3 Best Acid Neutralizer For Well Water [2021]: Buying Guide

What is Acidic Water?

Water that scores less than 7 on the pH scale is considered acidic water. pH measurements help us determine the acidity or alkalinity of water. The pH scale ranges from 0-14.

Acidic water: pH score 0-6 indicates the water is acidic. The lower the pH value the more acidity the water has. So, pH value 6 means less acidity while pH value 0 means extremely acidic water.

Neutral water: pH value 7 indicates the water is neutral and safe to drink.

Alkaline water: pH score 8-14 indicates alkaline water.

According to a survey conducted by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), almost every state of this country is being hammered by acid water. The pH map will give you a general idea about the severity of acidic in different states.

People in rural areas, who depend on private wells for water supply, are likely to be the worst sufferers of acidic water.

Using a neutralizer for well water can reduce the health risk in this desperate situation. So, we decided to analyze and compare popular acid neutralizers of the market. After hours of analysis, we have picked up the 3 Best Acid neutralizer for well water that may prove to be useful for you.

3 Best Acid Neutralizer For Well Water

1. Springwell Whole House Acid Neutralizer & well Water Filter System Combo: 2.5 Cubic Feet Best Water Acid Neutralizer

Most of the private well-water in the U.S.A are contaminated with iron, manganese, sulfur, or a combination of these contaminants. So, if you need an acidic water neutralizer there’s a very good chance that you need a well water filter system as well. For those people, Springwell’s whole house acid neutralizer and well water filter system is a perfect combo package.

The main advantage of the Springwell pH neutralizer is that it can be bought along with a UV water purifier and a well water filter system for a discounted price. Getting 3 systems altogether saves the shipping cost and reduces installation cost as well.

Tank Size, Port, and Installation: Springwell pH neutralizer has a 2.5 cubic foot tank. The system has a robust body structure. It is 13″ wide and 54″ high. It uses 1” water pipes for an incredible water flow rate, up to 12 gallons per minute.

pH Level: Springwell Calcite pH Neutralizer was designed to raise ph from 6.0 to all the way at 7. So, if your water’s pH level at 6.0-6.5 range, then this system is perfect for you.

Water Supply Rate: At the peak hour you will get, 12 gallons of neutralized water per minute from the system. At this rate, you can expect it to cover the water demand of 6 bathrooms simultaneously. So, as you see it’s an exceptionally powerful system.

Bluetooth control valve and Auto Backwash: Springwell calcite pH neutralizer is a backwashing system that comes with a Bluetooth-enabled control valve. So, you will be controlled and adjust the system using your mobile. The system sends water usage info, backwash cycles, backwash timing, and other important information via Bluetooth. It helps you keep track of your water usage and reduces water wastage.

Springwell Whole House Water filtration system optional add-on: Springwell water filter system provides complete water treatment for private wells. The water filter is capable of removing up to 8 ppm of Hydrogen Sulfide, up to 7 PPM Iron, and 1 PPM Manganese. it removes rotten smell from water and provides cleaner, better-tasting drinking water.

Installing the filter will not reduce water flows neither the water pressure. And, perhaps the best part is that it doesn’t require any kind of maintenance.

Maintenance: Since it’s a Bluetooth enable backwashing system, virtually no manual maintenance is required for it. All you have to do is refill the tank with calcite media once a year.

Free Shipping & Warranty: Springwell has a fast-free shipping policy and tends to deliver its product within 24 hours. they provide a Lifetime Warranty on all their Water products.

2. AFWFilters Acid Neutralizer Calcite ph Filter for Well Water: 1.5 Cubic Feet Best Acid Neutralizer System For Well Water

AFWFilters Calcite ph Filter for Well Water is a 1.5 cubic foot non-backwashing type neutralizer manufactured by Clack. It’s one of the budget acid neutralizers designed specifically for small families. This non-electric system is for those people who live in remote places and in the countryside where getting a stable electrical connection is a bit tough.

Tank Size, Port, and Installation: AFWFilters Calcite ph Filter for Well Water is 541010 inches and weighs 95 pounds. It comes in semi-translucent almond color. it is compatible with 1″ water pipes.

Since it’s a non-backwashing system it has only 2 ports. One for letting water inside the tank and the other one is for pushing it out.

AFWFilters Calcite ph Filter doesn’t need any kind of electricity or gas to run. So, installing this system is easy, fast, and straightforward.

pH Level: AFWFilters Calcite pH Filter can raise the pH from 5.5 to 7.0.

Clack recommends using only calcite to raise your pH from 6.0 to 6.9. And, if the acidity is higher say 5.5 to 6.0, a combination of calcite and calcite corosex has to be used inside the tank.

Water supply Rate: AFWFilters can give you a 7 gallons per minute water flow rate. As we have mentioned earlier, it is made for small families consists of 4-5 members.

A 7- GPM water flow rate is enough to provide sufficient water to 2 bathrooms, 1 kitchen sink, and 1 dishwasher.

Non-Backwash System: It is an upflow type pH neutralizer. Well-water goes inside the tank through the top port. Once the water reaches the bottom of the tank and gets in contact with the calcite media bed, it goes back up again. While going up it automatically backwashes the system and finally, comes out of the tank through the outlet port situated at the top of the tank.

Since the system automatically backwashes the system itself, there is no need for you to manually backwashes the system. But we do recommend you check the system every 3-4 months to ensure whether the tank is getting properly backwasher or not. If not, you will need to thoroughly backwash the system in order to get maximum efficiency.

Maintenance: AFWFilters Acid Neutralizer is only a 1 Cubic foot in size. It can hold only 30-40 pounds of calcite media inside it. So, depending on the water usage you may need to add more calcite media every 6-7 months.

NSF Certification: This system is NSF certified.

Warranty: With this system, you will get a 10-year manufacturer’s warranty for the tank.

3. SoftPro pH Neutralizer Calcite Filter: 2.5 Cubic Feet Best Acid Neutralizer For Well Water

In our opinion, SoftPro pH Neutralizer is one of the best acid neutralizers for well water. It’s a highly effective, programmable, and NSF-certified backwashing pH neutralizer. With a 15 GPM peak water flow rate, it is the most suitable acid neutralizer for the majority of American families.

Tank Size, Port, and Installation: SoftPro pH Neutralizer is a rugged, heavy-duty 2.5 cubic feet water neutralizer. For higher water flow it uses large 1″ ports. Installing the systems is not difficult at all. Anybody with some basic plumbing experience can install the system in 2-3 hours. A few plumbing connections are all that’s required for the system to get started.

pH Level: SoftPro pH Neutralizer can eliminate acidity in the pH range of 5.5 to 7.0. Come to think of it, it is one of the most powerful neutralizers in the industry. No matter in which state you live whether it is on the east coast or onis the west coast, you can certainly rely on SoftPro pH Neutralizer to neutralize your home water supply.

For your information, the acid level in water differs from state to state and the severity on the east coast is higher than on the west coast. Having an acid neutralizer that can eliminate acidity in the wide range of pH levels is an advantage. Because in the future if you shift your house to another state your SoftPro pH neutralizer will remain effective.

Water Supply Rate: One of the many impressive features of this neutralizer is its water flow rate. It has a peck water flow rate of 15 GPM with a constant water flow rate of 10-11 gallons of water per minute.

Still, 10-11 GPM water flow rate is enough to supply water in Two Bathrooms (2.5+2.5 GPM), One kitchen Sink ( 2 GPM), One Dishwasher (2 GPM) simultaneously.

Programmable control valve and Auto Backwash: SoftPro is a backwashing type water neutralizer that comes with a programmable control valve. The control valve comes with an LCD display that shows important info like pH level, water flow rate, water usage per day, etc.

The electrically operated control valve features a fully adjusted-adjustable backwash and rinses cycle. You can program the system to automatically backwash the tank according to your need.

Maintenance: One more plus point is that The SoftPro pH Neutralizer uses Cartridge free inexpensive calcite as a neutralizer. So, adding new calcite or calcite corosex from time to time is not a hassle with this unit. You can simply open the side port and pour calcite media directly from the bag.

Since this unit is 2.5 cubic feet, it can hold about 100+ pounds of calcite. Once you fill the unit with calcite, you won’t have to worry about adding more for a year or so.

NSF Certification: Softpro pH neutralizer an NSF-certified water neutralizer.

6-month Satisfaction Guarantee: Only for residential uses, Softpro is giving its users a 6 month satisfaction period. If you are not satisfied, they will accept the return of your unit in its original condition for a full refund within six (6) months of the ship date.

Although they don’t offer free shipping. Return shipping charges will be endured by the customer as well.

Warranty: With this unit, you will get, A Limited lifetime warranty on the control valve; includes all parts except for wear parts such as the piston, spacers, seals, and circuit board, A 7-year warranty on the circuit board, And a Lifetime warranty on the tank.

Best acid neutralizer for well water: Buying guide

1. How to size an acid neutralizer for your home:

Sizing an acid neutralizer is pretty simple. There are 3 standard sizes of acid neutralizers available in the industry. Those are:

1.5 cubic foot acid neutralizers

2.0 cubic feet acid neutralizers

2.5 cubic feet acid neutralizers

There are 4 things that you need to consider before choosing an acid neutralizer for your home.

pH label of your well water: The lower the pH level or the higher the acidity of your water, the bigger the acid neutralizer you will need.

The number of people living in your home: The number of people living in your home indicates the amount of water you will need per day. On average, one adult person needs 100 gallons of water every day. If you have a big family you will need a big acid neutralizer and vice versa.

Water flow rate ( Gallons per minute Or GPM): One more important factor about acid neutralizers is their water flow rate per minute. Smaller systems have a low water flow rate and vice versa.

On average, shower faucets in the bathroom need 2.5 gallons per minute water flow rate. The kitchen sink, dishwasher, washing machine, water hose in the lawn needs 2.0 gallons per minute water flow rate as well.

So, if you have 2 bathrooms ( 2.5+2.5), 1 kitchen sink (2.0), 1 dishwasher (2.0) you will need an acid neutralizer with a water flow rate of 9 gallons per minute or above.

Maintenance: Depending on your water usage, every 6-12 months you will need to clean and refill your acid neutralizer with calcite media. Logically, smaller units hold a lesser amount of calcite media. So, those will need to be refilled frequently. On the other hand, bigger acid neutralizers hold a high amount of calcite so they don’t need frequent maintenance.

The chart attached below will help you decide on the right acid neutralizers for your home. Remember it is always a good idea to go for bigger acid neuters rather than stuck with a smaller system. Because acid neutralizers have an average lifespan of 8-10 years. During that time, your family will most likely grow big and your water requirement will rise as well.

	1.5 cubic foot	2.0 cubic feet	2.5 cubic feet
pH level	6.5-7	6.0-6.5	5.0-6.0
Number of family members	2 Adults	2- 4 adults	4-8 adults
Water Flow rate	5 Gallons per Minute	10 Gallons per Minute	10+ Gallons per Minute
Maintenance	Every 6 months	Every 6-12 months	Every 12-18 months

Special note: For 70% of American families 2.5 cubic feet acid neutralizer tank is the most suitable one. So, if you want to save yourself from the trouble of all that calculation, just opt for that one.

2. Types of acid neutralizers

There are 3 types of acid neutralizers available in the market.

Non-backwash acid neutralizers

Backwash acid neutralizers

Soda Ash / Chemical Feed acid neutralizers

Although they are equally effective, their acid-neutralizing process, maintenance, and price differ from one another. Based on the ph level of water you have in your well, you can one of those 3 water neutralizers.

For your information, backwashing refers to the process of removing mud, sand, rust from both the neutralizer tank and the surface of calcite stored in the tank. When well water comes inside the neutralizer tank it brings small particles of sediment, iron, etc. Over time those particles create a layer over the calcite media which drastically reduces the efficiency of the acid neutralizer. Backwashing the system periodically keeps the system effective and efficient.

Non-backwash Acid neutralizers

As the name suggests a non-backwashing system does not backwash the acid neutralizer tank. In a non-backwashing system, you will find 2 valves at the top of the tank. Though the inlet valve water comes in and goes to the bottom of the tank. And then water comes up back again in a calculator motion to the complete diameter of the tank. The circular motion is important for 2 reasons. The first one, due to circular motion water gets in touch with calcite media. And the second one is, it passively cleans calcite media while passing through it.

By the way, a non-backwashing system is also known as an upflow acid neutralizer as well.

During the whole process, calcite dissolves into the water and makes it neutral.

An upflow system doesn’t require any kind of electricity or maintenance. However, you will have to add calcite every 6-12 months. It does not require a control valve nor a drain pipe. Due to their simple design and efficiency, upflow acid neutralizers are popular in rural areas.

Installing these types of neutralizers is as easy as it can be. You won’t need the assistance of a professional plumber to install it. The average person can install this in under an hour.

Backwash Acid neutralizers

A backwashing acid neutralizer is much more complex than a non-backwashing system. It automatically backwashes the acid neutralizer tank and the calcite stored inside it. At the top of a backwashing system, you will find an electric control valve and an inlet valve for letting water in. At the bottom of the system, you will find an outlet valve and drain pipe.

During the neutralization process, well water goes into the tank through the inlet valve. Then it passes through the calcite media stored inside it. Upon contact with the media, it gets neutralized and gets out of the system through the outlet valve situated at the bottom of the tank. Backwashing acid neutralizers are also known as downflow acid neutralizers.

The electrically operated control valve keeps track of the quality of calcite and the amount of water neutralized by the system. The valve automatically backwashes the system when needed or after a predicted interval. Usually, it takes 70-100 gallons of water to backwash the whole system and the wastage comes out of the tank through the drain pipe.

Usually, a backwashing system costs a few hundred bucks more than a non-backwashing system. Also, the system needs electricity to operate because of the electric control valve. But still, the backwashing system is more popular in the U.S.A. because it lasts longer, doesn’t require frequent maintenance, and remains extremely efficient throughout its lifespan.

Soda Ash / Chemical Feed Acid neutralizers

Instead of calcite or calcite corosex, the soda ash acid neutralizer system uses Sodium Carbonate to neutralize the acidic water. Sodium carbonate is also known as soda ash, hence the name soda ash acid neutralizer. They are also known as chemical feed water neutralizers.

In extreme cases when the ph level of your well water is below 5.5-5.0, you will have no other option than to use a chemical feed system. Because sodium carbonate used in chemical feed neutralizing filter is much more effective against low ph acidic water.

Usually, a chemical feed system costs well over a thousand dollars, needs professional plumbers to install, and requires frequent maintenance. Unless you have extremely acidic water, we don’t recommend using it.

Now, the question remains whether you should pick a backwash, a non-backwash system, or a soda ash acid neutralizer. The answer solely depends on the pH level & water quality.

• If you pH of the water is in between the 5.5-6.9 range and the water quality is fairly clean ( no sediment, no iron, no mud) you can choose a non-backwashing system.

• If you pH of the water is in between the 5.5-6.9 range but there’s a high amount of iron and sediment present in your well water, you must buy a backwashing neutralizer for your house.

• If you pH of the water is below 5.5, you must buy a soda ash neutralizer for your well water.

3. How do acid neutralizers work?

The core principle of all acid neutralizers is the same. they all use chemical pH adjusters to neutralize acidic water. Backwash and Non-backwash systems let water flow through those chemicals.

On the other hand, a chemical feed / Soda ash water neutralizer injects chemicals directly into the water tank to neutralize acidic water.

The most Popular chemical pH adjustors are Calcium carbonate and Magnesium Oxide. Calcium carbonate is often referred to as calcite and Magnesium Oxide is often referred to as Corosex.

Dangers of acidic water ( low pH water)

We have seen people often undermine the dangers of acidic water. Probably because the negative effects of acid water take years to show after it gets irreversible. That’s right, drinking and using acidic water impose some serious threats to your body. Those are : 

1. Acid water contains Heavy metals:

various studies have found that Acidic Water tends to drain away toxic heavy metals from the soil, metals, etc. As a result, acidic water holds a higher concentration of heavy metals than neutral water.

Heavy metals like mercury, lead, arsenic, copper, nickel, cadmium, chromium, and zinc are extremely toxic to the human body. They can cause diarrhea, nausea, vomiting to severe problems like brain damage, nervous system breakdown, lung cancer & organ damage, etc.

Although the severity of these problems depends on the age, sex, and frequency of exposure to toxic metals.

You may remember the incident that happened in 2014, with the residents of Flint, Michigan. Acidic water corroded the water pipelines and their water supply got contaminated with toxic lead. The same incidents happened in Detroit, 2018. Residents of that area including children and pregnant women were tested positive for lead (heavy metal), suffered and hundreds of them eventually died.

2. Acid water is harmful to your Dental Health:

Drinking low pH water over time will have disastrous effects on your teeth, especially on your teeth enamel. Teeth enamel is that white hard substance covering the outer layer of your teeth. Enamel is made of Calcium Phosphate.

Calcium Phosphate is susceptible to dissolve in acid water. Drinking extremely acidic water Ranging from pH 5.0 to lower, will lead you to teeth decay, causing cavities.

3. No Calcium retention Due to Acid water leads to Bone Diseases:

Calcium is one of the things that the human body can’t produce. We depend on our diet to get the needed amount of calcium every day. Studies have shown that people who drink high amounts of acidic water have a lower ability to absorb calcium from regular food.

If and when the body doesn’t get enough calcium from foods, it desperately collects calcium from bones. Continuous collection of calcium from bones leads to bone erosion and other severe bone diseases. People over the age of 35 are the worst sufferers of this irreversible problem.

4. Damage your water systems:

One of the many and financially concerning issue is acidic water corrodes copper pipes and eventually destroy your home’s water system.

Upon corrosion, metal residues spread into your water system. Then you will have no option other than to change your entire plumbing system and buy a whole house drinking water filter for your home. No need to mention that it will cost you well over four-five thousands dollar depending on the size of your house.

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