How does a water softner work? I thought about buying one, but not sure?

Question

I live in a rural area and the water is not the greatest. Would a water softner help?

Answer 1

They definitely help and make your soap foamier, etc .... but do NOT water your plants with softened water ... it will kill them!

Answer 2

Yes, it probably will help but what do you want help with? Most softeners work with sodium so if you are anyone inthe house need to watch your salt intake keep this in mind when buying or renting one. If you want water that is drinkable I would try one of the many water filters available for your faucet or a pitcher. If it is cleaning that is a problem like soap scum or stain in the toilet or your laundry then the softner will help. Can you ask others in the area? If they have a softener are they happy with it where did they get it, etc. I have always found them a good investment, but that doesn't mean they will help where you are so check with people in the area or even the place that sell/rents them. No point wasting money if they won't help your particular problem. I hope this helps.

Answer 3

Water Softeners work on 2 main components. A resin column that acts like a filter, and a Brine tank that is used to 'Regenerate' the resin column. Starting from a regenerated resin column, the water is passed through the resin column, where the 'hardness' is removed. However, based on the size of the column, (amount of resin) it will only remove hardness from a certain volume of water.At this point (see later) the system needs regeneration. The supply goes to 'bypass' (not through the system) , the resin column is 'backwashed' to remove any loose rubbish in the column, then the column is 'brined' rinsed through with salt water. After 'brining' the column is rinsed to prevent salty water going out to the service. The system is then reverted from bypass to normal.
This is 'later' there are 2 types of water softener, mechanically controlled and microprocesser controlled (more expensive, but more economical) The 'Mechanically' controlled ones simply regenerate when you tell them to, by means of a time clock, this means that they will regenerate whether or not they need to. On the other hand, the 'Microprocesser Controlled' ones work out how much water (in volume) you are using, then work out if a regeneration is required that night (all water softeners regenerate at 2 in the morning) The Brine tank, in either version, is 'dosed' with water as part of the regeneration process, and a saturated solution of brine created, the amount of water dependent on the hardness of your local water. Thus, if you look in the salt resevior of a softener, the actual level of salt (full or half full makes no difference.
If you are getting chalk deposits in your kettle (solid scale over time) or scum in your bath, you have hard water, and a softener will help.
If you fit one, ensure that it does not supply your outside taps or toilets (economy of use) or your sink cold water ( it is not impossible to get a bacteriological buildup in the column, not good in drinking water.)

Answer 4

Water softeners are great, but they don't work miracles. We have one because the water hardness in our city is in the 20's. It makes the water softer (of course), and you don't have to use as much detergent or soap.

They have a cycle on them. If you use a lot of water in a day, then they will usually recycle in the middle of the night. You don't want to use the water while it's recycling.

Also, if you have houseplants, it's ok to occasionally water them with softened water, just don't do it all the time. The salt could kill them.

Answer 5

We call water "hard" if it contains a lot of calcium or magnesium dissolved in it. Hard water causes two problems:

It can cause "scale" to form on the inside of pipes, water heaters, tea kettles and so on. The calcium and magnesium precipitate out of the water and stick to things. The scale doesn't conduct heat well and it also reduces the flow through pipes. Eventually, pipes can become completely clogged.
It reacts with soap to form a sticky scum, and also reduces the soap's ability to lather. Since most of us like to wash with soap, hard water makes a bath or shower less productive.
The solution to hard water is either to filter the water by distillation or reverse osmosis to remove the calcium and magnesium, or to use a water softener. Filtration would be extremely expensive to use for all the water in a house, so a water softener is usually a less costly solution.
The idea behind a water softener is simple. The calcium and magnesium ions in the water are replaced with sodium ions. Since sodium does not precipitate out in pipes or react badly with soap, both of the problems of hard water are eliminated. To do the ion replacement, the water in the house runs through a bed of small plastic beads or through a chemical matrix called zeolite. The beads or zeolite are covered with sodium ions. As the water flows past the sodium ions, they swap places with the calcium and magnesium ions. Eventually, the beads or zeolite contain nothing but calcium and magnesium and no sodium, and at this point they stop softening the water. It is then time to regenerate the beads or zeolite.

Regeneration involves soaking the beads or zeolite in a stream of sodium ions. Salt is sodium chloride, so the water softener mixes up a very strong brine solution and flushes it through the zeolite or beads (this is why you load up a water softener with salt). The strong brine displaces all of the calcium and magnesium that has built up in the zeolite or beads and replaces it again with sodium. The remaining brine plus all of the calcium and magnesium is flushed out through a drain pipe. Regeneration can create a lot of salty water, by the way -- something like 25 gallons (95 liters).