Hydrotesting

[dfrush]

Does anyone have any experience hydrotesting with well water? Our well water is hard (252 mg/L CaCO3) and the iron content is 0.26 mg/L, just a tad below the EPA's Secondary Maximum Contaminant Level limit of 0.3 mg/L. Code calls for the use of potable water which by definition is suitable to drink and we don't drink our well water, is this anything we should be concerned about?

Thanks in advance,

- David

 

[moltenmetal]

If you're testing stainless steel equipment, chloride (Cl-, not chlorine) matters quite a bit. Most people put a limit in the 20-50 ppm range. Ours is easy- it comes in from Lake Ontario so the chloride is very low (rises a bit in spring with the meltwater from all our salty roads though). You'll need to test yours. Not an expensive test.

 

[SNORGY]

A bit surprised the specification calls for potable water. Apart from chlorides or low pH or other extraordinary entrained or dissolved components, I don't see why fresh water or firewater wouldn't be good enough.

 

[LittleInch]

"potable water" is often used as a catch all to prevent use of water contaminated with dirt, acids, petroleum, sewage and similar impurities.

It doesn't normally imply you need to use it as drinking water, only that it wouldn't be harmful if you did. In this respect it is more about the bugs and bactria which could exist which then could create pockets of MIC or SRBs leading to intenses corrosion in low spots.

Get a full chemical and biological test done on your well water and submt it for use. I agree with the chlorides bit, but as you're not boilin g it or otherwise getting these dissolved eleements to participate, I can't see the issue.

add some biocide, chlorine or run it through a UV filter to get rid of any bugs and you should be fine. Using filtered treated ground water is common place, especially for carbon steel pipelines.

Remember - More details = better answers
Also: If you get a response it's polite to respond to it.

 

[weldstan]

Well water is often used for hydrotesting. We've used brackish well water for specific tests. pH, chloride contents, etc. must be addressed based on the materials subject to the test.

 

[moltenmetal]

The issue with excessive chloride is pockets/pools of water which are not completely drained and which then evaporate- these can leave behind a concentrated brine in crevices which can lead to problems later depending on the service.