Water Softners
Hard water is the result of soft (slightly acidic) rain water seeping through and simultaneously dissolving mineral rich rock (minerals like calcium and magnesium) and making its way into the drinking water system. It is commonly found in the domestic water supply of the UK.
When this so called hard water is heated, for example in a kettle or a
heating system, the water evaporates leaving a layer of mineral deposits
referred to as scale. Looking for scale on your kettle's heating element
is a good place to check first to see if you are affected by hard water.
Other areas of the home prone to the affects of hard water include pipes,
valves, heating systems, shower heads and taps. The build up of scale in
water piping, heating systems, washing machines and dish washers leads
to extreme inefficiency.
Water softeners work by passing the hard water through a resin column containing small ion charged plastic beads at pressure. The beads remove the calcium and magnesium deposits and replace them with sodium. The small plastic beads eventually lose their efficiency and require regeneration. This is done by flushing them with a common salt solution which removes the collected deposits and ejects them with all excess brine.
Water softeners come in several shapes and sizes, ranging from self installable under sink kits to dedicated whole house domestic water softeners, up to huge commercial size installations.
Electronic water softeners are widely available, easy to install and relatively cheap. However, they do not soften water. Some of them have been shown to be effective in reducing the amount of scale that sticks to pipes and heating elements, but not all give satisfactory performance. They certainly do not remove the minerals that make water hard (only a filter based system can do this). We do not supply these devices and do not recommend them.
A dedicated water softener system eliminates damaging limescale, allowing household boilers and appliances to last longer. They help reduce the need for continual cleaning as streaks and films of limescale in baths, showers and sinks are no longer an issue. Hard water generally brings with it a need to use more soap, detergents, shampoos and cleaning agents - soft water allows such materials to lather up much quicker and using less quantity, thus saving money. A reduction in limescale results in lower maintenance and an increase in energy efficiency.
To discuss your requirements, drop us a line via our enquiries page. We supply system of all sizes, from self fit up to commercial applications.