We are looking at the possibility of getting a water softener. I have a meeting on Monday with someone from the local water district to discuss where our water comes from (there are three systems in our county with two of the systems fed from wells and the third system fed from Lake Erie) and what the hardness level is on the system we are on. I am looking for some input from those that might have a water softener. Pros and cons.

Back story...We have only been in the house for two and a half years. Yesterday I needed to adjust the water high temperature limit on one of the faucets in the master shower. When I removed the valve cover I couldn't adjust the limiter due to the calcium build-up. I thought it possibly was plaster but after taking off the shower head I know that it is from the water. I have noticed water spot build-up on the windows from the sprinklers and heavy water spotting when I don't dry the cars.

 

Scoots, I'd suggest contacting NTL (watercheck.com) and having a water test done, the water reports from municipalities rely on testing at the treatment plant and not at your faucet, so the results will vary slightly.

In regards to softeners there's 2 types, ion exchange and what's referred to as a conditioner (salt-free). Ion exchange is tried and true, been around for decades, work very well and are inexpensive to own and operate, you do have to buy salt on a weekly/monthly basis though. Conditioners don't use ion exchange, they utilize a resin that prevents the calcium from precipitating, they will also prevent scale build-up. Conditioners are more expensive to buy up front, but have no maintenance costs.

Ion exchange is what I recommend to most people as conditioners are more finicky to certain types of water. As far as buying one, honest answer is to go to Lowes/Home Depot and buy one of their units for under $1k. Salesman that come to your door and do the hard sale pitch are simply overpriced. All ion exchange softeners do the exact same thing, now there are better valves out there that can increase the cost, but the resin, tank and misc parts are arguably all the same.

I make and sell water filters, we also sell both softeners and conditioners, there are pros and cons to both of them. My advice would be to have the water tested and go from there, I would opt to not call the Culligan man to have them test the water though as they typically won't share the results and will simply try to sell you whatever they think is best.

FTR, I have a conditioner at my house along with a whole house carbon filter tank. I've had them for around 14 years without issue, the conditioner unit will need to be replaced fairly soon as the life expectancy on them is far shorter than a softener as the media cannot be regenerated like an ion exchange unit.

 

NTL is on the Eastside of CLE...Motoo is on the Eastside of CLE....I'm on the Southside of CLE....I don't trust the Eastside of CLE!

Thanks for the info Sam.

 

Interesting. Is the county blending the water from the walls and Lake Erie? Much (most?) Medina water comes from Lake Erie via the Avon Lake water treatment plant -- on Cleveland's WEST SIDE so we know it's safe . Lake Erie water isn't particularly hard so maybe you're on the wells? (For some reason I thought you were in the northern part of the county and closer to the Lake.) Our southern Cuyahoga County house was on Cleveland city water from the Lake for over 50 years with only minimal build up in that time -- never enough to remediate. (House still is but I sold it two years ago.)

-- Chuck

 

I live just south of Medina and the district refers to the "Southern Medina system" being on wells. The systems are separate but can be tied together in an emergency. After living in Lorain and Strongsville for close to 40 years I would be happy to be back on good old Lake Erie water.

 

We have well water from our own 110 foot deep well. I have had a water sample independently tested at a state of MI certified lab for bacterial analysis.

Like Sam, I am skeptical of sale people tests.

Funny story - When we moved into this house I had a friend who was replacing a working water softener with a new one. I asked him if I could have is old one and he said sure, so I took it and installed it. Would you believe it - - his Artesian brand softener lasted another 23 years!! We laughed about the fact it outlasted his new one. That brand was no longer around as a replacement.

I replaced it with a Culligan Medallist Plus 30. $1,200 installed and they took out the old one. It has been trouble free (knock on wood) for 12 years.

One thing I learned is not all water softener salt is the same. Don’t just buy one brand and stick with it. Try some different brands to determine how well its cleaning glasses (for example). Also, trying different settings can greatly reduce salt consumption without impacting results.

I buy our salt in bulk when its on sale and have it delivered. The company I use only puts it on sale twice a year. In fact I have twenty 40# bags being delivered this coming Monday. That should last me till June. Delivery is free. I’ve also learned that I can save money by mixing regular salt with rust-free salt (which costs $1/bag more) without impacting results.

 

I hate softened water. Can't get the soap off of you in the shower and it leaves that slimy feeling. Gives me the Heeby Jeebies thinking about it.

You pretty much have to scrub the soap off of you with a washcloth. Mostly I experience this in hotels but also in friend's homes when out of town.

 

I've never experienced that effect. I guess it can happen if its over softened but it would be hard to do with most of the hard water around here.

 

I have read that the slippery feeling is the feeling of clean, hydrated skin and not soap residue. I believe that hotels over soften there water.

 

It is possible for etching to occur on glass and paint if you do not remove the water/spots promptly. You can use vinegar to help.

I happen to be on a well with exceptionally hard water (no iron to speak of) so I use a softener: City Boss. Fast recharge time, about 20 minutes. You can program it to recharge when needed or have it work in the middle of the night.

I also have a Pura brand commercial filtration system. 1 1/2" pipe with sediment, carbon, and UV C band filters. It produces FDA defined "sterile" water to the entire house. The softener is upstream of the Pura filters.