Why do I need a water softener

Why do I need a water softener

Some people like their water just the way it is and think that hard water is just fine and have no complaints at all with their water.  Some people don't like the slick feeling that softened water makes when they are in the shower.  Needless to say everyone has their own sense of feel and what appeals to them.  There are benefits to having a water softener that you are usually told about but in this blog you will not only be told about them but shown in an actual case of a homeowner who did not have a water softener and how it affected his quality of life as well as his pocket book.

Do I really need a water softener

The answer to that is almost always yes, and the reason for that answer is because not all water is soft  or reasonably soft and actually the large majority of water is hard.  I have also found that when hard water is combined with chlorine for disinfection purposes the calcium is precipitated out and you will see it sticking to the ends of faucets or on the faucet handles and over time it becomes very unsightly and very difficult to remove so the homeowner is now force to spend more money to buy a new faucet if they want their home to look nice for guests and or for themselves. 

Now you have probably heard how hard water affects your clothes by leaving stains on them and how you need to use a larger amount of laundry detergent in order to get your clothes clean as opposed to soft water where you only need to use 1/2 the amount of laundry detergent and shampoo and conditioner which over time save the homeowner hundreds if not thousands of dollars over the life of the home and water softener. When most water softener salesmen give their presentation they talk about all that and some even have a little kit to show the difference in hard water and soft water when it comes to the sudsing of the water as hard and soft.  There really is a difference but here you are going to see the larger impact that not having a water softener will do to your appliances.

Is my water really hard

Many people I run across will say that their water is soft when indeed it is not but the homeowner swears it is soft, so I will show them that the water is hard by using these little test strips to see exactly how hard the water really is.  You can see how hard your water is considered by the Water Quality Association here-https://www.wqa.org/learn-about-water/perceptible-issues/scale-deposits

Once you have established that your water is either hard or soft then you can make the determination of whether or not you want to buy a water softener or water conditioner.  Whats the difference between a water softener and water conditioner https://youtu.be/Uq847l8Nho4

How hard water effects appliances

Here is a video that shows just exactly how hard water can affect your appliances which in turn can affect your energy bill.