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Well Water Filtration Systems
Well water filtration systems for the problems private wells actually have: iron and sulfur filters, water softeners built for wells, sediment and turbidity filters, acid neutralizers, UV for bacteria and reverse osmosis for arsenic and nitrates, on Clack and Fleck valves with a 5-year valve and 10-year tank warranty. Free shipping, 120-day returns, no sales tax outside Minnesota. Start with your symptoms or your test results: the guide below tells you which system fixes what, and in what order.
Well water filtration: which system fixes which problem
There is no single well water filtration system, because there is no single well water problem. A well in Minnesota with iron and hardness needs different equipment from a well in Arizona with arsenic and high TDS, and a whole-house carbon filter sold as a "well water filter" fixes neither. The systems on this page are the building blocks; the right combination comes from a water test. If you don't have one, a basic lab test covering hardness, iron, manganese, pH, TDS, nitrates and coliform costs $30–$150 and is the best money you'll spend on your water. Send us the report and we'll spec the train for free.
Start with the symptom
| What you notice | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Orange or brown stains in toilets, sinks, laundry; water clear from the tap but turns rusty when it sits | Clear-water (ferrous) iron | Iron filter; a softener alone handles light iron under ~3 ppm |
| Water arrives rusty or cloudy red | Red-water (ferric) iron | Iron filter, sediment pre-filter if heavy |
| Rotten-egg smell, worse from hot taps | Hydrogen sulfide (sulfur) | Air-injection sulfur filter; if only hot water smells, it's the water heater anode |
| Slimy reddish film in the toilet tank, swampy odor | Iron bacteria | Chlorination + retention tank + filter (see iron filters) |
| White scale on fixtures, spotted glasses, soap won't lather, dry skin | Hardness | Well water softener |
| Black stains, black flecks | Manganese | Katalox Light or Greensand iron/manganese filter |
| Blue-green stains on fixtures, pinhole leaks in copper | Low pH (acidic water) | Acid neutralizer, installed before everything else |
| Grit, sand, cloudy water, clogged aerators | Sediment, turbidity | Sediment filter (spin-down or backwashing) as the first stage |
| Yellow or tea-colored water that stays yellow in a glass | Tannins | Tannin filter |
| Positive coliform or E. coli test, or a shallow/older well | Bacteria | UV system after all filtration (see coliform treatment) |
| No symptom; test shows arsenic, nitrates, uranium, fluoride or high TDS | Dissolved contaminants | Reverse osmosis, under-sink for drinking or whole house; dedicated arsenic and nitrate filters |
The order the equipment goes in
Each stage protects the one after it. Get the order wrong and the downstream unit fouls or the upstream one never works. From the pressure tank toward the house:
- Sediment filter if you have grit or turbidity. Protects every valve and media bed behind it.
- Acid neutralizer if pH is below about 6.8. Iron media and softener resin both need neutral water, and low pH eats copper.
- Iron / sulfur / manganese filter. Air-injection (AIO) for iron plus odor, Katalox Light for iron plus manganese, chlorination for heavy iron or iron bacteria. Always ahead of the softener.
- Water softener for hardness. Also polishes off the last trace of iron.
- Carbon filter if there is chlorine (from a chlorination stage), taste or odor left.
- UV disinfection last, on clear water, so nothing shadows the lamp.
- Reverse osmosis at the kitchen sink, or whole house after a storage tank, for dissolved contaminants.
Iron and sulfur: Clack and Fleck side by side
Iron is the most common well problem in the country and the one most often treated wrong. Air-injection filters handle iron up to about 10 ppm and hydrogen sulfide in one tank with no chemicals; Katalox Light adds manganese; chlorination is for iron above 10 ppm or iron bacteria. Both valve platforms are proven on wells.
| Need | Clack | Fleck |
|---|---|---|
| Iron + sulfur, no chemicals (AIO) | C-Series AIO Iron & Sulfur Filter (from $1,999) | 5600 SXT AIO Iron (from $1,319) · 5600 AIO Sulfur (from $1,539) |
| Iron + manganese (Katalox Light) | Katalox Light Filter (from $1,279) | 2510 AiQ with Katalox Light (from $1,759) |
| Light clear-water iron, no odor | Birm Iron Filter (from $1,074) | 2510 AiQ Greensand Plus (from $1,539) |
| Hardness (well softener) | WS1 Water Softener (from $1,319) | 5600 SXT Water Softener (from $879) |
| Hardness + chlorine/taste in one | WS1 Softener + Carbon (from $2,199) | Softener + Carbon (from $2,299) |
| Sediment, acid, carbon stages | Backwash Sediment · Acid Neutralizer · Backwashing Carbon | 2510 AiQ Backwashing Carbon |
Sizing note for wells: iron and sulfur filters are sized by flow, not house size, and the number that matters is backwash flow, what your well pump must deliver to clean the media: about 5 GPM for a 10″ tank, 7 GPM for 12″, 10 GPM for 13″. A pump that can't hit it means a filter that never cleans. Tell us your pump horsepower and pressure-tank size and we'll match the tank.
Bacteria, arsenic and nitrates: what filters can't do
Media filters and softeners don't kill bacteria and don't remove dissolved contaminants. If a coliform test is positive, or the well is shallow, dug, or has flooded, a UV system (VIQUA is the standard) after the filtration train disinfects without chemicals; it needs clear, low-iron water to work, which is why it goes last. For arsenic, nitrates, uranium, fluoride or high TDS on a lab report, the answer is reverse osmosis, at the kitchen sink if drinking water is the concern or whole house if every tap needs it, with the well's iron and hardness treated first.
What a well water filtration system costs
| Well problem | Equipment | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Hardness only | Well softener | $880–$2,100 |
| Iron and/or sulfur | AIO or Katalox Light filter | $1,075–$2,000 |
| Iron + hardness (most common) | Iron filter + softener | $2,000–$4,000 |
| Low pH | Acid neutralizer | $900–$1,300 |
| Bacteria | UV system | $1,200–$3,200 |
| Arsenic / nitrates / high TDS | Under-sink RO, or whole house RO | $500–$850 under-sink; $2,700–$12,000 whole house |
| Annual upkeep | Salt, UV lamp, sediment cartridges | $100–$300 |
Current list pricing for the systems on this site, before storewide discounts; installation is extra. Everything ships free.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a water softener or a filter for well water? Usually both, and in that order: filter for iron and sulfur first, softener for hardness second. Hardness without iron needs only the softener; iron without hardness needs only the filter. The test tells you which.
Will a whole-house carbon filter fix well water? No. Carbon removes chlorine, taste and odor from treated water; it does nothing for iron, hardness, bacteria or dissolved metals and fouls quickly on untreated wells. It's the last stage, not the first.
Can I use a salt-free softener on a well? Only on a well with no iron. Salt-free conditioners foul above about 0.3 ppm iron and don't remove hardness; see salt-free systems for when they fit.
How often does a well need testing? Annually for coliform and nitrates, and any time taste, smell or color changes, after flooding, or after work on the well. Full mineral panels every few years.
What's the best well water filtration system? The one matched to your test. The most common install we ship is an air-injection iron filter ahead of a metered softener on Clack or Fleck valves, with UV added where bacteria is a risk.
Questions on your water? Call 800-374-2143 or send us your test results. Related: iron filters · sulfur filters · well water softeners · UV systems · RO for well water · softener + filter combos.
