Water treatment in Mallorca
Official hardness for each network, the regulations and which unit each water needs.
Well and cistern water · Mallorca
Well or cistern water in Mallorca:
the lab analysis comes first.
Many fincas in Mallorca live off a well, a borehole or a cistern. And each water fails in its own way: some come out salty, others carry nitrates from the fields, others iron or bacteria. So here you don't start by buying a device, but by reading an analysis. We explain what the regulations require, what can be corrected and what is unnecessary for the use you will give the water.
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- Wells, boreholes, cisterns
- RD 3/2023
- Irrigation or drinking
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No surprises
Well water is never assumed to be drinkable
Water that looks clear and doesn't smell tells you nothing: nitrates, nitrites and many bacteria can't be seen or tasted. For water to count as drinking water, RD 3/2023 requires, among other things:
- Nitrate: up to 50 mg/L. Nitrites: up to 0.50 mg/L.
- Chloride: 250 mg/L · sodium: 200 mg/L · conductivity: 2,500 µS/cm at 20 °C. These are the ones that give a brackish well away.
- Iron: 200 µg/L · manganese: 50 µg/L. The ones that stain sanitaryware and laundry.
- pH between 6.5 and 9.5.
- And being disinfected, with residual disinfectant. The minimum chlorine at the tap is set by the health authority case by case: there is no universal figure.
We never declare any water drinkable: that comes from a laboratory analysis and is a matter for the health authority. What we do is install what that analysis says is needed.
Every well is different
The problems we see most in Mallorca
Salt
In several parts of the island wells come out brackish. Salt does not go away with a softener or a filter: the only way to remove dissolved salts is reverse osmosis, sized to the water you really have.
Nitrates and nitrites
They come from farmland and give no warning. A softener doesn't touch them; bringing them down takes a specific treatment, chosen with the analysis in hand.
Limescale
In our measurements, Mallorca well water is around 60 °fH. For the plumbing, a water softener; but manufacturers design them for water that is already microbiologically safe, so it comes after everything else.
Stored water
Water in a cistern or tank becomes contaminated again however clean it went in: that is why RD 3/2023 requires residual disinfectant. The tank is cleaned and the water kept treated while it is stored.
What saves money
Irrigation doesn't need what the tap needs
Making water drinkable is expensive and not everyone needs it. Some fincas only want the well for irrigation, and then there is no need to go that far. The sensible approach is to separate: irrigation water on one side and household water on the other, in different circuits and tanks, each treated for its use.
And a rule that is not just our preference: the CTE DB HS 4 building code forbids connecting an installation fed by the public mains to water from another source. If your house has mains and a well, they run on independent circuits, with no connection between them.
How we work
Your finca's water, step by step
1
Photos and details
Where the water comes from (well, borehole or cistern), what you want it for, and photos of the pump and tank.
2
The analysis
If you have one, send it. If not, we tell you which parameters to ask the laboratory for.
3
The proposal
Only what the analysis and the use require, with the regulations in front of us: no more, no less.
4
Installation and upkeep
Pumps, tanks and units, with the plumbing kept separate from the mains and the upkeep each manufacturer requires.
Common questions
FAQ about well and cistern water in Mallorca
Is the water from my well in Mallorca drinkable?
There is no way to know without a lab analysis, and it is never assumed. RD 3/2023 requires drinking water, among other things, to stay under 50 mg/L of nitrate and 0.50 mg/L of nitrites, to have a pH between 6.5 and 9.5 and to be disinfected with residual disinfectant. Many finca wells in Mallorca fail on one of those points. We never declare any water drinkable: that comes from the laboratory and the health authority.
What should the well water analysis include?
At least what tends to fail in Mallorca: microbiology, nitrate and nitrites, chloride, sodium and conductivity (the salt), iron and manganese, pH and hardness. The parametric values in RD 3/2023 are, for example, 250 mg/L of chloride, 200 µg/L of iron and 50 µg/L of manganese. With that report we tell you what needs treating and what doesn't.
My well is salty. Can it be fixed?
Dissolved salt is only removed by reverse osmosis; a softener or a filter doesn't touch it. RD 3/2023 gives 250 mg/L of chloride and 2,500 µS/cm of conductivity as parametric values, and in several coastal areas of Mallorca wells exceed them. It is sized with the analysis, and if the water is only for irrigation, you may not need to go that far.
Can you see or taste nitrates?
No. You can't see them or taste them, and on Mallorca fincas surrounded by farmland they are one of the most common problems. The RD 3/2023 limit is 50 mg/L of nitrate and 0.50 mg/L of nitrites. A softener doesn't remove them: it takes a specific treatment, chosen with the lab analysis.
I have a rainwater cistern. What should I know?
That stored water becomes contaminated again even if it went in clean, which is why RD 3/2023 requires drinking water to contain residual disinfectant; the minimum chlorine level is set by the health authority. With Mallorca cisterns, the tank also needs cleaning from time to time, keeping out dirt from the roof and animals.
Can I connect my well water to the mains supply?
No. The CTE DB HS 4 building code forbids connecting an installation fed by the public mains to water from another source. In a Mallorca house with mains and a well, each water runs on its own circuit, with no connection, and that is how we leave it. We recommend the same between irrigation and household water: separate circuits and tanks.
The water leaves brown stains. Is it iron?
Most likely iron or manganese, common in some Mallorca wells. RD 3/2023 gives 200 µg/L of iron and 50 µg/L of manganese as parametric values. There is treatment for that, and if you also have a softener, manufacturers such as Kinetico recommend salt with an iron-cleaning additive. The analysis comes first.
You may also like
More on your finca's water
Pumps, tanks and the rest of your household water.
Reverse osmosis
The only way to remove dissolved salt from a brackish well.
Water softeners
For limescale, once the water is already safe.
Plumbing and well pumps
Pressure sets, submersible pumps and tanks.
Irrigation pumps
Your finca's water for the garden, on its own circuit.
Shall we look at your finca's water?
Send us the lab analysis, if you have one, and photos of the well or cistern. Itemised quote.