Just can’t work under pressure…..
Probably the most common Water Treatment System in homes today is the ever faithful Cartridge Filter. There are many types of Housings and many types of Cartridges to go into those Housings. They come in different shapes, sizes, and colors, to tackle a wide array of Water quality issues.
No matter what type you have, they all have one thing in common. You can’t get them open unless you let the pressure out of the Housing first. Possibly Governor Schwarzenegger can, but he’s the only one!
Usually you can find a pressure release button on the Housing and some types even come with a bypass/pressure relief valve built right into them. These can still be very hard to open.
So, what to do? If your plumbing system alows, run the water upstairs in the tub, and then turn off the breaker to your well pump. When the pressure gauge on your pressure tank reads zero shut off the water following the Cartridge Housing. There is usually a Ball Valve handle right there. This will stop all the household water from flowing back down the pipe, later on. Then hook up a short hose to the boiler drain on your pressure tank and let the remaining water out. The Housing should be depressurized now. This should be as easy as it gets to open that stubborn sump and get the old cartridge out. Once you have replaced the Cartridge, and added a couple ounces of bleach to sterilize everything, put the Cartridge Housing back together hand tight and then give it a 1/4 turn with the Filter Wrench, shut off the boiler drain on the pressure tank, and turn on the Breaker to the pump. If there are no leaks you can now slowly open the ball valve after the housing. The water will start running upstairs again, so go shut it off once you have let the bleach flush out.
Not every house is plumbed the same, but after performing well over 2000 site assessments, I can say that most homes on wells, are this way. However, if you have a Radon in Water System be sure to put it in bypass before attempting this procedure. Take a look at your plumbing and really think through what I am suggesting to you before doing it, to avoid getting wet, or give us a call and we can talk you through it. As always, if you are an existing customer of Secondwind and would like an additional walk-through on your water system please don’t hesitate to call on us.
I will be writing more on Cartridge Filters later this week. Thanks for reading and remember you just can’t work under pressure. Enjoy your great water.
Related posts:
