What mineral is causing this??
 

We've been in our house for about a year and are on a private well.

I've noticed that where the tub and shower drips is a turquoise/light blue stain. It's like when water with a high content of iron drips over a period of time, it leaves a copper color stain.

Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks

Usually, blue stains from a dripping faucet are caused by high levels of copper in the water. When this copper oxidizes and collects in the drip area it leaves a blue stain.

-SF

Interesting, thanks!

Now I wonder if you can have too much. The water was tested before we purchased the place and it came back okay, and the family seems to be doing okay. None of the kids are growing a third arm or anything.

The action level for Copper in drinking water is about 1.3mg/L, which is a high level, relative to other substances.

There are some people who have certain diseases like Wilson's disease, who have a difficulty regulating the amount of copper in the body, they are more seceptable to illness from high levels of copper.

If you're interested in reading the article, you scan view it here..

http://www.doh.wa.gov/ehp/dw/Contaminants/copper.pdf

-SF

It could be something from your water source or it could be a buildup in your system.

I have to go out to my parent's place every spring to do a double well shock. We have a sunken well pit about 30' deep. They get two big (20L, I think) bottles of chemicals. (Hard to get in and out of the well, my dad is getting older and has a bad back).

The first is a chlorine solution, which I pour into the well head and then they run water in the house untill it's smellable. Then I pour the rest in and let it sit overnight. It takes care of iron bactieria and iron buildups, couple other things as well, I think. The water which is normally clear runs rusty-red the next morning and it takes an hour or so untill sediment stops collecting in the bathtub and to run it untill the smell is gone.

The other bottle goes in the next night, and it is a coctail of other chemicals. Eye-watering good time. Same deal, but without the sediment. Also to clean out the pump, pressure tank, pipes, etc.

They also have a RO system for drinking and cooking water, based on a couple of lifetime local residents getting gall stones. Might be something to consider.

Thanks for the info guys.

Nobody in the family has had any health concerns (out of the ordinary) over the past year and the well was tested when we purchased the place just over a year ago, so I'm assuming that I really don't need to worry at the moment.

The house is over forty years old, so I'm assuming that they havn't had any problems in the past.

Thanks again!