Water softeners/whole house filters etc. How do you decide?

[ksr5377]

We have had 2 different companies come to our home and have been told 2 different things.  Everywhere I find information online is from a company that is selling something, so I'm not sure who to believe.  We have iron in the water and are confused on if we should go with a softener as well as an iron filter, or if using the softener with the iron-out salt would work?  And then a third company came today and said that in no way should we ever be drinking softened water and HAVE to have reverse osmosis!  I have a tendency of over-researching things and would love if someone just told me what to do.  You know, someone who's not selling me something =)

[shawthorne44]

Back in the dark ages, I used to work for a company that went out to people's houses to sell water softeners.  I've also done research because I'm a water snob.  Technology hasn't changed much since then.  

 

Is your water hard?   If so, then a water softener is a good thing regardless of whether or not you get an R.O.   There isn't a lot of difference in the water softeners.  There is tank size and how efficient they are with the salt, but really they all do the same thing.   So, you can get one at Sears or Lowes or wherever is convenient.  Back in 1990 +- a few years, the salesmen were getting paid $1000 per sale.   That is where all the extra money is going.    

 

Assuming your water is hard, you could try a water softener with iron-out salt and then have the output tested to see how it worked.   I've never lived where there was an iron problem.   So, I don't know much about the iron filters.   Although, if they are cheap, it might be a good idea.  

 

In the water you drink, salt will replace the hard minerals that are removed.   So, if your water is very hard, there will be a slight salty taste.   If your water isn't too bad you won't notice the salt.   The water softened water my house tastes MUCH better than the pre-treated water.  

 

I also have an R.O.,   Again like the softener just get a cheap one.   I bought mine at Sam's, or Costco I forget which.  If you have hard water and get an R.O. without a softener, it will require more maintenance and filter replacement because the minerals will gunk it up.   But, if you get the water softener and the water tastes fine, then leave well enough alone.  

 

As part of my get_healthy and lose_weight I am trying to do, I am trying to drink lots of water.   With the R.O. water that isn't a problem.   With the just softened water I can drink it, but getting lots just doesn't seem like fun.  

Edited June 15, 2016 by shawthorne44

[happypamama]

We ended up buying a water softener that uses salt, and we also ran a separate line that is still the hard water for drinking.  I don't want to drink softened water regularly.  But we needed the softener because the very hard water here killed appliances.  We did have a whole house filter, but it wasn't enough.  I am not sure if DH still has the whole house filter on or not, but we see a marked difference with the softener. . . Our dishwasher actually works, there aren't hard water deposits on all of our appliances, etc.  We use the non-softened water (the cold water to our kitchen faucet) for drinking and cooking.

 

(The only thing we couldn't resolve was the coffee maker.  We didn't want to be using softened water for consumption, but our super hard water kills coffee makers, so our compromise is to buy jugs of water for the coffee maker.)

 

ETA: We bought our softener at Home Depot, and we buy the salt there as well.  It's super easy maintenance -- just set it and then dump in salt whenever it beeps that it's low, which is very few months -- and the salt is not terribly expensive.  Very good return on the investment.  Of course, I think it's a fantastic investment, because Water Softener and New Water Heater brought their friend, Dishwasher, when they moved in, and after several years of washing twenty-one plates and forks every day by hand, the Dishwasher was a very welcome addition to the family.  But, no fancy company needed.

Edited June 15, 2016 by happypamama

[TammyS]

 

 

In the water you drink, salt will replace the hard minerals that are removed.   So, if your water is very hard, there will be a slight salty taste.   If your water isn't too bad you won't notice the salt.   The water softened water my house tastes MUCH better than the pre-treated water.  

 

 

 

I thought that the salt didn't go into the water, but was used to wash the treatment media and get the minerals off of it, during the backwash, and that the salt just went out with the backwash?

[shawthorne44]

I thought that the salt didn't go into the water, but was used to wash the treatment media and get the minerals off of it, during the backwash, and that the salt just went out with the backwash?

 

 That is true.   A vast majority of the salt goes down the drain in the backwash.  

 

But how the minerals are removed is that they basically play King-Of-The-Hill with the salt and win.   So, you have salt sitting there stuck to a hill, and the mineral molecule comes along and is more attracted to the hill than the salt is, so it kicks the salt off and stays on the hill.  The salt is now free and goes in the water.  

 

The backwash basically swarms the area with salt and kicks the minerals off the hill just by sheer numbers.   Imagine one teenager playing king-of-the-hill with 50 preschoolers.  The teenager wouldn't stand a chance.  

Edited June 15, 2016 by shawthorne44

[ksr5377]

Back in the dark ages, I used to work for a company that went out to people's houses to sell water softeners.  I've also done research because I'm a water snob.  Technology hasn't changed much since then.  

 

Is your water hard?   If so, then a water softener is a good thing regardless of whether or not you get an R.O.   There isn't a lot of difference in the water softeners.  There is tank size and how efficient they are with the salt, but really they all do the same thing.   So, you can get one at Sears or Lowes or wherever is convenient.  Back in 1990 +- a few years, the salesmen were getting paid $1000 per sale.   That is where all the extra money is going.    

 

Assuming your water is hard, you could try a water softener with iron-out salt and then have the output tested to see how it worked.   I've never lived where there was an iron problem.   So, I don't know much about the iron filters.   Although, if they are cheap, it might be a good idea.  

 

In the water you drink, salt will replace the hard minerals that are removed.   So, if your water is very hard, there will be a slight salty taste.   If your water isn't too bad you won't notice the salt.   The water softened water my house tastes MUCH better than the pre-treated water.  

 

I also have an R.O.,   Again like the softener just get a cheap one.   I bought mine at Sam's, or Costco I forget which.  If you have hard water and get an R.O. without a softener, it will require more maintenance and filter replacement because the minerals will gunk it up.   But, if you get the water softener and the water tastes fine, then leave well enough alone.  

 

As part of my get_healthy and lose_weight I am trying to do, I am trying to drink lots of water.   With the R.O. water that isn't a problem.   With the just softened water I can drink it, but getting lots just doesn't seem like fun.  

 

This was very helpful, thank you!  

[4arrows]

We're looking into getting a water softener, too.  Is it bad to drink water that has been through the softener?  That's been one of my big questions.  And if one buys a softener from Sears or Sam's Club or whatever, do you install it yourself?  

[J-rap]

We have and NEED a water softener for the laundry, dishes, etc.  But we have a separate faucet that bypasses the water softener for drinking and cooking.  I love our drinking water!  Apart from all of that, we use/need Culligan water for our coffee maker or else the coffee would taste bad and the machine would not last long.