|
|
Post by katanga on Jan 18, 2012 6:52:14 GMT
I am planning to bring a water softener from the US as last year I got a shower and brushed my teeth in a house in DHA and the experience, and taste, of the water in the bathrooms was not very pleasant. I am aware that I am going to a desertic country and I have been in the KSA many times over the past 5 years for business. I am open and willing to be flexible, but if I can improve the quality of the water to rest of the house and make the life of my family more comfortable it would be nice (it will keep the wife happy  ). Reading different topics in the Forum it seems that the houses in DHA have two main water lines: 1) One that feeds sweet (soft) water to the kitchen and dishwasher (maybe), 2) One that feeds regular water to the rest of the house. From the Forum I understand that it is not allowed to tamper with the lines to connect sweet water to the whole house. Does this mean that one is not allowed to tamper with the existing sweet (soft) water line to connect it to the rest of the house? If this is the case it is understandable as sweet (soft) water is a precious commodity. Here are my questions: A) Can I install a water softener in the line that feeds regular water to the rest of the house, without tampering with the existing sweet (soft) water line? This dramatically extends the life of the washer, the fridge water and ice units, the plumming and the overall living experience. B) Can I install a reverse osmosis filter under the sink in order to ensure good quality drinking and cooking water? C) What is the size and material of the external line that feeds regular water to the rest of the house? D) What is the size and material of the sweet (soft) water line under the sink? Thank You very much for all your answers. |
|
|
|
Post by Mr Barlow on Jan 19, 2012 8:20:43 GMT
Generally tampering with the water symstems is prohibited and you can be fined if caught. I can't see that fitting an R/O unit which ditches the salts in the form of brine any different from replumbing the raw water system with sweet.
The sweet water has a relatively low total dissolved solids content. The less desrirable taste aspects probably relate to the chlorine content (which is necessary for disinfection) and possibly phenols from plastic pipes. Easiest way to resolve this is to refrigerate water for 12-24 hours during which time the chlorine content will fall.
If you do fit an R/O unit you will also need carbon filtration as the chlorine will wreck the membranes.
In a general note - Saudi Arabia is consuming its rnewable water resources 350 x faster than they are replenished - this perhaps explains some of the rules applied :wink:
|
|
|
|
Post by katanga on Jan 19, 2012 22:33:52 GMT
Mr. Marlow, I do get the picture you are trying to show me and I understand the point of water conservation.
The water softener on the raw water line for the house is not an option as the discharged brackish water is going to be seen as a waste of water, which indeed it is.
For the raw water line, what about a main line 2-stages filter, which does not waste any water? Would it be allowed?
As far as the reverse osmosis filter, it does not waste any water and it is installed underneath the kitchen sink: It is simply a matter of unscrewing the faucet line from the sink valve for installation. At the end of the day it is underneath the sink.
Appreciate your feedback.
|
|
Uman
Senior Member
Posts: 161
|
Post by Uman on Jan 20, 2012 3:12:57 GMT
In general, are there any tap filters or the like new recruits should purchase before going to KSA?
Special shampoo? Toothpste...soap ? showering in hard water will be a new experience.
I assume everyone buys their drinking water?
|
|
|
|
Post by Hadia on Jan 20, 2012 4:50:49 GMT
We typically buy bottled water for the table, however, we also drink the sweet water when it's refrigerated, and we think it tastes fine. We've learned the hard way that those of us with naturally thin, baby fine hair don't fare well by shampooing in the shower with the raw water. We wear shower caps and then wash our hair under the sweet water tap in the kitchen. We were losing a lot of hair and the texture was changing for the worse. We brush teeth with the raw water in the bathroom. We also make sure to separate laundry carefully. Dark-darks together, whites together, lights together, reds together. I don't know if it's the water itself or the temperature (which is never truly cold, and in summer is actually more than warm), but colors run terribly if you don't separate carefully. We use standard laundry detergent and bleach for whites.
|
|
|
|
Post by katanga on Jan 20, 2012 5:06:38 GMT
Hi Uman, In the US I live in an area with very hard water, and bit fouled smelling too. In the market there are no special soap, shampoo,toothpaste, etc. able to address the hard water and/or the foul smell of the water. If there are no "detergent" products to address the water issues in the US I seriously doubt that we will find any in Saudi (no offense meant). Said so, we have to be flexible, adaptive and go with the right atude if we are to enjoy our experience and life in Saudi and in Aramco. My point for the water softener and reverse osmosis filter comes from my experience taking a shower in DHA last year and on the fact that bottled water for a family of 4 gets expensive in Saudi. I am also coming from my living experience in the US with hard, heavily chlorinated and smelling water. In the US we got to the point where the heater of the washer, the heater of the dishwasher and fridge icemaker would fail once a year. The clothes did not wash properly and the colors faded easily. After three years of pain (always in the US), and alot of money spent in repairs, I finally invested in a water softener for the main water line and in a reverse osmosis filter installed underneath the sink: What a difference!! In five years not a single penny spent in repairs, showering is a pleasure, ice cubes from the fridge look like pieces of crystal, no more foul smelling water and most importantly a tap water (from the reverse osmosis filter + water softener) that is superior to any drinking water available in the market. In 2 years I broke even and no longer buy any bottled water. I do replace the filters of the reverse osmosis filter once a year ($95.00 for the set online). I would love to install the water softener in whatever house we are assigned in DHA, however Mr. Marlow is correct on the fact that it does waste water and most likely, if not for sure, it is going to raise only issues and create me problems. That's the reason why I am looking for a more "conscious" alternative, like a 2-stage water filter in the main water line for the rest of the house as it will eliminate the smell and the chlorine,and to some extend the hardness. From Mr. Marlow's post I gather that water lines going into the houses are in PVC. I am going to bring with me a 2-stage water filter for the main regular water line into the house, one 3/4in and one 1.0in, few PVC fittings and few PVC ball valves, for 3/4in and 1.0in, and glue for the PVC pipe. The best approach will be to ask the housing dept. if I am allowed to install the filter, if they say yes great, if they say no the investment is minimal ($100.00). For the kitchen sink, the best solution is to bring a couple of Brita Faucet Systems with few replacement filters, it install straight on the kitchen faucet without any tool, it is inexpensive and effective and the water taste is even better than any bottled water: www.brita.com/products/faucet-fi ... tgodd3isnA |
|
|
|
Post by henpecked on Jan 20, 2012 8:01:21 GMT
Hi there
You can often - but not always - get tap (faucet - to you Americans!) filters at Saco. The ones we have are 'instapure'. They are not expensive. We do as Mr Barlow recommends and use sweet water which we refrigerate, we have never had any problems. We also have no problems with using 'raw' water for our hair we just use really good conditioners. Humm, what else can I tell you about water. I was talking to a friend and she said that she had had the sweet water tested in Houston and it easily came up to the same standards as tap (faucet0 water in the US. The 'raw' water isn't really 'raw', it too has been through purification processes and is of international standards for clean water but not to the same level as the 'sweet' water, in the words of a friend who works in utilities 'I wouldn't drink it', absolutely fine for washing teeth etc though. Water used for public areas, parks etc, is reclaimed, cleaned, sewage water - wouldn't drink that!
By the way I REALLY wouldn't mess with the lines into the house, - hot issue here at the moment!
|
|
|
|
Post by Carolina on Jan 20, 2012 9:04:08 GMT
o
Yes please go by Henpecked advice as it is a very HOT subject at present - I had been ill before I came to RT but was very lucky to have wonderful soft natural water in our part of Scotland but through my illness I had thinning of my hair and when I came here it was much worse so I in the end reverted to cheap bottled water anything to keep the hair that I had and it worked also I was getting better - however I now find my hair thinning badly again as I reverted to showering in the raw water and so I have had to revert to the sweet water tap in the kitchen or cheap bottled water as personally I cannot afford to lose any more hair.
Speaking to many people here on the compound in RT - many people from all different ages both male and female have reported a great loss or thinning of their hair.
The hair salon here says they use sweet water to wash hair etc but to be honest I am dubious but as I was ill again it could be my own personal health circumstances.
So the debate goes on - I lived in Qatar for 3 years and we never ever had a water issue there or any of the other countries we have lived in.
I personally only drink bottled water and use the large bottles of water to cook in - simply because my stomach can get very easily upset.
Carolina
|
|
|
|
Post by Mr Barlow on Jan 20, 2012 10:28:34 GMT
Just to clarify if there is any confusion raw water is not raw in the sense of untreated. It is chlorinated to the same standards as sweet water. The difference is the total dissolved solids (effectively salts). Raw water is typically 2000mg / Litre as opposed to sweet which is 200-300mg per litre.
To put that in perspective;
Boundary between fresh and brackish water - 5000mg/L
Typical sea water - 35000 mg / L
Persian Gulf - 37000mg / L
Both raw* and sweet water are safe to drink from a microbiological perspective, indeed statistically safer than bottled water. However as with any utlility scale piped water supply chlorine levels may make the water less palatable.
* Long term consumption could result in kidney stones.
|
|
|
|
Post by vpainter on Jan 20, 2012 18:59:45 GMT
The sweet water also goes to the ice maker on the refrigerator. We have a filter on it for our ice and water dispenser.
Mr. Barlow is correct, the raw water is treated just like the sweet water, it just has not been desalinated completely. Although, compared to over 10 years ago, it is a lot less salty now than then.
|
|
Uman
Senior Member
Posts: 161
|
Post by Uman on Jan 20, 2012 22:00:01 GMT
Thanks to everyone for the information. I really appreciate it.
My hair has thinned a lot in the last 6 months......so Im not looking forward to losing it all(on top anyway) but such is life.....
The reverse osmosis filter thingo sounds good. I wonder why it isnt installed in all the housing options!
|
|
|
|
Post by Hadia on Jan 21, 2012 6:58:14 GMT
I don't recommend monkeying with the water setup -- this can get you into big trouble here, personally and financially. I don't think it's that big a deal to live with the setup in place. The "raw" water has been fine for general purposes, and the "sweet" water has been consistent for drinking, cooking. When refrigerated, we can't tell the different in taste between sweet water and bottled water, and have not found a need to add a filter to our sink tap.
|
|
|
|
Post by katanga on Jan 21, 2012 18:08:16 GMT
Thank you all for your posts and comments. Now it is clear what I can and cannot do to improve the quality of the water in the house in DHA.
It is not my intention to go to the KSA and Aramco to get in trouble.
Recaping here is the situation:
1) It is not allowed to tamper with the external water lines going into the house, either soft water line or main water line. No cutting the outside lines for installation of any kind of filter and/or water softener.
2) It is allowed to install in-line water filters inside the house, like the ones for the fridge water/ice units and faucet/tap filters the likes of Brita.
3) Since installing a RO (reverse osmosis) unit underneath the kitchen sink is the same as installing an in-line water filter for the fridge they are allowed. This is the best solution for great tasting water straight from the kitchen faucet/tap and it saves a ton of money in bottled water.
Yesterday I made an experiement in my house in the US, which was successful and I am going to implement in DHA for the showers and the washer.
I purchased a basic Brita faucet filtration unit and I installed it on a garden faucet (the water for the garden is taken before the water softener). Then I screwed in on the outlet of the Brita unit an old shower head assembly. It worked great!! There was a bit of a pressure loss, but the flow was good. I also measured the water chloride and hardness before and after installation: Both the chloride and the hardness were reduced by 40%+.
With a $200.00 investment in a RO unit, plus another $200.00 in faucet/tap filters, without tampering with the external water lines, I am confident I can dramatically enhanced the water quality and the living experience of my family.
|
|
|
|
Post by GroveWanderer on Jan 21, 2012 19:38:13 GMT
I have to say I've been extremely happy with the Culligan filters I bought, both the level 3 filters for the sweet water tap (faucet to you Americans) and the Culligan level 2 filtered shower heads. I've tried various different shower filters in the past, the Culligan is the only one which has made an appreciable difference, in my subjective opinion. I have no idea how to test hardness or chlorine levels in water, I can only judge by the results on my hair, scalp and skin. Culligan filters are available from various online outlets, I got mine from Amazon. www.amazon.com/Culligan-WSH-C125-Wall-Mount-Capacity-Showerhead/dp/B0006VVN1S/ref=pd_bxgy_hi_text_b |
|
|
|
Post by katanga on Jan 22, 2012 0:53:38 GMT
Thanks GroveWoderer. What you suggest is even better.
To test the water I use a dedicated kit. Granted I am still in the US, it can be bought in any hardware store.
I will get a Culligan shower head with filter, will test it and will post the results.
In any case if you are happy and satisfied with the results it means it works for you and most likely for others.
I was uncertained about posting the original question, but I am glad I did.
Again, thank you for posting your experiences and your advices. This is the reason why this Forum exists: To answer any questions the newbies (like me) have and to help them make the right decisions prior moving.
|
|
).
