Best Iron Filters for Well Water

What’s the Best Iron Filter for Well Water?

Best overall well water filter for iron: SpringWell WS1. This SpringWell system won the top overall well water award in our 2023 review, and also comes top for iron removal thanks to its impressive combination of performance, reliability, and price.

Best for high iron levels: Pentair WF4. With its super-powerful chlorine injection system, the Pelican WF4 effectively removes dissolved iron while also preventing the buildup of iron bacteria. Perfect for wells with very high iron levels.

Best budget iron filter: APEC 3-Stage Filter. For the best budget option, we recommend APEC’s iron filter, which contains a sediment stage for non-dissolved iron, as well as a KDF media to oxidize and remove clear water iron.

Best iron filter and softener combo: SpringWell WS-SS1. Well water that’s high in iron is also likely to contain hard minerals that cause their own range of issues. To tackle both at the same time, combine SpringWell’s WS1 with their powerful salt-based softener.

Best Iron Filter for Well Water: Results Explained

Iron contamination is one of the most common well water issues in the US. If you have a domestic well that contains high levels of iron, you may notice orange and brown stains, unpleasant metallic tastes, and water clouding.

Dissolved and undissolved iron

In water wells, iron exists in both an unoxidized dissolved form, and an oxidized insoluble form, better known as rust. Together, these two types of iron produce all of the unwanted symptoms above.

Iron bacteria

Using water with high levels of iron can also make your pipes a breeding ground for iron bacteria—a class of microorganisms that clog plumbing with an off-putting sludge.

So what makes a good iron filter for well water?

The best iron filtration systems either remove all three types of iron contamination or provide powerful focused filtration for a specific type of iron.

When it comes to comprehensive removal of major iron contamination, we think the Pentair WF4-P is the current industry leader.

It can handle up to 10 PPM of iron and uses a chlorine injection system that removes dissolved iron while disinfecting the water supply to suppress the growth of iron bacteria. It also contains a sediment filter to pre-screen undissolved rust.

If insoluble rust particles are the major issue in your well, you could try and cheap and quick fix, by using a sediment filter. Devices the like popular Culligan HD-200 are designed to effectively screen out undissolved particles, but they can’t handle any other type of contamination.

For targeting clear-water iron alongside other common well water metals like sulfur and manganese, we recommend the SpringWell WS1. It handles an impressive 7 PPM of iron using an air injection system.

What type of iron filter is right for me?

Whether you opt for a comprehensive iron removal system or a targeted iron filter should depend on the makeup of your own well water.

But whatever you choose, it’s important to significantly reduce iron levels in your water to avoid the growth of iron bacteria.

This can be achieved by either removing high levels of iron using a powerful filtration system, or by combining a more focused iron filter with an anti-bacterial stage, such as a UV purifier (this is Pentair’s highly-rated version).

Other Important Iron Filter Features

Iron filter type

Do you need a filter for rust particles that discolor water and create metallic tastes? Or a filter for dissolved iron that’s invisible but causes staining on appliances and fixtures? Or a solution for iron bacteria that thrive in iron-rich water? Many homes with domestic wells require all three types of iron filtration.

Cartridge vs tank

Cartridge iron filter systems are smaller, made from plastic, and can be installed as whole-house or under-sink units. Cartridge filter systems are cheaper but less powerful and need to be replaced more frequently. Tank filters are much bigger and made from resin, chrome, or steel. Tanks tend to provide more powerful filtering with less maintenance but have a much higher base price, and require more space.

Other filtration stages

Water contaminated with iron is likely to contain other types of material, such as calcium, magnesium, sulfur, and manganese. To remove them, you’ll need a filter with extra features, such as a softening tank, a sulfur oxidizer, or a chlorine injector.

Why is there iron in my drinking water?

Iron is the second most common metal in the earth’s crust, making up about 5% of the total. So, when water moves through the soil, it can pick up iron naturally. This is why iron can be found in surface water, like lakes and rivers, and groundwater, which comes from the ground.

But iron can also come out of rusty pipes, industrial waste, and the refining of ore.

Ferrous and ferric iron is what we usually deal with when it comes to drinking water. 0.7 ppm is the average amount of iron in rivers on average. 0.5 to 10 parts per million are found in groundwater. There are times when 50 ppm is possible. Drinking water usually has less than 0.3 ppm of iron in it.

Is iron contaminated water bad for my health?

Because iron is a naturally occurring element that is used by (and found inside) our own bodies, there’s no inherent risk to consuming small amounts of iron in your water.

That said, high levels of iron contamination are associated with a number of minor health risks.

When excessive levels of iron are ingested over long periods, they can accumulate in major organs. There’s little risk of this from most water sources, however, drinking water with iron concentrations above 200 mg per liter can result in iron poisoning.

Bacterial infection

Iron compounds and bacteria, in particular, have the potential to cause more serious health consequences. When the latter is digested, it creates an environment that may include extra germs, increasing the likelihood of becoming ill from it.

Skin and hair

Well water with a high concentration of iron may also have an adverse impact on your hair and skin. When used to wash your hair, it might cause it to become dry and brittle, as well as darker in color as a result. Blonde hair may become orange as a result of the sun. It is possible that your skin may wrinkle prematurely. When soap and iron are mixed, a scum is formed on the skin that is difficult to remove. Soap scum residue has the potential to clog pores, resulting in irritation and acne in some people.

Is iron contaminated water bad for my home?

When levels of iron in water reach significant levels, your home appliances and piping feel the effects. High iron contamination can cause:

• Iron staining. The most famous effect of iron contamination in the home is those orangey stains that can cause rings around your toilet bowl, shower tray, or sink drain. When iron levels are high these stains can even transfer onto laundry and can be difficult to remove (as the water used for cleaning stains contains iron itself).
• Clogged pipes and appliances. Iron particles can accumulate in pipes and home appliances, causing them to clog. What starts out as a small drop in water flow rate can become broken and non-functioning appliances over a longer period.
• Bacterial contamination. Iron bacteria are a type of microorganism that consume iron as part of their metabolic process. As a result, they thrive in iron-rich water and can quickly reproduce in water storage tanks, pipes, and unused appliances. Signs of iron bacteria include an orange scum or foul-smelling slime that covers the water’s surface.

Can iron be filtered out of well water?

Yes. Even though iron is a highly common and troublesome contaminant, it can be effectively removed from well water when the right equipment is used.

How do you filter well water with iron?

The most often used filter type for removing ferric iron and ferrous iron consists of a huge mineral tank filled with oxidation media such as greensand and sand, which is utilized to extract the iron.

In the case that the ferric and ferrous concentrations are exceptionally high, an additional pre-oxidation step may be necessary. The air injection oxidation technique is the most often utilized.

It is possible to treat iron-oxidizing bacteria with chlorine injection or shock chlorination, both of which are effective treatments.

Do whole house iron filters work?

Whole house water filters should work well to remove iron, so long as they contain filtration stages designed specifically to target it.

Most whole house water filters don’t contain the appropriate technology, however, so do your research and choose the right product for your water profile.