Water question

mammabooh · #1 06/16/11, 05:24 PM

Ok, here's a weird one for you. We have very nasty well water with iron in it and are going to have a water softener installed. I have read that iron blocks the absorbtion of copper, so I was planning to have the softened water go to the barn also. BUT, then I thought about the salt that will be in that water. I know it's not much, but do you folks think it would be bad for them? Which would be better...iron or salt?

HappyFarmer · #2 06/16/11, 05:49 PM

This is a tough question.

Have you had any water tests done to determine the mineral contents of the water? I'd contact the water softener manufacturers to ask them how much salt per gal/ppm/ however they measure it.

How are they doing on their current water? Do you bolus and are you happy with the results?

Off the cuff, and no REAL reason for this answer, I'd stick with the high iron. I wouldn't want all that salt (is it really a lot?) going on my pastures. At least with the iron, you know what you are dealing with, especially if you have lived there a while, and won't have to make any adjustments.

Just my thoughts
HF

Alice In TX/MO · #3 06/16/11, 05:55 PM

A water softener that is working correctly does NOT add significant salt to the water. It uses the salt to clean the filter system.

Ask your water softener company about the salt content of the treated water.

mammabooh · #4 06/16/11, 05:56 PM

Yep, we've had the water tested...iron is only 1 part per million, so I guess that's probably not horrible. I believe the Culligan guy said that the salt would be 350 parts per million (I THINK).

I've only had the goats for 2 1/2 months.

HappyFarmer · #5 06/16/11, 06:23 PM

I don't know, interesting question, though.

Here's a few links on the maximums of potable water (drinking water). One of them even has the max on secondary water. Perhaps you could compare the max to the actuals & make a decision from there? Looks like you'll need to do some conversions.

http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/index.cfm#List

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3941232

Oddly enough the sodium is not listed in the first link. That's why I looked up potability. A complete potability test gives sodium levels, with the accepted range. Not sure if this helps or not, interesting reading (for me anyways).

HF

TroutRiver · #6 06/16/11, 08:03 PM

If it's at a level that is safe for you to drink, it should be fine for the goats.

grandmajo · #7 06/17/11, 06:07 AM

We use the softened water for our goats because our iron content is so high in the unsoftened water, about triple what yours is.

Mayo Clinic has a good article on the salt in softened water
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sodium/AN00317

Backfourty,MI. · #8 06/17/11, 08:04 AM

The water to our barn goes through our water softner because we have a very high iron content in our water as well. Been that way since we've had goats & no problems other than when it wasn't working for awhile & I didn't realize it & my buck at that time got UC. I got him through that but still lost him almost 2 years later.

I wouldn't have water for my goats that didn't go through the softner, I check the water softner now all the time.

eclipchic · #9 06/17/11, 08:45 AM

I didn't know about a connection btwn iron and copper. I don't know off hand what our iron content is but I know its high and stains everything with a ruddy coating if it doesn't go through the softener first. I don't think ours is set up in a way that it can go through the softener so maybe I'll have to try my hand at this bolus thing once in a while.