Restricted flow in copper pipes, iron buildup

MarkLeininger · Jun 4, 2006

I have a 35 year old house with copper pipes. Our water has a good bit of iron and for a long time the people who lived here before us did not have a water softener. I've opened the lines a few times for various repairs and find what I believe is buildup of iron. When it's wet it looks and feels a bit like rusty colored seaweed built up on the walls of the pipe. Once it dries it turns to very fine rusty powder, about the consistency of talcum powder, and is easily wiped out or blown away.

I have normal range at the pressure tank (45-60psi) and good flow rate at the base of the pressure tank, but many fixtures in the house, especially the outdoor faucets, have low flow rate.

My question is how can I remove this iron deposit, or whatever it is, from the inside of the pipes. I've googled this a little and have not found a description that quite matches what I see inside my pipes. There are many articles on mineral buildup, crystalline materials, and all kinds of hard deposits. But my deposits are very soft and easy to remove. Could I, for example, drain down the whole house piping system, blow compressed air through the lines starting at the top of the house to dry out all the lines and then turn the water back on to flush out the powder? Would this work or would the pipes stay too damp for the rust to turn into powder?

Any suggestions welcome.

MarkLeininger · Jun 4, 2006

I have a 35 year old house with copper pipes. Our water has a good bit of iron and for a long time the people who lived here before us did not have a water softener. I've opened the lines a few times for various repairs and find what I believe is buildup of iron. When it's wet it looks and feels a bit like rusty colored seaweed built up on the walls of the pipe. Once it dries it turns to very fine rusty powder, about the consistency of talcum powder, and is easily wiped out or blown away.

I have normal range at the pressure tank (45-60psi) and good flow rate at the base of the pressure tank, but many fixtures in the house, especially the outdoor faucets, have low flow rate.

My question is how can I remove this iron deposit, or whatever it is, from the inside of the pipes. I've googled this a little and have not found a description that quite matches what I see inside my pipes. There are many articles on mineral buildup, crystalline materials, and all kinds of hard deposits. But my deposits are very soft and easy to remove. Could I, for example, drain down the whole house piping system, blow compressed air through the lines starting at the top of the house to dry out all the lines and then turn the water back on to flush out the powder? Would this work or would the pipes stay too damp for the rust to turn into powder?

Any suggestions welcome.

plumboy · Jun 4, 2006

I really think you have a bacteria problem.There are ways to shock it out.Does your water smell?Do a search on iron bacteria,sulfer bacteria or maybe someone here can be more descriptive.I have been a plumber for 16 years but I only do new home installation and dont come across this much and only know enough to get me in trouble.

plumboy · Jun 4, 2006

I really think you have a bacteria problem.There are ways to shock it out.Does your water smell?Do a search on iron bacteria,sulfer bacteria or maybe someone here can be more descriptive.I have been a plumber for 16 years but I only do new home installation and dont come across this much and only know enough to get me in trouble.

goaliedad · Jun 4, 2006

Far from a pro here, but wanted to offer my ideas- I don't think you will get the stuff to dry out in the pipes- is it possible to remove the outside faucets and flush the lines? I'm thinking if you have a full flow situation that the gunk may flow out. Even if you can't remove the faucets can you simply pull them apart, like you were going to replace the washer?
Also, I would talk with a water softener person- they should be able to identify the stuff, and may have some chemical/additive solution.

Are your fixtures rusted? If not, then it is not iron.From your discription, I would expect you to have alot of rust on sinks and such if it is indeed iron.

Good Luck

goaliedad · Jun 4, 2006

Far from a pro here, but wanted to offer my ideas- I don't think you will get the stuff to dry out in the pipes- is it possible to remove the outside faucets and flush the lines? I'm thinking if you have a full flow situation that the gunk may flow out. Even if you can't remove the faucets can you simply pull them apart, like you were going to replace the washer?
Also, I would talk with a water softener person- they should be able to identify the stuff, and may have some chemical/additive solution.

Are your fixtures rusted? If not, then it is not iron.From your discription, I would expect you to have alot of rust on sinks and such if it is indeed iron.

Good Luck

anthonyk · Jun 4, 2006

There are simple specific tests which can be performed to determine if the water has an unusually high degree of iron.
If if is iron, it can be precipitated out with the addition of a chlorination system and holding tank ( not very expensive- around 600 bucks).
If it's not iron, and it's bacteria, then the same solution can be used. Flush the lines with a strong dose of chlorinated water and let it sit in the lines.
Once the residue is cleared out, use the chlorination system to prevent additional growth.
I would recommend running the heavily water coming from your chlorination tank through a carbon tank to reduce the chlorine to a reasonable level.
Even a minute amount of residual chlorine will be sufficient to prevent any buildup or odors.
Any good water treatment company can help you with the testing (usually free) and the solutions (most definitely not free /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )

good luck,

anthony

anthonyk · Jun 4, 2006

There are simple specific tests which can be performed to determine if the water has an unusually high degree of iron.
If if is iron, it can be precipitated out with the addition of a chlorination system and holding tank ( not very expensive- around 600 bucks).
If it's not iron, and it's bacteria, then the same solution can be used. Flush the lines with a strong dose of chlorinated water and let it sit in the lines.
Once the residue is cleared out, use the chlorination system to prevent additional growth.
I would recommend running the heavily water coming from your chlorination tank through a carbon tank to reduce the chlorine to a reasonable level.
Even a minute amount of residual chlorine will be sufficient to prevent any buildup or odors.
Any good water treatment company can help you with the testing (usually free) and the solutions (most definitely not free /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )

good luck,

anthony

EddieWalker · Jun 5, 2006

First have some samples tested to see what it realy is and if it's dangerous.

Just about everyhome has some level of buildup on their water lines. It's mostly worse looking than actually dangerous, but the only way to know for sure is to have it tested.

Eddie

EddieWalker · Jun 5, 2006

First have some samples tested to see what it realy is and if it's dangerous.

Just about everyhome has some level of buildup on their water lines. It's mostly worse looking than actually dangerous, but the only way to know for sure is to have it tested.

Eddie