A-Star 2018 ED Installation Programming Troubleshooting - page 15
15
WATER AND WATER CONDITIONING
WATER
Man’s very existence depends on water. It is one of the basic commodities of life. Water
is best as nature provides it, is a common misconception. Practically all natural water
needs refinement or treatment to make it safe to drink or more satisfactory to use.
The earth’s water supply cycle starts in the upper cloud layers. As it falls to the earth as
rain or snow, it picks up impurities and gases from the atmosphere. Landing on earth, it
seeps over and through the ground, dissolving earth minerals. Passing through
limestone, it dissolves calcium and magnesium, the hardness minerals. Iron deposits
impart iron to the water. Acidity and sediments are other water conditions. Municipal
water supplies come from surface reservoirs, such as lakes and rivers, or from
underground reservoirs. Usually, municipalities chlorinate the water to make it safe to
drink. Sediment is removed by filtration. Tastes and odors are reduced or eliminated.
The water is conditioned to comply with certain specifications. However, hardness
minerals, tastes and odors are not always reduced to the most desirable levels.
Underground reservoirs provide our private water supplies. Because the water is raw
and untreated, it can have varying amounts of hardness, iron, tastes, odors, acidity, or
combinations of these. Different localities and water levels affect mineral content.
WATER CONDITIONING
Water conditioning is the treatment of four general conditions. These are: Hardness,
Iron
, Acidity, Sediments.
HARDNESS
is a term to describe the presence of calcium and magnesium minerals in
water. A chemical analysis accurately measures the amount of minerals in grain weight.
For example, 4 liters of water with 8.5
°
fH (= 4.8
°
dH) hardness has dissolved minerals,
that if solidified, about equals the size of one ordinary aspirin tablet. Four liters of water,
43
°
fH hard (= 24
°
dH), has a mineral content equal in size to five aspirin tablets. Water
hardness varies greatly across the country. Hard water affects living in general.
Hardness minerals combine with soap to make a soap curd. The curd greatly reduces
the cleaning action of soap. Precipitated hardness minerals form a crust on
cooking utensils, appliances, and plumbing fixtures. Even the tastes of foods are
affected. A water softener removes the hardness minerals to eliminate these problems,
and others. Sodium Information: Water softeners using sodium chloride (salt) for
regeneration add sodium to the water. Persons on sodium restricted diets should
consider the added sodium as part of their overall intake.
IRON
in water is measured in parts per million (ppm). The total* ppm of iron, and type or
types*, is determined by chemical analysis. Four different types of iron in water are
Ferrous (clear water), Ferric (red water), Bacterial and organically bound iron,
Colloidal
and inorganically bound iron (ferrous or ferric).
*
Water may contain one or more of the four types of iron and any combination of these. Total iron
is the sum of the contents.
o
Ferrous (clear water) iron is soluble and dissolves in water. It is usually detected
by taking a sample of water in a clear bottle or glass. Immediately after taking,
the sample is clear. As the water sample stands, it gradually clouds and turns
slightly yellow or brown as air oxidizes the iron. This usually occurs in 15 to 30
minutes. A water softener will remove moderate amounts of this type of iron (see
specifications).