Saltless Water Softener

The saltless water softener has been scrutinized and misjudged but only because of the way it is marketed.  We know that people want a saltless water softener because they have either high blood pressure, don't want to hassle with the salt or live in a city or state that does not allow that much salt to go to drain.  So a manufacturer or two have done the homework and made the media that prevents the calcium from sticking to faucets etc.

No problem here except the standard person in public has no idea of the difference between a water softener and a saltless water softener.  So the salesman sales and markets it as a saltfree water softener and the public eats it up.  So for the most part the problem has been created by some of the guys in the industry trying to make some money.  After all SEO and Keyword searches are the hot thing now days in order to get your product or service found on the internet so you just use the same words the people are searching for and want to hear.  The truth of the matter is that there is no such thing as a saltfree water softener or saltless water softener.  I will explain below;

In order for water to be softened it must go through an Ion Exchange process which to put it simply where the calcium ions in the water attach to the sodium charged ions in the softener media, like a giant group hug.  You can find articles out there that can describe it in more detail but if you don't care about being a chemist then there is no need.  So because of the ion exchange process the hardness is removed and you have soft water.

Saltfree water softener/ Saltless water softener- is more of a conditioner.  It conditions the water as it flows through the media and tank and as the water comes out it has been conditioned not to stick.  The process is relatively easy to explain unless you want the chemical make up as well.  Most companies use SP3 as the media and what the SP3 does is it makes the calcium stick to itself so it doesn't stick to pipes and faucets and glass, this being said in the most easiest form for you to understand. Go HERE for more information.

I have owned both.  My wife and I prefer the water softener over the saltless water softener/conditioner even though you still get that slick feeling and you don't get the sodium in your water and don't have to mess with the salt pellets or salt tablets.  One main reason is I noticed inside the dishwasher right under the door was some nasty red slimy stuff and when I switched back to the water softener the red slimy stuff went away.  You still don't use as much shampoo and conditioner and soaps etc we were able to feel the difference.  I had the both in case I forgot to put salt in the brine tank for the water softener I still had a back up just in case.  We installed a few of these and never had any problem with them from our customers.

Well I hope this helped some in distinguishing the difference between a saltfree water softener and a regular water softener and perhaps also helped in choosing a saltfree water softener or a water softener and if you do have one or the other I would also recommend a reverse osmosis drinking water system