When you’re a homeowner, well-meaning friends, family members, home improvement store employees, and neighbors will tell you how great water softeners are. If you’ve never considered buying a water softener before, you may not understand how water softeners work and what they can do for you and your family. Here are five things all homeowners need to know about water softeners.
1. How Water Softeners Work
Water softeners work by removing minerals that make the water “hard,” such as calcium and magnesium. Water softeners replace these minerals with sodium or potassium, which are softer minerals that are less damaging. If your water has more than seven grains of dissolved minerals per gallon, your water is considered “hard.” To find out the hardness of your home’s water, it’s worth having the water tested or calling your city’s water department.
2. Health Benefits of Softer Water
Hard water dries out your skin. Every time that you shower or take a long bath using hard water, your skin feels drier and your hair is more brittle. If you install a water softener at your house, you’ll be able to ensure silkier hair and skin after every shower. For many homeowners, this is reason enough to have a water softener installed.
3. Water Softeners Reduce Maintenance Costs and Cleaning Time
Hard water scales form inside your home’s plumbing systems, appliances, and around drains. These scales, and “soap scum” left behind after cleaning with hard water, can be difficult to remove. In places where you’re not able to regularly clean, like pipes and returns, scales build up and damage your pipes. You’ll need to replace these systems more regularly or pay more for a plumber to fix it. Using a water softener can help
4. Hard Water Damages Appliances
The same way that hard water damages plumbing systems, it can damage appliances. For household appliances that rely on water, such as washing machines, dishwashers, and water heaters, the calcium buildup that would have impacted the appliances won’t be there because the calcium was replaced with a softer mineral. This can extend the life of your appliances significantly compared to their lifespan for homes that only use hard water.
5. Faster Hot Water
Softer water has a different mineral make up than hard water does. This means that your home’s hot water heater can heat softened water faster than hard water, which means you’ll use less energy and pay less money in water heating costs. Plus, you’ll be able to enjoy more hot showers, as more water will be able to reheat faster. This is perfect for house guests.
For most homes in the United States, water softeners make a lot of sense to invest in. A good quality water softener can reduce maintenance costs, preserve the life of your home’s appliances, and give you softer hair and skin. Before making a decision, find out what your water’s current level of hardness. This way, you’ll have a starting point to measure improvement from.
If you decide that you want a water softener, call 101 Water today at 210.929.2189. We provide homeowners with access to the best products, support, and long-term service at affordable prices.