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Water Softener So The Salesman Sold Me


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Hello All,

I've had good luck getting great advice here, so here I am again.

I just moved into a new house(my first) and they sent a water salesman to activate my drinking water and he did his whole sales pitch. At first, I was pretty much ignoring him, waiting for a chance to politely say no thanks. Well, turns out I really want one.

I've noticed the calcium and limestone on my granite and dark tiles. Every time I wipe the floor clean, the limestone stains come right back. I have to really scrub and scrub.

Anyways, the price is $3500 with reverse osmosis drinking system. I know nothing, absolutely zip about water softeners, so please give me some info/advice.

Thanks,

- Zishan

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softwater is great for drinking and great for hair and laundry, but it sucks for showering in (it will take forever to rinse off and you won't feel clean). Unless this system filters the water as well (reverse osmosis should), it won't remove impurities from the water either.

I am not certain that a water softening system would do you any good with your lime scale issues. Water softeners remove calcium and magnesium, not lime.

Using household cleaners that remove lime scale and calcium deposits would probably be a better (and cheaper) alternative. I don't know what the lifetime of this particular system is, but the ones I do know about don't have long lifespans and they cost a decent bit to maintain.

I really don't know who would be an authority on this subject to ask. I wish I had more knowledge to impart on this subject.

Perhaps call the city Public Works dept. and speak to one of the water engineers and ask them: http://www.publicworks.houstontx.gov/resource/ucs/info.htm

As TJones mentioned, I would recommend inline systems for certain areas of the house. For example, an inline system for your washing machine and to filter the water going in to your water heater, and then the faucets you clean from and drink from. That way you won't be rinsing off for three hours in the shower because the soft water doesn't rinse for crap, but you also won't get calcium/mineral build up in your water heater and you won't get dingy/dirty clothes in your laundry.

If your house is relatively new and has a manablock water distribution system, you might be able to put a second manifold in to supply only the outlets that NEED soft water with the water from the softener, and the rest can use the regular water. This is what I would do if I had a manifold based water distribution system (the ONLY way to go).

Edited by gwilson
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<br />softwater is great for drinking and great for hair and laundry, but it sucks for showering in (it will take forever to rinse off and you won't feel clean). Unless this system filters the water as well (reverse osmosis should), it won't remove impurities from the water either.<br /><br />I am not certain that a water softening system would do you any good with your lime scale issues. Water softeners remove calcium and magnesium, not lime. <br /><br />Using household cleaners that remove lime scale and calcium deposits would probably be a better (and cheaper) alternative. I don't know what the lifetime of this particular system is, but the ones I do know about don't have long lifespans and they cost a decent bit to maintain.<br /><br />I really don't know who would be an authority on this subject to ask. I wish I had more knowledge to impart on this subject.<br /><br />Perhaps call the city Public Works dept. and speak to one of the water engineers and ask them: <a href="http://www.publicworks.houstontx.gov/resource/ucs/info.htm" target="_blank">http://www.publicworks.houstontx.gov/resource/ucs/info.htm</a><br /><br /><br />As TJones mentioned, I would recommend inline systems for certain areas of the house. For example, an inline system for your washing machine and to filter the water going in to your water heater, and then the faucets you clean from and drink from. That way you won't be rinsing off for three hours in the shower because the soft water doesn't rinse for crap, but you also won't get calcium/mineral build up in your water heater and you won't get dingy/dirty clothes in your laundry.<br /><br />If your house is relatively new and has a manablock water distribution system, you might be able to put a second manifold in to supply only the outlets that NEED soft water with the water from the softener, and the rest can use the regular water. This is what I would do if I had a manifold based water distribution system (the ONLY way to go).<br />

first off, congratulations on the new house. welcome to slavery.

second, i agree with tj and wilson. you shouldn't do the entire home, but just with the Basics for your drinking and washing needs.

i have had a few clients that have ignored the advice i gave against it and almost immediately regretted it.

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Again, great advice.

The salesman particularly told me about the limestone, explaining how it "etches its way into surfaces" and is almost impossible to remove if left untreated etc. etc. I was told my area is in a particular M.U.D. district and has lots of calcium/limestone in the water.

He showed me some water test and what not.

I've asked around and 2 friends have water softeners and swear by them. One got his from Lowes(and I hear people say the Lowes/HomeDepot versions are cheap) and one paid $4k for a system and doesn't know anything about it other than he loves it.

So, in an effort to become a better educated consumer, here I am.

Oh, and thanks for the compliment! I love my new house and home ownership is great thus far! IE I haven't received my first mortgage payment yet, nor my credit card bill!

Thanks again,

- Zishan

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If you really want a water softener, then seriously consider doing it yourself or even hiring a plumber to save a lot of money over what the bigger companies will charge you. If you can locate the main water line into your house and also find access to a drain, you can get a good system for under $1K and install it yourself (or use a plumber) with just a basic water heater install kit, a little plumbing pipe and a yoke/bypass switch. In my case, the main water line came in through the garage, so I was able to setup a system there. The softener will help with calcium (and magnesium) buildup if you really do have hard water. Lime is basically just a form of calcium, but a softener may not help with all kinds lime, so keep that in mind.

The trick to finding the correct water softener size is to find out what the water hardness level is. Your salesman should give you the number, or you can do your own test for around $40. Then use a chart, such as the one at http://www.watervalue.com/sizing_chart.html to find the correct size of the system. This site suggest a regineration every 4 days, but you can probably regenerate every week or so to help save on overall water usage.

If your water does not taste good -- and most people do not seem to like the taste of softened water, you can add a reverse osmosis system to your kitchen (under the sink) for about $300 or so. RO systems tend to waste a lot of water, so it is usually not a good idea for the whole house. Also, showering with softened water will take some getting used to, but it isn't really all that bad IMO.

Sorry for the ramble, but I just went through this myself and spent more than a few weeks gathering this information. Hope it helps.

Edited by MasterShake
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The salesman particularly told me about the limestone, explaining how it "etches its way into surfaces" and is almost impossible to remove if left untreated etc. etc. I was told my area is in a particular M.U.D. district and has lots of calcium/limestone in the water.

I've lived here 30 years, and limestone has never "etched into the surface" of anything I own. I have never been accused of being a clean freak, so I am sure I have left some water untreated on surfaces from time to time.

My opinion....water softener salesmen are the modern day equivalent of snake oil salesmen. While there may be the occasional well water user who needs one, anyone that uses City of Houston water does not. At best, buy a refrigerator with a filter, or put a PUR filter on the kitchen faucet. Then blow $2000 on a nice HD flat panel TV. You'll get far more bang for your $3500.

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If you really want a water softener, then seriously consider doing it yourself or even hiring a plumber to save a lot of money over what the bigger companies will charge you. If you can locate the main water line into your house and also find access to a drain, you can get a good system for under $1K and install it yourself (or use a plumber) with just a basic water heater install kit, a little plumbing pipe and a yoke/bypass switch. In my case, the main water line came in through the garage, so I was able to setup a system there. The softener will help with calcium (and magnesium) buildup if you really do have hard water. Lime is basically just a form of calcium, but a softener may not help with all kinds lime, so keep that in mind.

The trick to finding the correct water softener size is to find out what the water hardness level is. Your salesman should give you the number, or you can do your own test for around $40. Then use a chart, such as the one at http://www.watervalue.com/sizing_chart.html to find the correct size of the system. This site suggest a regineration every 4 days, but you can probably regenerate every week or so to help save on overall water usage.

If your water does not taste good -- and most people do not seem to like the taste of softened water, you can add a reverse osmosis system to your kitchen (under the sink) for about $300 or so. RO systems tend to waste a lot of water, so it is usually not a good idea for the whole house. Also, showering with softened water will take some getting used to, but it isn't really all that bad IMO.

Sorry for the ramble, but I just went through this myself and spent more than a few weeks gathering this information. Hope it helps.

This is dead on great info. I use this set up in my home:

GE Profile

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Hello All,

I've had good luck getting great advice here, so here I am again.

I just moved into a new house(my first) and they sent a water salesman to activate my drinking water and he did his whole sales pitch. At first, I was pretty much ignoring him, waiting for a chance to politely say no thanks. Well, turns out I really want one.

I've noticed the calcium and limestone on my granite and dark tiles. Every time I wipe the floor clean, the limestone stains come right back. I have to really scrub and scrub.

Anyways, the price is $3500 with reverse osmosis drinking system. I know nothing, absolutely zip about water softeners, so please give me some info/advice.

Thanks,

- Zishan

don't pay 3500.00 or even 2000.00 for a water softener and reverse osmosis.. Don't pay that sale's guy a 25% to 35% comission...

Go to Belsomeh2oinstallers.com....

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don't pay 3500.00 or even 2000.00 for a water softener and reverse osmosis.. Don't pay that sale's guy a 25% to 35% comission...

Go to Belsomeh2oinstallers.com.... 48,000 grain fleck 7000 valve softener with a 4 stage reverse osmosis installed for $1600.00... We,ll beat any price...

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