How Important Are Water Softeners?

September 21, 2015

Water is pretty darn important. Heck, we need it to survive! But, living in Indiana, we all run into the same problem- hard water. In Indiana, with the large amount of limestone in our state, our main problem is the amount of calcium and magnesium that is in our soil. While water is in the ground it picks up or absorbs pieces of whatever it passes through. Therefore, whatever is in our soil is then passed on into our water. In some places this may mean that your water can become contaminated. Our water is not contaminated, in fact it is completely safe to consume and use, it just means that we have hard water, which in turn is tough on our households. With hard water in your bathroom, you tend to need to use more soap while washing your body. It is just harder to get that soap to lather and start doing its magic. Hard water can leave a white residue, also known as soap scum. This soap scum is due to the combination of excess calcium in the water and the properties of the soap. Combined, they make that white film you see in your shower or tub. It doesn’t end in the bathroom. You can find that while doing laundry, your clothes are not getting as clean and you need to up the amount of detergent that you use. Have you ever taken your clean dishes out of the dishwasher only to find spots or film on your glasses and plates? You can thank your Indiana soil and hard water for that! But that’s not all. There is more lurking beneath. Hard water causes scaling and build-up in your plumbing. Sometimes you can see hard white scale forming on your plumbing fixtures. You may see scale where the water comes out or find that the water is not coming out of the shower head the same as it once did. This is caused by build up due to the hard water. The build up restricts your water flow and gets into your equipment and appliances. This can eventually cause damage and shorten the life of your equipment and appliances. So what can you do about hard water? You can soften your water. A water softener works by removing the minerals that are in your water that are causing the scale. Water softeners use salt in order to remove calcium and magnesium from your water. Without teaching an entire science lesson, basically the excess calcium and magnesium are traded out for sodium (salt) through an ion exchange, leaving you with softer water. Now don’t get water softeners confused with other products. They are not the same as water filters, conditioners, sterilizers, removal systems or any other product for water. Those products are not used for softening water. They have different functions and some may be used in conjunction with a water softener, depending on each household’s needs. We will discuss those products in future posts. Godby HPE always uses high quality products and for water softeners we choose Simply Soft and Watco. No matter what brand, we make sure that it is the right one for your household. Godby will look at the hardness of your water and size of your home and family to determine the best match for you. If you are tired of the effects of hard water in your home, need a new system or simply a repair to your existing water softener, call the name you can trust, call Godby. Three trades, one team- It’s Gotta be Godby!