Iron Removal for Michigan Well Water
Orange or rust-colored staining in toilets, tubs, sinks and laundry is the calling card of iron. It is one of the most common well-water problems in Michigan, and one of the most fixable.
What iron looks like in a home
Rust-orange rings in the toilet bowl. Staining in the tub and shower that comes back a week after scrubbing. White laundry turning dingy or orange-tinged. A metallic taste. Sometimes water that runs clear from the tap and then turns orange in the glass a minute later.
That last one is the tell for dissolved iron: it is invisible in the pipe and only oxidizes once it meets air.
Dissolved versus particulate
Particulate iron is already oxidized — you can see it, and a filter can physically catch it. Dissolved iron is in solution and has to be oxidized first before anything can remove it.
That difference decides which media goes in the tank, which is why an iron reading matters more than a brand name.
How iron is removed
An iron filter oxidizes the iron and traps it in a bed of media, then backwashes that media periodically to flush the accumulated iron to drain. The media choice depends on your iron concentration, pH, whether manganese or sulfur is also present, and how much flow the well can deliver for backwashing.
Low pH in particular changes the answer. Some media simply will not oxidize iron effectively below a certain pH, which is why we measure it.
Iron filter first, softener second
A softener will strip a small amount of iron, and some homeowners are told that is enough. It is not. Iron fouls softener resin, and within a year the softener's capacity collapses while the homeowner assumes the unit failed.
On any well with meaningful iron, the iron filter goes in ahead of the softener. That is not a preference, it is what keeps the softener alive.
Pricing
Iron filtration is normally installed as part of a well-water package, which starts around $3,850 installed alongside a properly sized softener.
Homes with heavy iron or low pH may need an additional stage. We measure first and quote the complete installed price in writing.
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