Feb
11
Iron Treatment and Removal With The Terminator
February 11, 2008 |
The Terminator iron treatment system is a three stage system designed to remove iron, manganese, sulfur and turbidity from your well water. The processes included oxidation, gas separation and filtration with a blended media. This method of water treatment is not new. This method has been around for many years and is very reliable. Combine that reliability with professional grade equipment, and you have a proven, highly successful water treatment system. Consider too that while the final stage of the Terminator system is a backwashing filter, no regenerant or chemicals are required for operation. The mixed media bed has been proven to last from 5 to 15 years before changing, depending on the inlet water’s composition.
While the Terminator can handle large amounts if iron, sulfur and manganese, like anything else, it does have limitations. The Terminator will convert dissolved iron into suspended iron for easy filter removal. In other words, it can handle both Ferrous iron (dissolved) and Ferric iron (suspended), but it can only treat small amounts of bacterial iron. In the case of bacterial iron, chlorine should be added to the well water system periodically, or it can be automatically added with a chlorine pellet dropper. The Terminator systems can remove up to 20ppm (mg/L) of iron, 5ppm of sulfur and 125 F.T.U of turbidity. As mentioned above, the Terminator is a three stage water treatment system. They consist of an air injector, a mixing tank and a filter tank.
The Air Injector The air injector is typically placed between the underground well pump and the water system’s pressure tank. This air injector uses a nozzle/venturi action to draw air into the water in a fine vapor to provide maximum surface area contact with the water. The air injector requires the use of a submerged water well pump to provide enough flow rate for the air injector to work. An above ground “jet pump” is insufficient for proper operation. This air injector should also have a bypass mechanism plumbed around it. While not always necessary, a bypass can provide a higher degree of control of the amount of air injected into the water.
The Mixing Tank This tank and its internal and external mechanisms enhances the oxidation process by spraying the incoming water through a series of holes. It will also release and bleed off excess oxygen and sulfur gases.
The Filter Tank This tank contains the media which traps the now suspended iron. The control valve on the top of the tank will periodically backwash to release the trapped iron particles and send them down the drain. This backwashing process should occur every 3 to 4 days to keep the media bed redistributed.
Choosing Your Terminator System The size of Terminator system you choose will depend on water flow rates. You will need to consider your water system’s maximum flow rate to provide for a proper backwash to the filter media. The flow rates and backwash flow rates for the Terminator systems are provided in a table in the Terminator Service Manual. For example, if your water system currently has a flow rate of 5 gallons-per-minute (gpm), then either the T1000 or T1500 would work for you. However, if your flow rate is 5gpm, the T2000 would be too large as it requires a backwash flow rate of 7gpm.
The Terminator Service Manual also states that it comes with a Waterite air injector. At Water Value Company, we have had better performance with the more expensive Clack air injector, so when comparing prices on Terminator systems, be sure to make that consideration a part of your final decision.
Another consideration is your water’s pH balance. If your water’s pH is between 7.0 and 8.0, the standard Terminator blended media will work for you. If your water is low in pH (6.0 to 6.9), then the Terminator Plus blended media will perform better. Specify your water’s pH balance from the pull-down menu on the Terminator ordering page, and Water Value will include the proper blend of media for you.
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