A water softener is a special type of filter that eliminates calcium and magnesium in hard water and replaces them with sodium through the ion exchange system. Since calcium and magnesium interfere with the action of soaps and detergents while sodium does not, a water softening system is important to ensure detergents are able to eliminate dirt and oil stains more effectively. It also provides a slippery feel to the skin when you wash.

Components Of A Water Softener

A water softener is made up of three major components –a resin or mineral tank, a control valve, and a salt-water tank. The mineral tank is the area where water softening takes place and incoming water passes through plastic-like beads also known as resin and made of polystyrene. These beads have a charge that is negative, attracting calcium and magnesium from the water since they are positively charged.

The attraction ensures calcium and magnesium adheres to the plastic beads as water flows through the tank. As the water gets to the bottom area of the tank, “softening” would have taken place. The “softened” or conditioned water now passes through a riser tube and outlet manifold, before it is distributed through a cold-water pipe to the house.

Over time, the resin droplets become caked with calcium and magnesium and must be “recharged” or cleaned to be as efficient as it should be. The control valve exerts some form of control in the system since the recharge process is designed to take place based on the amount of water processed. Each cubic foot of resin can efficiently eliminate calcium and magnesium minerals from about 3,200 gallons of hard water. By contrast, about 750mg of sodium is in turn added each water gallon. This sodium content is considered as low range. However, for people who are concerned about sodium intake in general, resins that release potassium is the best option – although it is expensive.

A Process Of A Brine Tank

In association with the mineral tank, a brine tank helps with the regeneration process. During the “brine cycle”, salty or brine water is pumped out from the brine tank into the mineral tank. As water passes through the plastic beads, sodium is exchanged with the ions in the hard water, regenerating the attraction of the plastic beads in the process. When the brine tank is empty, a “slow rinse process” begins, which is followed by a more forceful rinse. These two cycles allow fresh water to rinse excess salts from the mineral tank, expelling it down the drain before the brine tank is refilled.

After the washing away of the hard water ions and any excess sodium, the brine tank is refilled, returning the system back to service cycle to begin the water softening process again. Since the regeneration process allows for the dissolution of salt in the brine tank, it is important that salt is replenished from time to time.

Contact Us

At Reynolds Water Conditioning Company, we are here to help make sure our clients don’t buy water treatment systems that they don’t need.  We are here to make sure you find a water softening system that gives you the results you are looking for, whether it is to remove iron or odor from you water; we have a solution that will help!  For more information contact our experts at 800.572.9575 or at our website https://reynoldswater.com.

Water is said to be hard when the high quantity of minerals such as dissolved calcium and magnesium are present. Having a water softener system installed in your home can prove to be beneficial in more than one way. A water softener is especially useful in areas where all people have access to is hard water.  Before shedding light on the benefits of having a water softener system installed in your home, let’s first look at some of the negative consequences that come with having hard water.

Disadvantages of Hard Water

• Increases the amount of stains found from iron on clothing, landscape, sinks, and such
• Decreases the lifespan and durability of appliances including dishwashers, coffee makers, and more
• Shampoo and soap is less efficient in hard water as well as causing mineral build up in your hair
• Hard water leaves spots on clean glasses and dishes
• Increases stains and rings found on fixtures

In certain locations chemicals are added to the water to soften it by local authorities for residents.  However, not often is this the case.  Most people live in areas of hard water where a water softening system is the best option to achieve soft water.  There are many benefits that come with having soft water in your home.

Advantages of Soft Water

• Cost-Effective

After the initial purchase, water softening systems don’t require much more than yearly maintenance, occasional cleaning, and a new filter but save homeowners money continually overtime.  One way this is accomplished is with the ability to buy less expensive detergent for laundry.  Softer water ensures that a rich lather is reached on the soap and detergent which does not occur with hard water. Clothes also rinse out cleaner without having to purchase costly detergents and products.

Hard water can also cause costly issues with minerals clogging the pipes within your home.  The minerals can build up within the pipes overtime causing a blockage that requires homeowners to spend money repairing or replacing.

• Ease and Convenience

Whether it is dishwashing or laundry, soft water makes it easier for homeowners for cleaning of dishes and clothes. Unlike hard water that leaves stains on clothes and dishes, there is no such issue with soft water. Hence, homeowners will not be required to exert extra efforts for dishwashing and laundry.

• Softer, Cleaner Hair and Skin

Soft water is also considered to be better for our skin and hair. It is known to make hair softer and skin cleaner. Thus, installation of a home water softener system can improve the way your skin and hair look and feel.

• Longer Appliance Lifespan

Those kitchen appliances that require regular or frequent use of water, their lifespan will increase if you have a water softener system. Hard water tends to deteriorate their value and lessen their durability. No such issue is related to soft water; therefore, you can easily use it in your coffee makers and tea pots.

Consult With the Professionals

It clear that the best choice homeowners have is to install a water treatment system such as a water softener if the water in the home is hard.  It is important that you consult with a professional water treatment company when selecting one because there is a wide variety of water softener and conditioning systems available in the market and you want to ensure you get the best one for your water situation.

At Reynolds Water Conditioning Company, we are here to help make sure our clients don’t buy water treatment systems that they don’t need.  We are here to make sure you find a water softening system that gives you the results you are looking for, whether it is to remove iron or odor from you water; we have a solution that will help!  For more information contact our experts at 800.572.9575 or at our website https://reynoldswater.com.

Water is essential for all living things on Earth.  There are however risks involved in ingesting the wrong types of water.  Drinking water that is contaminated or that comes from a tainted source can put your health at risk.  Studies have revealed that the water found in most countries, including the United States, is hard. Hard water is shown to contain a variety of mineral particles of limestone, lead, magnesium, iron, sulfur, and calcium.

Water that comes into your home may also contain bits of sewage waste contamination and harmful industrial run-off. Laws are in place to minimize the number of negative elements found in household drinking water to help ensure the safety of water however as seen recently these regulatory systems can be neglected leaving household water to become undrinkable. If you keep on using this water without filtration, it may begin to cause a deterioration in your health.

There are several water conditioning systems that can be put in place within your home or business to help prevent containments from ending up in your drinking water including: water softeners, water filters, water purification systems, and water conditioners.  If you are a little confused about whether you should install a water treatment system for your home or not, here are seven reasons to help you evaluate their importance.

Your Water Pipes Will Need Less Maintenance

Most homeowners complain about the heavy cost involved in plumbing repairs. Pipes carrying water often get clogged with mineral build up and homeowners must call professionals to fix them. Hard water stays loaded with magnesium and calcium content that is the major region behind clogging, a water softener can convert this hard water into soft by eliminating all these harmful minerals so that water pipes can also stay healthy for the long run.

Hard Water Is Harmful to Skin and Hair

Everyone love to have soft, shiny hair with glowing skin but when we keep on using hard water in routine, it keeps on damaging our skin and hair as well. This harsh damage cannot be recovered with beauty products or medications as well. To save your hair and skin from this harmful transformation, it is good to install a water softener at home to get rid of all the dirt particles. It will also avoid the chances of skin irritations and allergies so that you can enjoy a fresh appearance all the time.

Your Homes Water Will Taste Better

What if you have healthy water direct at your faucet and you can drink it directly without worrying about any health issue? Although, some of you might have installed costly machinery at home to enjoy the fresh water but this solution is not suitable for all. To eliminate the bad taste and smell from drinking water, it is good to use a water softener.

Life Expectancy Of Appliances Is Extended

Hard water is not suitable for electronic appliances as well as it causes them huge damage. The harmful particles in hard water keep on clogging the machinery and you must spend more on repairs. It is good to install water software that can save the life of your appliances as well so that they can serve you so long.

Can Lead to Saving on Utilities

Professionals recommend using water softener systems to eliminate impurities from hard water so that it can become safe to use. These softeners are not just limited to water purification rather they also help to save bills up to 65%.

Reduces the Amount of Detergent Needed

Hard water needs more soap because of tough chemical reactions. On the other side, soft water will help you to manage your laundry with a small amount of soap and detergent while ensuring deep cleaning.

Improves the Efficiency of Heating and Cooling Systems

When heating systems are operated with soft water, they become more energy efficient and result in less heat loss. You will be able to have maximum energy output without consuming more electricity. Studies reveal that softeners can reduce electrical consumption up to 10%.

At Reynolds Water Conditioning Company we are here to help make sure our clients don’t buy water treatment systems that they don’t need.  We are here to make sure you find a water softening system that gives you the results you are looking for, whether it is to remove iron or odor from you water; we have a solution that will help!  For more information contact our experts at 800.572.9575 or at our website https://reynoldswater.com.

If your sinks and appliances are full of stains or your skin is itchy and dry, you may find your water is the cause of the problem. Hard water leaves lime scale behind, which affects the longevity of your appliances and the comfort of your clothes. A new water softener may be just what you need and here are five ways to tell.

Your Appliances have Lime Scale Buildup

Check the inside of your appliances. If water softening is necessary, the hard water will get through and leave mineral deposits behind. The mineral deposits will also buildup in your pipes, causing a blockage! The buildup will look like a white, chalk-like substance. It’s a mixture of magnesium bicarbonate and calcium and will leave to your appliances suffering wear and tear damage earlier than they should. Soft water doesn’t cause this problem.

Your Skin Is Dry and Itchy

With more magnesium and calcium in the water, your skin will suffer. Soap and shampoo try to help, but they can’t stop the deposits soaking into your pores. The deposits also don’t dissolve in hard water, meaning they’re not easily removed. That residue on your skin will dry and become rough. You skin is itchy and dull because of it.

Your Glassware Breaks Easily

You’ll first start seeing water stains on your glasses, but if you don’t get a new water softener you can end up with a more serious problem. The residue will weaken the glass material, causing it to become brittle. It’s easier to break. Even just a slight knock with another glass could see the material shattering.

If you do have a problem with staining, use a vinegar solution in your dishwasher or your sink water. The vinegar will help to break down the residue and protect your glassware. However, it’s only temporary and you will need to invest in water softening eventually.

Your Plumbing Always Needs Repairing

Do you constantly find you need to call a plumber out to your home? It is possible that the hard water is causing the problem. When the chalky substance builds up in your pipes, the piping becomes blocked. You will need to get a plumber out to fix the issue so you don’t have a flooding properly. There may also be a problem with the water coming into your home. The water pressure may be low, due to blockages before it reaches the taps.

However, there can also be a problem around the valves in your dishwasher and washing machine. The minerals build up around them, preventing them from closing. The water in the appliances overflows and floods your home.

Your Water Bills Are Increasing

The amount you spend on your water could be a clue to needing a new water softener. If you’ve changed nothing in the way you use your water, but the costs are increasing considerably, you may find that a mineral buildup is causing a problem. The pipes have to work harder to make the same amount of water flow into your home.

To help determine if you need water softener installed have it tested for chemicals in your water and to determine the level of hardness in the water.  Maybe you have a water softener installed already but are seeing the above symptoms?  It could be time to have the softener serviced or replaced. Consider the above five signs and whether they’re occurring in your home to determine if you need an updated water anaylsis.

At Reynolds Water Conditioning Company we are here to help make sure our clients don’t buy water treatment systems that they don’t need.  We are here to make sure you find a water softening system that gives you the results you are looking for, whether it is to remove iron or odor from you water; we have a solution that will help!  For more information contact our experts at 800.572.9575 or at our website https://reynoldswater.com.

Water is truly an elemental part of our lives. We need it to survive. We need it to stay healthy. The need for daily consumption of water means that we have to make sure that we have access to non-contaminated water. Drinking water that contains any kind of organic or metallic contaminants could end up becoming a health issue.

The search for the best possible way to get rid of contaminants in water has been long. We have been able to come up with several solutions that could prove to be efficient, but some are more common and useful than others without a doubt.

Softeners vs Filter Systems

There are many people out there who wonder about the difference between water softeners. The truth is that water softeners are best for taking out bad smells, and iron build-up while water filtering systems are often used to remove foreign containments within the water. Water softeners are more likely to end up removing a larger number of contaminants and this makes them ideal for consumption.

Choosing Water Filtering

Water softeners could be used for this too, but they will out on anything that is not hardness causing. This means that it will remove calcium and magnesium, but not other contaminants or even industrial chemicals. The best way to do this is to use water filtering if you want to ensure the removal of as many contaminants as possible.

Water softeners are perfect when you have issues such as lime buildup. If the water has a strange taste to it, the filter is going to be the most reliable option. The key thing to consider is that water softeners and water filtering systems are both useful. You just need to know when to use each one. There are several scenarios with water contamination and each one needs its own treatment process.

Both Products Have Advantages

Both water filtering and water softeners are pretty good at purifying water, but they both have different uses without a doubt. Just learn which situation fits each of those solutions better and you are going to get very good results in the process. Filtering systems are the most common in households and they get the job done efficiently. Just make sure that you can find quality filtration systems or softeners. This is essential if you want to be able to get results that are ideal for your needs.

At Reynolds Water Conditioning Company we are here to help make sure our clients don’t buy water treatment systems that they don’t need.  We are here to make sure you find a water softening system that gives you the results you are looking for, whether it is to remove iron or odor from you water; we have a solution that will help!  For more information contact our experts at 800.572.9575 or at our website https://reynoldswater.com.

A lot of homeowners are asking the Internet ‘what is the best water softener for my home’. However, it is not the type of water softener that matters here as much as your needs. Also, it is important to know the purpose of every water softener before actually purchasing it for your home.

Basically, hard water that comes from your tap contains minerals, iron and other impurities. These can cause many water appliances in your home (water heaters, washing machines etc.) to become clogged up and not last as long as you would expect them to. Hard water can also affect your laundry and work surface, as well as the bathroom, building up over time.

Tips For Buying A Water Softener

However, you have to be cautious when buying a water softener – and always refer to the following tips before making your decision.

1)            Make sure you have hard water that needs softening – First and foremost, you should make sure that your home has hard water to begin with. Hard water is defined as one that has more hardness minerals than one grain per gallon – which can be tested easily.

2)            Determine how much softened water you need daily – Buying a water softener is not an easy decision, especially with all those different models out there. So, make sure to determine whether it should be fully manual, semi-automatic or fully automatic – all based on the needs of your household daily and the output of all the equipment you are reviewing.

3)            Is it necessary to remove iron and manganese – If your water softener is salt-based, make sure to see if the salt may cause health problems for you, mostly because of the sodium salts and the possibility of overloading your septic system.

4)            Review the cost of installation – The price of a water softener is not the same when you see it – and when you add the installation cost to it. So, make sure to not be ripped off by the company that does the installation and negotiate the price accordingly.

5)            See if you are willing to maintain it – Water softeners need maintenance. Even if you get a fully automatic one, maintenance is still necessary – and it basically includes restocking the salt supply for the brine solution and cleaning the brine tank periodically.

Final Thoughts on Buying A Water Softener

As you can see from what’s mentioned above, there are numerous considerations when it comes to choosing a water softener for your needs. The most popular water softeners are salt-based but the reality is that there are four different processes for softening water, all in need of proper maintenance and cleaning.

At Reynolds Water Conditioning Company we are here to help make sure our clients don’t buy water treatment systems that they don’t need.  We are here to make sure you find a water softening system that gives you the results you are looking for, whether it is to remove iron or odor from you water; we have a solution that will help!  For more information contact our experts at 800.572.9575 or at our website https://reynoldswater.com.

More and more people are choosing to install water softeners in their homes and offices.  There are many questions that we get asked regularly regarding our water softeners.  Are there actual health benefits that are derived from soft water?  How does the softener work so that it improves the quality of the water?  What are the drawbacks of not installing one?

What Does A Water Softener Do?

Water softeners are designed to remove calcium and magnesium from the water supply where is enters the home by process of reverse osmosis.  This is often referred to as ion exchange.  The hard water enters a series of the resin filters in the system containing tiny polymeric beads which are specially formulated to enable them to be charges with sodium ions.

As the hard water filters through the water softener, the ions of calcium and magnesium are exchanged for sodium ions.  Sodium, more commonly known as salt, is highly soluble, unlike calcium, and can remain in solution while your home water systems and not be deposited in the form of lime scale and scum as is the case with untreated hard water.  Once the resin filters have exchanged all their sodium charged ions for calcium and magnesium ions, it is a simple matter to recharge the water filter by flushing it through with a salt water solution.  Water softeners for the home come in a variety of sizes.  With the help our water conditioning experts it is simple to have a water softener that meets your capacity needs installed.

How Does A Water Conditioner Work?

Another alternative to water softeners is to install a water conditioner.  These are usually electrostatic or electromagnetic devices that work by introducing an electric charge to the water supply as it enters the home.  This encourages the formation of crystals within the water to which, when heated, the calcium particles will attach themselves instead of the pipe work or other metal work.  While lower in price and simpler to install they are not always the right choice for homeowners.  With extremely hard water a conditioner over a softener may not be as efficient and may lack the health benefits found with softened water.

One of the first things that most people notice after installing a water softening systems is the reduction in cleaning time spent on taps, showers, basins, just about everywhere that is touched by water.  Not only will you spend a fraction of your previous amount on cleaning products and other harsh chemicals, your new soft water will lather up much more than before allowing you to also save on household soaps, shampoo, and detergent.

By eliminating the buildup of lime scale in your pipe work, radiators and central heating boiler, enabling them to operate more efficiently, you will unintentionally save money on heating bills and prolong the lifespan of these units within your home.

Water Treatments and Health Benefits

Water treatments can also have health benefits.  By using fewer chemicals to clean yourself you will notice softer skin and hair without the need to purchase expensive moisturizers and conditioners.  Many customers have seen beneficial effects on skin conditions such as Eczema and Psoriasis.  Hard water, in recent studies, has shown to increase incidents of these conditions upwards of fifty percent.

Less obvious is the beneficial effects the fitting of a water softener installed at your home or business can have on the environment.  By drastically reducing the number of chemicals homeowners use in both personal hygiene and cleaning products not only will you save money but you will be producing far less wastewater that contains harmful materials.

At Reynolds Water Conditioning Company we are here to help make sure our clients don’t buy water treatment systems that they don’t need.  We are here to make sure you find a water softening system that gives you the results you are looking for, whether it is to remove iron or odor from you water; we have a solution that will help!  For more information contact our experts at 800.572.9575 or at our website https://reynoldswater.com.