Water Softener
Discussion
Anyone got any experience with these.
I've read about the possible benefits, and it all sounds good.
How much should I expect to pay to have one installed?
Do they really make a noticeable difference?
What ongoing maintenance is required?
Will it make any difference to the water pressure?
I've read about the possible benefits, and it all sounds good.
How much should I expect to pay to have one installed?
Do they really make a noticeable difference?
What ongoing maintenance is required?
Will it make any difference to the water pressure?
Installation is easy, took me about 2 hrs, but only because i didnt have loads of space for the required parts so had to mess about a bit.
I would imagine a plumber to charge £100 maybe? just guessing.
They need topping up every so often depending on usage and afaik will need no real maintenance.
Worth it imo, i know this sounds a bit gay but my hands are very rough due to the work i do for a living, i'm the type who doesnt care if i get diesel, petrol, paint, oil or whatever on them and it shows, i have noticed that since having the softener my hands are noticibly softer. The water just feels nicer.
I still get water marks on chrome stuff like taps though (after about 6months) and i'm really not sure why, only thing i can think is the rest of the system is 25yr old and we are in very hard water area so maybe still a bit dirty?
I would imagine a plumber to charge £100 maybe? just guessing.
They need topping up every so often depending on usage and afaik will need no real maintenance.
Worth it imo, i know this sounds a bit gay but my hands are very rough due to the work i do for a living, i'm the type who doesnt care if i get diesel, petrol, paint, oil or whatever on them and it shows, i have noticed that since having the softener my hands are noticibly softer. The water just feels nicer.
I still get water marks on chrome stuff like taps though (after about 6months) and i'm really not sure why, only thing i can think is the rest of the system is 25yr old and we are in very hard water area so maybe still a bit dirty?
I put one in the last house. DIY install.
Will do it again on this house.
It's all about limescale, we are in a hard water area:
258.7 mgl CaCO3 (ppm)
Your water company will publish how hard your water is. The above results are from the Thames Water site.
If you remove the hardess, you wont have to de-scale the kettle, and your Hot water cylinder will stay more efficient, you won't get lime scale in toilet pans, or shower enclosures or curtains. We even get lime scale around our taps!
Also, you will use less soaps and detergents (nasty stuff)
Will do it again on this house.
It's all about limescale, we are in a hard water area:
258.7 mgl CaCO3 (ppm)
Your water company will publish how hard your water is. The above results are from the Thames Water site.
If you remove the hardess, you wont have to de-scale the kettle, and your Hot water cylinder will stay more efficient, you won't get lime scale in toilet pans, or shower enclosures or curtains. We even get lime scale around our taps!
Also, you will use less soaps and detergents (nasty stuff)
We've had one for about 2 years and noticed the difference straight away. The only downside - We use a lot of water, so the softener goes through a lot of salt, which needs topping up frequently. I'm now looking for a higher capacity metered unit.
My advice is to do your research, buy your own unit and get your own plumber in to fit it. Some of these companies supply and can rip you off big time!
My advice is to do your research, buy your own unit and get your own plumber in to fit it. Some of these companies supply and can rip you off big time!
Sorry to hijack, but I'm looking to get one of these as well. Been advised to spend the extra and get a "metered" one that knows how much water its actually using/treating so only regenerates itself when it needs too (rather than after a set time period e.g. every X number of days).
Looking to spend up to £4-500 if needed; want something that is sevicable so that I can replace parts in the event they break rather than have to throw the whole unit away and buy a new one, which can be they case with cheaper units.
Looking to spend up to £4-500 if needed; want something that is sevicable so that I can replace parts in the event they break rather than have to throw the whole unit away and buy a new one, which can be they case with cheaper units.
Non-metered water softeners are quite rare now. I'd go for a metered machine from Monarch or Waterside (Culligan) and get it fitted by a plumber. The things that will make installation more expensive are generally the distance from the rising main and/or the 'hard water tap' position. This is required to avoid drinking too much of the sodium which is added to the water in the ion exchange process. (The hard water tap issue is the reason why your kettle will STILL scale.......Mr.Drawmer!)
Don't be fooled, incidentally, by claims that your heating system will benefit. Since it uses the same water unless you need to drain it this is just b
ks, but is used by some companies as a 'selling' point.
Don't be fooled, incidentally, by claims that your heating system will benefit. Since it uses the same water unless you need to drain it this is just b
ks, but is used by some companies as a 'selling' point.hiscocks said:
I just moved house and we have a little salt box and system under the sink. The sink has an extra tap, so I presume this is the only softened water in the house?
Also, the box which holds the salt has a dead spider in it... am I drinking dangerously tainted spider water??
Cheers
I think that little tap is your drinking water tap. I don't think you are supposed to drink the water coming through your filter?Also, the box which holds the salt has a dead spider in it... am I drinking dangerously tainted spider water??
Cheers
hiscocks said:
Ah so all the water in the house is 'softened' but I should drink the non softened stuff? I'm confused! It looks as though the system connects up to the little tap on the sink.
Softened water can taste a bit funny; hard water is nicer to drink IMHO. The hard water tap also means you have an emergency water supply in case the softener suddenly goes phut.Soft for washing, hard for drinking
Best household appliance going in my humble opinion.
Fitted ours 20 years ago and it is still working as good as new. Never broken down and I service it myself every 4/5 years. I would echo the advice to pay the extra and get a flow controlled softner as the salt usage will match water use. Mine is the older (but considerably cheaper to buy) type controlled by an electric clock and performs its refreshment cycle irrespective of water use so on occasion will either refresh needlesly or fail to soften fully. It therefore usually costs more in salt than a flow controlled softner.
You will get staining for some time as the now softened water will dissolve out all the limescale in your pipework. This will take several months and you could find the odd pipe joint starts to leak. There is a benefit to your heating system assuming you use it to heat the hot water. One of the worst places for limescale is the indirect hot water cylinder (after all it is just a big kettle) and both the heating coil and internals of the cylinder will be heavily scaled up. A softner will, over time dissolve away the scale and your hot water heating will be noticably quicker and more fuel efficient.
Fitted ours 20 years ago and it is still working as good as new. Never broken down and I service it myself every 4/5 years. I would echo the advice to pay the extra and get a flow controlled softner as the salt usage will match water use. Mine is the older (but considerably cheaper to buy) type controlled by an electric clock and performs its refreshment cycle irrespective of water use so on occasion will either refresh needlesly or fail to soften fully. It therefore usually costs more in salt than a flow controlled softner.
You will get staining for some time as the now softened water will dissolve out all the limescale in your pipework. This will take several months and you could find the odd pipe joint starts to leak. There is a benefit to your heating system assuming you use it to heat the hot water. One of the worst places for limescale is the indirect hot water cylinder (after all it is just a big kettle) and both the heating coil and internals of the cylinder will be heavily scaled up. A softner will, over time dissolve away the scale and your hot water heating will be noticably quicker and more fuel efficient.
Ferg said:
...The hard water tap issue is the reason why your kettle will STILL scale.......Mr.Drawmer!
Doh! see, I forgot already!Ferg said:
Don't be fooled, incidentally, by claims that your heating system will benefit. Since it uses the same water unless you need to drain it this is just bks, but is used by some companies as a 'selling' point.
Never having cut a cylinder open, won't the 'outside' of the boiler coil get well coated in a few years? And what happens to combi heat exchangers? Does the expansion/contraction blow off the limescale?ks, but is used by some companies as a 'selling' point.Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff