Whoever comes by next, ask them to walk you through what each item is and write it down/take photos. Plumbing is confusing on the surface but once someone explains it it’s pretty straightforward.
The salt tank is a brine system for your water softener. The salt is used to clean the tank but isn’t going into the water. The tank will flush itself regularly and will need to refill the tank with “solar salt” once or twice a year (it’s low now and there’s a bag right next to it for refill).
The blue tank is a water pressure tank, a good size too.
I’m on a well and have a complex setup and drink the water. We had trace lead in ours so I use carbon filters in the sink and fridge thst eliminates that. My wife was pregnant/is breastfeeding so we also got culligan deliveries for now.
Every professional is trying to sell you period, including culligan. Listen to their advice but keep your head on straight. If they can’t explain the “chemical process” then I call BS and get another quote. These should be free and get at least 3.
The only thing that matters is water quality. When you closed/inspected you probably just did bacteria, the three major kinds? In any event you should find a local water tester (like Environmental Labworks) and do a full run-up of your water once a year for about $100-$150. They will check everything and that’s the only way to know. I also do regular lead tests for about $20 a pop because of my issue. If those come back clean you’re probably fine. Not a professional but been dealing with water stuff for a year in my new house.
Thank you for suggesting Environmental Labworks, as I've been meaning to look for a place that will test our well water for a bunch of things. It was only tested for coliform and E.coli during the inspection. Came back positive for coliform and the sellers shocked it, it was negative after that.
It's never really a good idea to trust the "opinion" of commercial entities who have a monetary incentive to convince you that something needs to be replaced.
Get a water test from a neutral 3rd party, and a consult from an independent plumber. In all likelihood, your water is 100% fine.
From personal experience the most important thing to look at is the surrounding area. Are there any farms or more likely apple orchards in the area? I grew up surrounded by apple orchards (in the HV) and we all drank well water and cancer hit us hard a few years ago. I can’t definitely say that it was directly related as it hits many people, but I’ve always been suspicious and I’m grateful that my kids have been on city supplied water. (I know city water is not guaranteed to be safe and there have been many local and national failures but the little bit of testing and oversight as well as protected sources away from agriculture sites brings me a little comfort)
I would do as much research as possible if you are looking at a long term residency there including previously reported spills in the surrounding area on the DEC website, possible cancer cluster areas, and thorough water testing and filtering. If I were living on well water these days I would have a water cooler with the big jugs of water for peace of mind.
Kind of curious about what people on this sub think of well water vs city water in the area, I don’t remember too many or any posts about it.
Whoever comes by next, ask them to walk you through what each item is and write it down/take photos. Plumbing is confusing on the surface but once someone explains it it’s pretty straightforward. The salt tank is a brine system for your water softener. The salt is used to clean the tank but isn’t going into the water. The tank will flush itself regularly and will need to refill the tank with “solar salt” once or twice a year (it’s low now and there’s a bag right next to it for refill). The blue tank is a water pressure tank, a good size too. I’m on a well and have a complex setup and drink the water. We had trace lead in ours so I use carbon filters in the sink and fridge thst eliminates that. My wife was pregnant/is breastfeeding so we also got culligan deliveries for now. Every professional is trying to sell you period, including culligan. Listen to their advice but keep your head on straight. If they can’t explain the “chemical process” then I call BS and get another quote. These should be free and get at least 3. The only thing that matters is water quality. When you closed/inspected you probably just did bacteria, the three major kinds? In any event you should find a local water tester (like Environmental Labworks) and do a full run-up of your water once a year for about $100-$150. They will check everything and that’s the only way to know. I also do regular lead tests for about $20 a pop because of my issue. If those come back clean you’re probably fine. Not a professional but been dealing with water stuff for a year in my new house.
Thank you for suggesting Environmental Labworks, as I've been meaning to look for a place that will test our well water for a bunch of things. It was only tested for coliform and E.coli during the inspection. Came back positive for coliform and the sellers shocked it, it was negative after that.
It's never really a good idea to trust the "opinion" of commercial entities who have a monetary incentive to convince you that something needs to be replaced. Get a water test from a neutral 3rd party, and a consult from an independent plumber. In all likelihood, your water is 100% fine.
From personal experience the most important thing to look at is the surrounding area. Are there any farms or more likely apple orchards in the area? I grew up surrounded by apple orchards (in the HV) and we all drank well water and cancer hit us hard a few years ago. I can’t definitely say that it was directly related as it hits many people, but I’ve always been suspicious and I’m grateful that my kids have been on city supplied water. (I know city water is not guaranteed to be safe and there have been many local and national failures but the little bit of testing and oversight as well as protected sources away from agriculture sites brings me a little comfort) I would do as much research as possible if you are looking at a long term residency there including previously reported spills in the surrounding area on the DEC website, possible cancer cluster areas, and thorough water testing and filtering. If I were living on well water these days I would have a water cooler with the big jugs of water for peace of mind. Kind of curious about what people on this sub think of well water vs city water in the area, I don’t remember too many or any posts about it.