What Does Manganese Look Like In Well Water

If you are experiencing black stains on your shower toilet plumbing fixtures or laundry it is likely you have manganese in your drinking water and it is recommended you have your water tested.

What does manganese look like in well water. Instead of rust stains like iron it leaves a brown or tea color stain on fixtures dishes and laundry. Drinking water standards set by the epa for iron is 0 3 mg l and for manganese is 0 5 mg l. Shining a flashlight on the surface of the water makes the manganese film more obvious. Water coming from wells and springs with high iron and or manganese may appear colorless initially but orange brown iron or black manganese stains or particles quickly appear as the water is exposed to oxygen see water testing.

Another place to look for manganese is in toilet tanks where it often appears as a floating film on the surface of the water. When the level of iron in water exceeds the 0 3 mg l limit the water may have a red brown or yellow color and stain laundry and fixtures. Manganese is another metal that leaves stains. Manganese can also create a brownish black or black stain on your toilet shower bathtub or sink.

Manganese in your water can stain your laundry cause scaling on your plumbing and make your water look smell or taste bad. Manganese that s dissolved in well water gives the water a black tint. Iron fe in water is present in two forms. Oxidized forms of manganese usually remain dissolved in water giving it a black tint.

Soluble ferrous iron or insoluble ferric iron. Yet manganese can also present a problem if found in well water in quantities greater than 0 05 mg l. To have your water tested for manganese find a certified drinking water laboratory. Is there manganese in my drinking water.

This may happen in toilet flush tanks and inside your clothes washer or even dish washer. Soluble or dissolved iron and manganese ferrous this is the most common type of iron and manganese found in domestic water sources. In that case manganese can give the water an unsightly brown appearance while also often lending the water an unappealingly bitter taste. The well water then looks reddish orange colored or even yellow or in the situation with manganese black or brown.

These abrupt changes in the chemical forms of iron and manganese are responsible for the staining properties of aquifer waters containing high concentrations of these elements. It is also called clear water iron because when it comes out of the tap the water will look clear and clean not discolored as it will with insoluble iron or manganese.