Well water with high calcium content

[jdhill]

Well water with high calcium content. Is there a special water softener or filter that will cut it down enough so it doesn't corrode the copper piping and the boiler coils?

[shoman32]

Hi...I think water softeners in general remove calcium, a key element in hard water, magnesium being the other. Any effective water softener should do the job,

Best,

George

ps many state extension services have postings dealing with most aspects of problem water.

[Carol09]

A water softener should take care of it, if calcuim is what your problem is.

[Caoimhín P. Connell]

Good morning, jdhill-

Actually Carol and shoman are both incorrect, and in fact your presumption about the hard water, and calcium content are also incorrect.

Copper pipes can corrode for a variety of reasons – however, in general, corrosion is LESS likely to occur in hard water than in soft water, and in general, soft water promotes the corrosion. In fact, one of the ways copper pipe corrosion is corrected is by increasing the water hardness through the addition of calcium carbonate into the water.

If you truly have hard water (which may or may not be the case), then the corrosion can be the result of other problems, such as improper electrical grounding, cathodic sacrifice by contact with dissimilar/incompatible metals (for example, the copper pipes are in contact with an iron suspender, manifold, or galvanized duct, etc). Other problems can include high dissolved carbon DIOXIDE (CO2) and/or simply reduced pH water.

Installing a water softener to correct a copper corrosion problem is unwise, and likely to accelerate the problem.

Cheers!
Caoimhín P. Connell
Forensic Industrial Hygienist
www.forensic-applications.com

(The opinions expressed here are exclusively my personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect my professional opinion, opinion of my employer, agency, peers, or professional affiliates. The above post is for information only and does not reflect professional advice and is not intended to supercede the professional advice of others.)

AMDG