[Noney]

Anybody that has a lawn sprinkler system which feeds off of a well instead of the city supply knows that rust stains will eventually form on your house, deck, sidewalk, fence, etc. You can try to aim your sprinkler heads in such a manner as to minimize contact with hard surfaces, but due to wind and overspray you'll eventually have ugly rust stains on your house. The usual solution to the problem is to install an exterior 30-gallon tank which feeds an anti-rust chemical into the line so that it mixes with the well water and somehow neutralizes the iron before it exits the sprinkler heads, thereby preventing rust stains from forming.

Here's the catch: the anti-rust chemical runs about $10 per gallon, and for a large yard and well water with a high iron content, the $$$ adds up VERY quickly. I've searched high and low to try and find what the active ingredients are in the anti-rust mixture, but I've struck out. I have a sneaking suspicion it's a combination of very common and very cheap ingredients which the $10-a-bottle company doesn't want you to know about, or else you'd simply make your own anti-rust juice for a fraction of what they're charging.

So chemists, what's your opinion? What do you add to your sprinkler system to prevent rust but not kill your lawn and landscaping??

Many TIA..........