage to the enamel on the teeth;
• various allergic manifestations;
• skin tightness;
• problems with internal organs and the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, etc.

Under natural conditions, water contains ferrous hydroxide, and after contact with oxygen, it already contains Fe(OH)₃ and precipitates as an insoluble precipitate. Increased iron oxidewill have a negative effect on the body. Impurities from the operation of water-heating plumbing are also dangerous.

Harmful suspension settles on the walls of sinks, bathtubs, toilets, household appliances (boilers, washing machines and dishwashers, etc.). The walls of pipes, taps and mixers are also covered with this coating, thus reducing their service life.

So that rusty water does not harm he alth, care for its cleaning has become the work of the consumer.

Removal of harm

To solve any problem, you need to know the causes of its occurrence. Water pollution is no exception. Otherwise, you can endlessly apply different methods, but still not solve the problem itself. As a result, a lot of nerves and finances will be spent, but you still have to look for the reason. So it's better to do it right away.

If pipes are the cause of rusty water entering the house, then the best thing to do is to install pipes made of plastic. Of course, we cannot replace the entire sewerage through which water enters our homes, but at least on our site it is realistic to do so. In this way, other problems can be avoided, for example, when the pipes simply begin to crumble from old age and you have to break the walls in order to change or repair them.

What are the cleaning methods?

So that rusty water does not harm us, there are methods for bringing its indicators back to normal, which differ from each other incomplexity and financial component:

• The first and easiest is to settle the water. To do this, the liquid is poured into a container and just wait until the sediment falls to the bottom. The water purified in this way is carefully drained. This is the most economical way. The only thing is that it will be difficult to clean a large volume, and the quality is still more suitable for technical needs than for ingestion.
• When rusty tap water enters our home, it is an extremely unpleasant phenomenon. There are problems in order to wash and even drink tea or coffee. Boiling water will not get rid of pollution. In this case, the best way would be mechanical cleaning. This requires special filters using removable cartridges or backfill. Thanks to this method, particles of rust will be caught. And the degree of this cleaning depends on the size of the cartridge grid cells installed on the counter or tap. Filters must be washed periodically. Expanded clay, sand or coal are used as bulk material.

Poor-quality water and rusty pipes are a very serious and painful problem. People are interested in effective and inexpensive cleaning methods. This problem is not so easy to solve. For example, reverse osmosis. The system is effective, but not cheap. It uses a membrane that allows only water molecules to pass through. No chemicals are used in this cleaning process. Reverse osmosis is considered a safe method that improves the taste of water and rids it of impurities. But not everyone canplace such filters at home. Then how to be? After all, many are horrified when they see that rusty water comes from the tap into the house

What to do first?

Expensive, but there is no other way out - you need to drain the water from the tap. Usually it goes very rusty when it has been turned off for some time. In this case, you need to remove the mesh from the tap and rinse it. You will be surprised - there is so much rust! Immediately even the water pressure will change.

Sorption devices using activated carbon are very convenient and easy to use in everyday life. These are ordinary jugs with a replaceable filter. Such cleaning removes metal impurities and harmful substances quite well. The volume of such devices is small, so such water is used mainly for drinking and cooking.

Water can be purified from iron impurities using special reagents: chlorine, potassium permanganate, coagulants. Ozone oxidation shows good results.

But remember, no matter what cleaning methods you choose, you must first find out why the water is rusty and eliminate the cause!

Rural and suburban areas

The problems are faced not only by residents of apartment buildings, but also by residents of the private sector, even with an individual well. Therefore, methods of water purification at home are relevant for everyone.

Water with rust can also come out of the well. A third of the samples reveal dangerous indicators for he alth in it. Often, samples in underground and open water bodies do not meet the requirements. Drinking water is critically scarce. Therefore, in suburbanin homes, wells and boreholes serve as such sources.

Types of wells: which is better

If water with rust impurities is found in such places, then they are also looking for reasons first of all. By type, wells can be sandy (usually up to 30 meters deep) and artesian (up to 200 meters deep).

The composition of the soil includes horizontally lying layers, and water enters the sandy well from the upper layer. They often contain a rusty liquid. The quality of artesian water is much higher, and rusty impurities are rarely found there.

Where else is rust found in everyday life

Today you can often see swimming pools in private sectors. They are also filled from a water supply or well. If the water is rusty in the pool, then you can’t swim in it! This is especially true for children. Rusty water is most likely caused by aging pipes or pool parts. First of all, you need to replace them with brass or plastic ones. Then wash the reservoir.

When using water from a well or a well, powerful filters are installed. Then the pool has to be washed less often, which is important for the owners. It is desirable that the composition of the water be optimized. In this way, the likelihood of rust will be minimized.

The following methods are used to purify water in the pool:

• mechanical;
• chemical;
• electrophysical.

How it works

The first (mechanical) is the most primitive. Sedimentmetal can be seen at the bottom and removed with a pump, hose or ordinary vacuum cleaner. In addition, holders, brushes and filters are used.

The chemical method uses solvents. With this method, the ferrous iron passes into the ferric state and settles, after which it is simply removed from the bottom of the pool. And here the main thing is not to overdo it with reagents. Otherwise, chemical contamination of the pool may result, which will not be easy to clean.

During electrophysical cleaning, special ozonizers are used: UV lamps, copper and silver ionizers. These are the safest ways. At the end of the chemical process, the excess ozone gradually becomes simple oxygen. This is the most effective method as it will remove any amount of rust. True, this method must be used constantly.