RE: [compost_tea] Re: Chlorine in Municipal Water
Thanks Bill for the excellent tips and information. I'll run a few te=
sts and then perhaps I can finally get rid of my 500 gal rain barrel. =
Cool stuff for sure. Â Thanks again...
Chuck Lund
--- On Sun, 7/10/11, Bill Skerrett <bill_at_ictorganics.com> wrote:
From: Bill Skerrett <bill_at_ictorganics.com>
Subject: RE: [compost_tea] Re: Chlorine in Municipal Water
To: compost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com
Date: Sunday, July 10, 2011, 11:01 AM
Â
Hey ChuckI am in ducking from the heat for a minute. Most municipal w=
ater sources use chlorine or chloramines, chloramine is much more stable (b=
ond between chlorine and ammonia) in the municipal system and cannot be gas=
sed off and one of the reasons why it is being used. Most systems try to de=
liver it at 4PPM, sometimes in the summer they will deliver at a higher rat=
e as the microbes are more activeBoth are powerful oxidizers and are used t=
o kill off organic matter like bacteria and suchAs an oxidizer its job is t=
oo……….well oxidize things, if you add something (or=
ganic matter) to your water that the chlorine can oxidize it is soon consum=
ed by doing its job, it is almost instantaneous. If you add compost or dirt=
or an old shoe the chlorine will be consumed in seconds, no need to bubble=
for a day just throw in some compostThey also have siphons for the hose bi=
b, you can stick the hose into tea that you have made and the tea will diss=
ipate the
chlorine in the line in no time, no need for expensive filters  Willi=
am R (Bill) SkerrettICT OrganicsW: 410-997-5450C: 410-707-2794bill_at_ictorgan=
ics.comwww.ictorganics.comwww.EarthHarvestOrganics.com  From: co=
mpost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com [mailto:compost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of=
Chuck Lund
Sent: Sunday, July 10, 2011 4:15 AM
To: compost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [compost_tea] Re: Chlorine in Municipal Water   Fro=
m my experience, chlorine works pretty much as advertised, it kills bacteri=
a. I have seen this under the microscope so am both glad and surprise=
d someone has seen conspicuously different results. Now I wonder why? And w=
ill look some more...
I have experimented with lots of filters trying to come up with a satisfact=
ory way to water the garden and have found the inexpensive charcoal filters=
work nearly as well as the very expensive ceramic filters (neither takes o=
ut all of the chlorine - but most of it). The basic problem I found i=
s they are too slow for hand watering and don't last very long either, even=
with repeated back washing/flushing. They need to be accurately tested aft=
er a few hundred gallons or so. Â
I tried using chlorine test strips and spa and pool chlorine test kits and =
found neither accurate enough to effectively test chlorinated municipal wat=
er. I now use a Hatch pocket colorimeter for chlorine.Â
I have also taken water samples from many kinds of sprinklers at various di=
stances and flow rates, and spray patterns. In my experience I found =
the sprinklers that seem to dissipate chlorine most effectively are the sma=
ll sprinkler heads you can find in hardware stores for use in installing yo=
ur own in ground sprinkler systems. They have various spray pattern o=
ptions and put out a fairly fine spray. They have standard pipe threa=
ds so will fit many ready made sprinklers (or copper or galv fittings)Â=
I use quick disconnects (for changing spray patterns) and sprinklers fr=
om ground level to one that is six feet tall. The tall one will effec=
tively spray about a forty foot circle. The fine spray dissipates almost al=
l of the chlorine, even on the lower ones used for spot watering. Eva=
poration could be a problem on the taller ones...
I have tried filtering city water for use in making tea and found it unsati=
sfactory. I have also aerated the water and found it actually takes a few d=
ays to get rid of enough of the chlorine to make tea, rather than simply ru=
nning your brewer overnight. It is easier for me personally to harves=
t and use rainwater.
I have run water through vortex tubes/nozzles used by Boeing in their paint=
department but I can not tell for sure if the small amount of chlorine dis=
sipated is because of the vortex action or the simple aeration between the =
end of the nozzle and the bucket. I'll keep working on this one because I b=
elieve it has great potential.
I am also wondering if an aerating shower head could be an effective (getti=
ng rid of chlorine) hose end watering nozzle?
The shower heads with chlorine filters only get rid of about 80% of the chl=
orine - and that is when they are new.
I have not tried simple molasses but will for sure.
Thanks for the thread,
Chuck Lund
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Received on Mon Jul 11 2011 - 13:05:11 EDT
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