October 2001
Well Water Aeration Project
INSTALL COMPLETE... WORKING GREAT FOR OVER A MONTH NOW!
Don Ariola | Poughkeepsie NY |
Email: DAriola@attglobal.net |
My Wife:
Honey, our water stinks!
The kids are threatening to move out
and if they do, I'm going with them!
For the last fifteen years each spring our water would develop a sulfurous odor [from Hydrogen Sulfide] which would last several weeks and then go away until the next year. Although a nuisance, a few week a year wasn't much of a problem.-- Malibu Water Resources
-- Note: Aeration of a standing water tank is pretty simple.All this came to and end when I replaced our 40-year old water storage tank with a rubber bladder pressure tank.
After that, my water began to smell and never stopped.
The best I could hypothesize was that the old tank allowed the hydrogen sulfide to vent into the air space in the tank. The new tank with the bladder allowed no venting.
Now enter Malibu Water Resources...After a lot of E-mail, the Grand Exalted Poobas at Malibu Water Resources helped me decide on an in-well aeration set-up with a Koenders Electric Aerator pump -- and 2 X 12 aeration stone | air diffuser.
My well is approximately 120 feet deep with a 6 casing.
The well pump is at 107 ft. and
the top of the water is at 18 ft.
The Koenders Electric Aerator air pump output
is 1.5 cu.ft./min @ 5 PSI with a max of 35 PSI.
So, I was limited to the depth at which I could place the Aeration Stone | Air Diffuser.I wanted it as deep as possible to maximize the amount of water treated and decided to try running the pump at 75% of maximum pressure.
Applying Boyle's Law...
This allowed me to place the aeration stone 58 ft. below the surface of the water
or 76 ft. into the well,
providing an 85 gallon column of oxygen treated (aerated) water.Ideally, the aeration stone should be below the well pump. But, due to the depth, this is not possible. Our hope is that the water column above the stone will be saturated with oxygen and the well-pump turbulence and changing water levels will allow sufficient mixing.
It appears to be working.
The image above shows the aeration stone | air diffuser we placed at 76 ft. (58 ft. under water) attached to the well pipe. It is secured with several cable ties and has rubber O-ring (bumpers) top, middle, and bottom for added protection.
To ensure that the aeration stone would not contact the side of the well casing, centering bumpers seen in the the photo above were added above and below the point of attachment.The air line was then attached every 5 ft. or so along the way up the pipe and then routed out through one of the bolt holes of the well cap.
Everything was now checked and wiped down to minimize contamination and then with the help of my 16 year-old son, the assembly was lowered into the depths.
Once in place, the well cap was secured with two of the four original bolts. The remaining holes were used for the air supply line and a vent line.My well head is below grade and is contained inside a 30 culvert pipe with a concrete cap 6 under the sod of my front lawn. I needed a solution that would allow adequate venting and a place to house the Koenders Electric Aerator pump.
After a few delicate discussions with my wife, we decided that a wishing well would be the way to go. A little digging, two loads of landscape blocks, and some wood gave us what we wanted. We still need to add a crank, rope, and bucket.
Fortunately, there were extra pump power lines run years ago so I was able to utilize them to energize a weatherproof outlet in the wishing well and power the Koenders Electric Aerator pump installed inside.
I added a pressure gauge to monitor operation, the level of water in the well, and to check for leaks. Additionally, I installed a valve after the pressure gauge for a positive check on the output of the Koenders Electric Aerator pump.Shutting the valve shows me full pressure output of the Koenders Electric Aerator to assess any erosion in pump performance.
The pressure runs between 26-27 PSI... BOYLE'S LAW WORKS!
The only problem I had was overcoming the startup back pressure. The Koenders Electric Aerator will not start with a head pressure that high. The fix was fairly easy: Create a small leak. A small leak, which allows the pressure to drain off over several minutes is perfect.
Malibu Water Resources Note:
26-27 PSI may be too close to the max of 30 psi.
Placing the Air Stone at a depth less than 58 ft. under water
may place less stress on the Koenders Electric Aerator and still achieve the result of properly oxygenating the water and venting off Hydrogen Sulfide.
PSI.
I have seen 35 PSI and 30 PSI in different places...
but certainly the manufacturer is the bible on this: MAX 30 psi.In my HARD PRESSURE TEST: closing off the valve I installed... the max pressure appears to be in the 32-34 PSI range.
When I do the dissolved oxygen tests... I will re-think the depth of the aeration stone and position of the submersible pump also. I'll let you know as I progress with my backyard science project!
May 2002
Steve Close
Email: sclose1@aol.com |Hi John, I like your web site and product offerings. I am still considering options. I called a well service man I know, Richard Alexander 805 735 9797, and he advised against setting any bubbling device near a well pump. He said it would cause the pump to pump air which could be harmful to the equipment. I don't know, I'm just passing along the information as a courtesy. It occurs to me that perhaps the well pump and bubbler could be set up to run either one or the other at a time. Some sort of switching device could probably easily do this. Something to consider. Hope all is well.
Comment:My installation is above the well pump,
but I don't think these bubbles would be much of a problem.Richard may be considering the impact of air bubbles
against the impellers of the pump.
I can't imagine this being significant.It is not like a pump sucking air
in a low water condition where the pump speed can accelerate in air
and then receive quite a shock
when it is damped by the a rush of water.If it is a concern...
then use a double pole double throw relay
and force the air off when the water pump come on.My thoughts for what they're worth.
Regards,
Don
Dissolved Oxygen Meter
I am looking for a reasonably priced dissolved oxygen meter.
So far the best I have found is a Milwaukee DO-600.
Do you know of any others?
Milwaukee DO-600: $171.00
is a portable dissolved oxygen meter designed for various applications from school laboratory work to waste water treatment. It is reliable and accurate yet simple to operate. DO-600 is used together with our ruggedly designed polarographic probe, MA840, which is conic in shape making it suitable for use in BOD applications. It also has a built-in temperature sensor and replaceable membrane.
| http://www.milwaukeemeters.com.au/ |
Dissolved Oxygen Meters:
Dissolved Oxygen meters |
Site: http://www.hannainst.com/products/prodline/oxy.htm |
Site: http://www.hannainst.com/products/do/9141.htm |
Site: http://www.spectronic.co.uk/9200.htm |
Site: http://www.spectronic.co.uk/9150.htm |
Site: http://www.hach.com/Spec/ssensio6.htm |
Site: http://www.hach.com/Spec/sension8_overview.htm |
Site: http://www.technika.com/Sper/s840041.htm |
Site: http://www.pointfour.com/handy.htm |
Site: http://www.wpi-europe.com/biosensing/ISO2.html |
Site: http://www.jenway.com/products/9200.php |
Topic: http://www.topac.com/oxygendiss.html |
Site: http://www.wpiinc.com/WPI_Web/Biosensing/ISO2.html |
Site: http://www.palintest.com/dissolvedoxygen_pr.htm |
Site: http://www.palintestusa.com/dissolved_oygen_meter.html |
Site: http://www.wastewaterdepot.com/meter_do.html |
OxyGuard: http://www.oxyguard.dk/oxyguide/Why_840/why_840.html |
I am working on the on-off cycle times. I intend to measure the level of dissolved oxygen in the well and at the tap and will then set the run time to achieve optimum oxygen saturation in the water (approximately, 11.5mg / l with a water temperature of 50°F.)
Once the cycle time is determined, each time the well-pump runs, a timed relay will be kicked off to run the aeration pump to restore the oxygen saturation level.
Overall, the whole project is working out pretty well. The water is good...
No sign of any odor! My wife has another area of the yard to plant flowers and the kids have decided to stay... for a little bit longer anyway.
The air bubbles coming from below the water pump, may not be a good idea becuase it could affect the way the water pump works.
Well Water Air Diffuser |
Malibu Water Resources Original Concept Sketch
Air Diffuser | Air Stone
Koenders Electric Aerator |
Electric Operating Costs
Amps x volts (115 or 230 volts)
= watts x hours per day of operation ÷ 1000 x cost per kilowatt hour
Koenders Electric Aerator:
-- 1/4 Horse power Energy Efficient Motor
-- Maximum 2.5 amps | operates at 1.75 amps x 110 volts
-- Less than 0.40¢ per day | 365 days x .40¢ = $146.00 per year
Shock Chlorination of a well |
