# Whole House Filter



## khansen46 (May 31, 2012)

Good Morning!
We bought our house in October 2010. It was built in 2000. We have a 2 well with a Goulds jet pump. The well is 113, according to state records. All plumbing is PVC. The pump is in a well house in the front yard, and the incoming line for the house, as well as the outside faucets, run underground from the well house to the house (maybe 100 or so), and the outside faucet lines branch off somewhere underground between the house and well house. There is also water going to the shop out back. When we moved in, there was some sort of water filter connected to the side of the house. It consisted of two cylinders that were about the same size as those of the reverse osmosis system that is in the kitchen. However, the housing was broken in several places, as were the pipes. There were no filters inside. There was a bypass valve, which also leaked. I removed the filter assembly and plumbed the water straight into the house.
The pump sends water to a galvanized tank (no bladder). From there it goes through a water softener, then out of the well house. The water softener looks pretty old. I contacted the company that drilled the well, and they believe it is the original unit. They said that many of the homes in the area do not use water softeners, as there is no real benefit. I bypassed the softener for a short time to check the water quality. The only difference we noticed is that sand started to accumulate in the faucets and the washer inlet. The water tasted and felt the same. Both with and without the softener, there is some green buildup in the dogs water container after a while that needs to be cleaned, and the bathroom sink gets some sort of orange and purple stains (or growth) after a while. The water, however, tastes really good. However, Im the only one that will drink water straight from the tap. My wife only drinks from the reverse osmosis in the kitchen.
My first question: I am going to be installing a whole house filter in the next couple of weeks.  I am looking at the Whirlpool WHELJ1 system. Does anyone have any experience with this system? Are there any other systems I should look into? I have not had to deal with wells and filters before, so Im relying mostly on what I can find on the internet. We have had a couple of companies out to give us quotes on installing various systems, but we just cant spend the thousands of dollars thay all want.
Second Question: Where is the best location to install the whole house filter? It seems to me that it should be before the storage tank, to prevent any buildup in there. However, I have seen some after the tank. I also thought about putting it at the house so that I am not filtering the water going to the outside faucets. However, unless it is going to sit outside, I will need to install it in the attic where the main line comes in. Our attic is very large and I can almost stand up straight, so that wouldnt be a major issue if that is the best place. 
Any insight or suggestions would be appreciated.


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## KRMWaterPro (Jun 21, 2012)

Khansen46,

I feel your pain with financial restraints and have been a well serviceman and water filtration installer for 25 years have come across issues you are dealing with and they can be quite costly.  I am not familiar with the whirlpool system you referenced but did read up on specs and have seen some units in past that are similar.  My suggestion is to first have water tested, first for bacteria, nitrates, and any other issues that may occur in your area, then for iron, hardness, pH, TDS, etc.  which are secondary concerns and what you are really foccusing on.  Most State governments can test for you at a reasonable fee.  

Next you need to determine what can of flow rate your pump and tank system can do.  This is very simple. All u need is a gallon bucket a watch and a hose with no attachment on it.  Just start running water and feel your bucket up and time how long it takes, such as 10 seconds would be 6 gpm flow rate. You need to do this for about an hour checking every 5 minutes or so and recording data. The reson for doing this is to determine if your system can properly backwash any automatic filter system you may have or install. If you can not move adequate amount of flow over a period of time you need to use a cartridge style system instead of a back washing filter.

If you can maintain 8-10 gpm for around 30 minutes I would highly suggest you find an online retailer that sales a back washing chums orb filter. Looks similar to a softener but it is a excellent filter that can filter down to less than 5 microns with limited pressure loss.  It needs to be in well house after tank or at the house would be fine. NEVER INSTALL FILTERS BETWEEN PUMP AND TANK!!! This is the #1 mistake homeowners and some professionals make.  Depending on water flow and what your water test i would purchase nothing until I knew these variables first.  

Please post results I can make some possible recommendations and maybe something that may be even more cost effective than the whirpool filter.


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## khansen46 (Jun 25, 2012)

I'm curious why would a filter not be placed between the pump and tank? It would seem to me that it would be beneficial to keep sediment and such out of the tank.
Thanks,
Ken


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