Dissolved iron and manganese are the signature borehole contaminants — invisible in the raw water, then staining, fouling and scaling everything downstream once they meet air. Removing them reliably takes an oxidation step followed by the right catalytic media, not a plain sand filter.
Matched to the measured borehole chemistry
Aeration raises dissolved oxygen and converts soluble Fe²⁺ to insoluble Fe³⁺ floc; manganese, which oxidises far more slowly, needs a catalyst or oxidant and a higher pH to follow.
Anthracite over catalytic manganese-dioxide media over sand filters the iron floc and catalytically strips residual Fe and Mn in a single graded bed.
Strongly ferruginous or manganiferous water is split across a first-stage and a polishing filter, so neither bed is overloaded and the target is met every pass.
Periodic air-scour and water backwash lift the captured floc, keeping head loss low and the catalytic surface active for the long term.
Iron oxidises quickly once dissolved oxygen is present: 4 Fe²⁺ + O₂ + 10 H₂O → 4 Fe(OH)₃ + 8 H⁺. Manganese is the harder problem — its oxidation is slow at neutral pH, which is exactly why catalytic manganese-dioxide media is used: the MnO₂ surface both catalyses the reaction and adsorbs the product, so Mn²⁺ is removed at pH and contact times where plain aeration alone would let it pass. The design levers are therefore dissolved oxygen, pH, contact time and media depth — all confirmed on the actual water, because borehole chemistry (alkalinity, competing ammonia, organics) shifts these numbers from site to site.
The borehole hub: the full train and example arrangements by application.
Read MoreA related stage of the borehole treatment train.
Read MoreA related stage of the borehole treatment train.
Read MoreA related stage of the borehole treatment train.
Read MoreReynolds & Bauhm assesses the actual water and arranges the multimedia, aeration and membrane train that meets your target — essential, recommended and premium options against one analysis.
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