Water is considered hard when it has an excess concentration of both calcium and magnesium. Water can have different levels of hardness depending on the amount of minerals in it. If you have hard water at your home, the most effective way to treat it is to install a water softener system.
This system is typically composed of two different tanks, which are the main resin bead tank and the brine tank. As water enters the water softener, it flows through the resin beads. These resin beads are negatively charged with sodium, which naturally attracts the positively charged magnesium and calcium minerals. This is referred to as an ion exchange process where the resin beads hold onto the minerals while the sodium gets released from the resin bead.
The now soft water gets piped throughout your home to all your faucets and appliances. Every so often, your system will do a regeneration cycle. This is where brine from the brine tank flushes into the resin bead tank to remove the magnesium and calcium minerals. This process recharges all of the resin beads with sodium so that they can further remove more minerals from your water.
There are many different signs that will let you know that you have hard water at your home. One of the most obvious is that you have limescale buildup on your shower heads, faucets, and sinks. Your hair will feel frizzy and brittle while your skin will be dry and itchy. You’ll notice white spots on your dishes and may even notice a metallic or chalky-like taste in your water. You can have one of our plumbing professionals perform a water quality test to determine what level of hardness your water has.
One of the best reasons to consider getting a water softener system for your home is to get rid of limescale buildup. This buildup can wreak havoc on your appliances, piping, and all your plumbing fixtures. The hard white buildup that we call limescale is simply magnesium and calcium that dry on your fixtures.
Initially, you don’t see these minerals in the water as it’s coming out of the faucet. However, once all the water droplets dry up, all that remains is the minerals that provide a white color. A water softener system will remove these excess minerals so that you will no longer have to deal with limescale buildup in your home.
If you allow hard water to come into contact with your appliances, it can spell disaster. From your water heater and your clothes washer to your dishwasher and refrigerator, they all can have a shorter lifespan because of the mineral buildup that hard water produces. These minerals will get in all the inlet lines as well as on the inside of your appliances and cause any metal components to corrode. A water softener system is a great way to remove those unwanted minerals and help extend the overall longevity of all your appliances that use water.
Your water heater can be significantly impacted by having hard water. When there is an excess of minerals in the water, it requires more energy for your water heater to heat that water to the same temperature as compared to heating soft water to the same temperature. Getting a water softener system will help to reduce the overall energy consumption of your water heater and make your home more efficient.
When you wash your dishes and clothes in hard water, that same limescale buildup that appears on your fixtures will also end up on the surface of your clothes and dishes. Over time, this constant buildup creates a barrier that makes it more challenging for laundry and dish detergent to penetrate surfaces. This can leave your clothes and dishes still dirty and can even make your clothes feel very stiff to wear. When you switch to using a water softener system in your home, the softer water will better clean your clothes and dishes. This will make them not only softer to wear, but you’ll also likely find that you’ll use less soap and detergents throughout the year to achieve a better level of cleanness.
No homeowners like having to deal with a plumbing issue. Whether it be a low water pressure problem or discoloration in your hot water supply, many of these issues are the result of hard water. By implementing the use of a water softener system, you can prevent the excess damage that minerals cause to your piping and your appliances. This tends to lead to fewer repair issues with your plumbing system.
It’s pretty common for homeowners who have hard water in their homes to state that their water tastes chalky or metallic-like. In fact, many of these homeowners will opt to drink bottled water instead of water out of their tap. Installing a water softener system to remove those excess minerals can help to improve the overall taste of your water. You’ll no longer have that metallic or chalky-like taste coming from your tap.
The first time that you bathe in soft water after living with hard water, you’ll notice an immediate difference. Hard water tends to create dry skin because it strips your body of its natural oils. You’ll also notice that your hair will be frizzy because of that loss of oil. Soft water doesn’t remove your body’s oils, which means you can enjoy smoother skin and hair after showering.
A good salt-based water softener will last you around 10 to 15 years. The overall lifespan of your new water softener system is going to be dependent on numerous factors. These include things like the water hardness in your area, the amount of maintenance that your system receives, the amount of water that your home uses, and so much more.
All water softener systems need to receive regular maintenance to stay in good working condition. One of the most important things you’ll want to do is schedule professional maintenance service on an annual basis. This helps to check all the internal components of your system to ensure that they’re functioning well and will work to identify any potential issues that need to undergo repair service. As a homeowner, you’ll need to regularly check the salt level in your water softener and replenish it as necessary. Most homeowners find that they need to refill the salt in their system every one to three months.
Ready & Able Plumbing, Heating, and Air offers trustworthy water softener service in Harrisburg, PA. We can also help with all your iron and PH treatment, UV water sterilization, reverse osmosis system, and water testing needs. Simply call us today to book your next service consultation.