jadel wrote:
Alexander wrote:
Hello,
I read that you can lower water hardness with Oxalic acid. Here is what
i did.
Tested my tap water: 19 GH or 338,2 ppm calciumcarbonate with a pH of
+7,6
after 20g oxalic acid in 5 liters (1,3 gal) and a day of rest it came
down to a GH of 3( 53,4 ppm) and a pH lower than 6 and a nice deposit
of calicumoxalide on the bottom which I removed.
I am now testing the same with 10g on 5 liter to mesure the results but
I don't have the results yet.
Now my question is
How do I know what is a good amount of oxalic acid for a given amount
of water?
Is all the oxalic acid used up in the process?
Is there anything essential changed in the composition of the water
(apart from ph and hardness)?
Should I use sulphuric acid or any other product?
You should use an ion exchange water softener. Forget the acid.
J. Del Col
Or failing that, the only way to know how much acid to use is to titrate
it out. If your water doesn't change, and your acid doesn't change,
then in theory you should be able to add exactly the same amount each
time. So experiment to find out what that amount is.
The oxalic acid isn't 'used up' so to speak. It is still there. What
actually happens do it requires more chemistry than I care to impart (if
I remembered it...). But it won't be 'acid' after reacting with a base.
Your water itself won't change appreciably. Unless you have to add a
whole lot of acid... Whether or not you use sulphuric acid depends on
several things, including your comfort with harsh acids. Sulphuric will
eat your clothes and your hands if you aren't careful. I like citric
acid, myself, which is relatively benign. You can even squeeze a lemon
into your water if you want...
You can probably get the pH lowering effect you are looking for by
adding a little fertilizer. You were going to fertilize anyway, right?
Using a dilute fertilizer all the time is not a bad idea, and it
might solve your pH problem without requiring more acid.
Rob
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