Bad Iron Taste in Water

Distillation or reverse osmosis will do it.

Suggest to provide some analysis as to how much iron content there is in your water.

Common suggestion for this type of contaminant is not treatment for the removal of iron but simply to dig another well in a different location and another depth.

Some info is provided from a web search pasted herewith:

Iron Bacteria
Iron bacteria is generally more common than sulfur bacteria, simply because iron is abundant in ground water.

Iron bacteria are "oxidizing agents." That is, they combine iron or manganese dissolved in ground water with oxygen. A side effect of the process is a foul smelling brown slime which can coat well screens, pipes, and plumbing fixtures. This slime isn't a health hazard, but it can cause unpleasant odors, corrode plumbing equipment, and clog well screens and pipes. If conditions are right, the bacteria can grow at amazing rates and an entire well system may be rendered virtually useless in just a few months.

There are several signs that may indicate an iron bacteria problem. Water may have a yellow, red or orange color. Rusty slime deposits may form in toilet tanks. A strange smell resembling fuel oil, cucumbers, or sewage may be noticeable. Sometimes the odor will only be apparent in the morning or after other extended periods of non-use.

A monovalve sand filter was effective at removing 1ppm of 'ochre' (fine particles, mostly iron II compounds) from a borehole water source for a primary pharmaceutical factory about 30km south of these co-ordinates. The filter was installed during 1994 and is believed to be still in operation.

Although the colour in the incoming borehole water was practically invisible, the gradual build-up in the filter was sufficient for the backwash stream to come out like Brown Windsor soup. Most spectacular, especially when the drainage system couldn't cope with the flow...

Aeration Is the best way.

Simply aerating the water will remove the iron taste. Google Iron-water-aeration and you will find any number of solutions. The simplist and no cost option is just to set up a system the allows the water to be in contact with the air after it leaves the bore and before it enters you water tank. If you pump direct from the bore to the house there are in bore aerators available. I have never used these so cant say how well they work.

Peter

I have an inline ventury type aerator in my household water system. It is installed between the well and the storage tank. To be effective the storage tank (pressure tank) needs to be sized larger than normal so that the water has time to degass, in my case it's an 80 gallon fiberglass pressure tank. The tank needs to be of the bladderless type with a device fitted in the top to allow the excess air to escape (my local plumbing supply store calls it a ''sulfur stick"), I don't know what its real name is. Basically what it does is hang down into the tank with an internal float. When the volume of air in the top of the tank gets too large, because air from the aerator adds to it every time the pump runs, it vents some of it. I also have a fairly high iron content but I installed mine to deal with sulfur, which it did immediately. I have not had any trouble with the system and it has been in constant use for a year and cost about $800 CAD to build.

The system is easily adaptable to inject ozone should ordinary air not meet need.

We use two solutions according to the water application.

1. For washing purpose (bathing or cleaning) we put citric acid enough that the water not sour tasted (about 1 spoonfull for 1 m³). It seems that iron being forbiden to meet oxygen , so iron-oxyde never showup, the result is that the water remain clear!

2. For consumtion purpose (drinking or cooking) we get rid of iron in two process. First of all, aerating for 1 or 2 hours allowing the iron to meet oxygen an produce iron-oxyde happily , we notice its presence from the color of water, pale yellow to dark orange.

The next is pouring PAC (poly aluminium chloride) about 1 spoonfull for 1 m³, stir well for a moment, and wait for about a hour or more. The result is that the iron-oxyde get caught and imprisoned at the bottom of the tank leaving the rest water clear and fresh.

Be carefull, better use pipe in order not to bother the sleeping prisoner.

Electro Coagulate with Iron/Steel Electrodes .

Drain OUT the clear water from the middle 80%(avoid the scum+ bottom silt).

Pass this clear water through simple sand or Candle filter.

Drink !Tastes now like melting Alps water.

Any size batch . Or any flowthrough Rate possible.Removes Iron, Arsenic, Fluoride, Bacteria,Viruses,Smell,Smack,Colour-all at one GO.No Chemicals used. Cheapest way!

I practice that in my community and tell the world "This is the way to solve the Water Crisis of humanity".

You do not listen to me:--- Your Loss!

There are several ways: aeration, lime precipitation, biological action by iron bacteria or plants. The best way for a home set up would be to aerate it vigorously in a small tank. This will convert the iron into an insoluble form that will precipitate out of solution.

i assume you have a well. if so and it has sat for some time with out use or has been around for quite a while; you need to treat it with chlorine. talk to you local well guy and get some hypo-chlorite or some other chlorine type well treatment.

put it in the well and let it sit for aleast 24 hours. then be sure to run the water through your hot water tank to clear any iron bacteria in there.

that should take care of your problem.