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Manganese? Or Magnesium?

Confused?  Don’t worry; it is easy to get the names of these two elements mixed up.  Let’s clear it up a little bit… Magnesium, along with calcium, is most often associated with hardness and causes a white scaly film to form on bathroom fixtures.  Manganese is a different element altogether.  In concentrations above .03 ppm, Manganese can cause black or brown stains in toilets, clothes and other fixtures. Manganese is closely associated with iron since they are typically found together and stain similarly. 

Speaking of iron…

Manganese is very similar to iron in many ways.  Both are found in very similar forms in ground water.  Manganese is very soluble in its hydroxide and carbonate forms, even more so than iron.  Both precipitate when oxidized and are more easily filtered in this state.  Manganese even has an organic form like iron.  Manganese also stains like iron when oxidized. Most commonly in places like the clothes washer, dishwasher and any water fixture around the house. Manganese also differs from iron in quite a number of ways.  First of all, manganese is less abundant than iron in ground water as well as the Earth’s crust.  Secondly, manganese can be troublesome in lower concentrations.  The EPA’s Secondary Drinking Water Regulations recommends a manganese limit of .05 ppm even though it can stain at lower levels.  The limit for iron is a much higher .3 ppm.  Thus, it takes less manganese to cause a big problem.

The trouble with manganese…. 

As previously mentioned, manganese stains a black or brown color when it is oxidized.  Diagnosing manganese problems is as easy as seeing stains in the toilet, bathtub or freshly washed clothes.  It becomes a real hidden nuisance when precipitant collects in and clogs pipes and appliances.

How it is treated….

 Manganese is very similar to iron and is treated and filtered in an identical manner.  For best results, it is necessary to analyze the water to obtain an accurate level of manganese.   Manganese, again like iron, appears under various conditions and the type of filtration chosen is based on contamination levels and relationships to factors such as hardness, iron, pH, TDS and odors.