Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some frequently asked questions relating to a private water supplies
General Questions
What is a private water supply?
Water supplied from any source other than from a public water utility company such as United Utilities, Yorkshire Water etc.. is a private water supply. Most of these supplies are situated in remote, rural parts of the country and can originate from a range of sources including; boreholes, natural springs, and watercourses.
What are the main sources of private water supplies?
The most common sources of private water supplies are boreholes and spring or surface derived water. Other sources include wells, streams, lakes and lochs.
What is the typical ongoing maintenance required for a private water supply?
Most private water supply systems will require some form of filtration for a clean and safe drinking water.
The majority of filtration systems require an annual service, with more involved treatment possibly needing attention 2,3 or 4 times per year. The most basic of treatment is often a cartridge filter and UV steriliser. Typical spring water systems may also have a pH corrector which will require the media topping up periodically. Borehole water often suffers from higher mineral concentrations so requires filtration for iron, manganese, pH and possibly water softening.
Springbore can quote for servicing on existing systems (no matter who installed it) from photographs sent to us. Just send your name, address and photos of each part of the equipment to [email protected] . Alternatively call 01274 883155 to arrange a site visit.
What are the health risks assosiated with drinking unfiltered spring or borehole water?
Nausea and diarrhoea, abdominal pain, an increased temperature, headaches are some of the symptoms that can develop after drinking contaminated water. More severe cases can lead to bloody diarrhoea, dehydration or even kidney failure.
High concentrations of iron in water can lead to hemochromatosis, which can lead to liver, heart and pancreatic damage, as well as diabetes. Early symptoms include fatigue, weight loss, and joint pain.
Chronic exposure to excessive manganese levels can lead to a variety of psychiatric and motor disturbances, termed manganism.
My water has failed after testing by the council. What should I do?
Firstly, don’t panic. The council will give you sufficient time to implement any improvements. If the council have advised on any practices such as boiling the water for drinking or using bottled water you should do this.
Contact Springbore
Phone: 01274 883155 or 07803 038440
Email: [email protected]
We can discuss the failure(s) and advise on the best course of action to remedy the failure(s). It may be that new equipment is required or that existing equipment requires servicing correctly.
We carry out free of charge site surveys in the north of England & Wales.
What is UV?
UV Disinfection is the approved method for removing harmful bacteria from borehole or spring water. The UV must be correctly sized for reliable bacteria sterilisation and serviced at least annually to maintain a bacteria free water supply. A UV requires a minimum of a pre filter to achieve an optimum transmission of light. A UV unit will not alter the taste of your water or remove any of its healthy minerals.
Why does my hair turn blue green?
Many private water supplies suffer from acidic water with a pH of less than 7.0. This water will corrode copper pipe, causing leaks and blue/green staining of sanitary ware. The leached copper will also stain light coloured hair. A pH Correction unit will adjust the pH of your water to stop any further problems.
We get leaks on our pipes and the hot water boiler/cylinder needs replacing regularly. Why?
Many private water supplies suffer from acidic water with a pH of less than 7.0. This water will corrode copper pipe and equipment, causing leaks. A pH Correction unit will adjust the pH of your water to stop any further problems.
Why does my water leave orange stains on my sink and bath and also stains my washing?
This problem is most likely due to the presence of iron in your water supply. More commonly in borehole water and usually alongside the presence of manganese. The iron can be dissolved in the water so appearing clear but once is contact with air the iron can precipitate from solution turning brown. This is often shown in animals water bowls.
An iron and manganese reduction filter can be used to overcome this problem.
I am buying/selling a house with a private water supply? Will I encounter problems?
Private water supplies are flagged up on an increasing number of property searches. This often isn’t a problem if filtration is in place and is regularly maintained. Unfiltered water or areas of risk may be highlighted by the council. This can lead to sales ‘falling through’ at great expense.
Springbore can conduct a home buyers survey for prospective buyers including laboratory water testing to advise on the water quality and filtration requirements.
Office 01274 883155
Mobile 07803 038440
Email: [email protected]
See also our HOME BUYERS GUIDE.
I have moved into a house with water filtration. Can you help?
Yes.
Springbore can quote for servicing and upgrades on existing systems (no matter who installed it) from photographs sent to us. Just send your name, address and photos of each part of the equipment to [email protected]. Alternatively call 01274 883155 to arrange a site visit.
We can also guide you through any periodic maintenance that could be done by yourself to save money on further visits.
Do Springbore service equipment supplied by JN Environmental?
Yes. Many former aggrieved customers of JN Environmental have asked us to take over the servicing of equipment provided by them. We are very familiar with the type of equipment installed by them.
Rather than being tied in to one supplier we have accounts with all suppliers and manufacturers across the UK, Europe and USA. This allows us to tailor new filtration to your exact needs and keep any existing equipment in full working order. We have an excellent credit rating with no CCJs along with an exemplary customer satisfaction record.
We can rectify filtration commissioning errors and carry out thorough services to all plant regardless of make, model and filtration media type.
Our work is of the highest standard, fully guaranteed and our rates cannot be beaten. We have engineers available at all times for assistance including help over the phone.
Office 01274 883155
Lead engineers mobiles
David: 07803 038440
Chris: 07553 480947
Email: [email protected]
Do Springbore service equipment supplied by Marshall Pumps / Cleanstream?
Yes. Many former customers of Marshall Pumps / Cleanstream have asked us to take over the servicing of equipment provided by them. We are very familiar with the type of equipment installed by them. Our work is of the highest standard, fully guaranteed and our rates cannot be beaten. We have engineers available at all times for assistance including help over the phone.
Office 01274 883155
Lead engineers mobiles
David: 07803 038440
Chris: 07553 480947
Email: [email protected]
Do Springbore service equipment supplied by Springhill Water?
Yes. Many former customers of Springhill Water have asked us to take over the servicing of equipment provided by them. We are very familiar with the type of equipment installed by them. Our work is of the highest standard, fully guaranteed and our rates cannot be beaten. We have engineers available at all times for assistance including help over the phone.
Office 01274 883155
Lead engineers mobiles
David: 07803 038440
Chris: 07553 480947
Email: [email protected]
Do Springbore service equipment supplied by Harding Environmental?
Yes. Many former customers of Harding Environmental have asked us to take over the servicing of equipment provided by them. We are very familiar with the type of equipment installed by them. Our work is of the highest standard, fully guaranteed and our rates cannot be beaten. We have engineers available at all times for assistance including help over the phone.
Office 01274 883155
Lead engineers mobiles
David: 07803 038440
Chris: 07553 480947
Email: [email protected]
Do Springbore service equipment supplied by Dales Water?
Yes. Many former customers of Dales Water have asked us to take over the servicing of equipment provided by them. We are very familiar with the type of equipment installed by them. Our work is of the highest standard, fully guaranteed and our rates cannot be beaten. We have engineers available at all times for assistance including help over the phone.
Office 01274 883155
Lead engineers mobiles
David: 07803 038440
Chris: 07553 480947
Email: [email protected]
Do Springbore service equipment supplied by Waterline Environmental?
Yes. Many former customers of Waterline Environmental have asked us to take over the servicing of equipment provided by them. We are very familiar with the type of equipment installed by them. Our work is of the highest standard, fully guaranteed and our rates cannot be beaten. We have engineers available at all times for assistance including help over the phone.
Office 01274 883155
Lead engineers mobiles
David: 07803 038440
Chris: 07553 480947
Email: [email protected]
Do Springbore service Shakesby iron and manganese reduction filter equipment?
Yes. We have a large portfolio of customers with Shakesby iron and manganese reduction equipment. When replacing parts we use genuine Shakesby parts and Shakesby media (SIRM or Manganese Greensand). We fully guarantee our work and our rates are highly competitive.
Can Springbore service any private water filtration?
As we have full access to all water treatment equipment providers we can install, service and repair any filtration.
We also keep a large stock of the following:
- Genuine spares for Clack, Fleck, Autotrol and Shakesby control valves.
- Various filter medias including Juraperle, pHlocrite, Corrosex, Filox, BIRM, SIRM, Triplex, Crystal Right CR100 & 200, Ecomix, Softener Resin, Turbidex, Filter AG+, Tablet Salt etc.
- Cartridge filters – 10″ & 20″, both 2.5″ & 4.5″ diameter. All micron ranges in Spun Polypropylene plus pleated, carbon and washable filters.
- UV lamps, quartz sleeves and ballasts for Daro, Wedecco Aquada Series, Luminor Blackcomb, LIFF, Aquafine etc.
- Various borehole, booster pumps and control equipment including brands such as Grundfos, DAB and Lowara.
- Pressure vessels – horizontal and vertical from 24 litre to 450 litre capacity.
- MDPE pipe and fittings, Hep20 pipe & fittings, ball valves, stainless steel, brass & polypropylene threaded fittings.
Keeping a good stock of items enables us to keep your water safe and clean at all times.
Why should we use Springbore?
Our reputation speaks volumes. We get every job completed to the highest standard by experienced engineers.
With over 20 years experience in water treatment along with recognised mechanical and electrical qualifications you can rest assured that you have chosen the correct company to look after your Private Water Supply.
Springbore Ltd are independent and have no affiliation with any other water treatment company or sole trader.
Cost Questions
Why don’t you charge for a site survey?
We offer a free of charge site survey to the North of England & Wales. The reason for this is that we need to fully understand all the different parameters involved in getting water to your taps. Water can be pumped or gravity fed to your house. The way this is done and the available flow and pressure has a huge impact on how successful any filter equipment will perform. We can carry out an indicative water analysis whilst on site and if deemed necessary a full UKAS laboratory analysis can be conducted to establish the water mineral and bacteriological make up.
Once we have all the relevant information needed we can design and quote for the required filtration. You will get our best price, first time. We hope that you will spend money with us but won’t hassle you. Our past reviews show that you can trust in Springbore to get it right, first time.
Rather than tie ourselves into one equipment provider limiting the range of filtration options, Springbore have full access to all equipment manufacturers ensuring that we can give you the optimum solution, tailored specifically for any water treatment problem.
Don’t forget, we also offer borehole drilling and civil works services in the North of England. Contact us for more details.
Office: 01274 883155
Mobile: 07803 038440
Email: [email protected]
What are the costs of a borehole installation?
Over the years we have seen hundreds of borehole installations done by many companies. The quality of borehole construction varies massively, usually but not always inline with the cost. We have heard of borehole installations being done ‘for cash’ for as little as £6000. Needless to say they were of very poor quality, shallow wells with surface water ingress, and dried up after the first drought.
Our borehole drilling engineers will always construct the finest quality borehole using the best materials available to give an optimum quality and quantity of water available. A borehole including stainless steel casing, flange and fittings, including the installation of a borehole pump, control system and the connection of pipe work costs around £12,000-£14,000.
Any filtration is based on the water quality and quantity with a guide price of £1500-£3000 for a standard domestic house.
What do you charge for servicing?
You will find that our hourly rate is the most competitive in the area. As a small, family led company we keep our overheads as low as possible to pass on the savings to our customers. With over 20 years experience in water treatment our service is second to none. We are Companies House & VAT registered.
Get in touch for a quote!
Office 01274 883155
Mobile 07803 038440
Email: [email protected]
What are the maintenance costs?
The cost of maintenance is dependent on the type of equipment installed. The more equipment installed, the longer servicing will take. Depending on your location as a guide, a typical spring filter supply system (pH corrector, cartridge filter & UV) service by Springbore would be around £120-250 per year. The cost of Springbore maintaining a typical borehole filter system (iron reduction, cartridge filter & UV) will cost around £150-300 a year. We can supply any consumables to be changed by the customer throughout the year.
It doesn’t matter what type of filtration system you have, we have full access to all makes and models, for spares parts to keep your water clean & safe.
Get a quote.
Office 01274 883155
Mobile: 07803 038440
Email: [email protected]
