OCgasman said:We have a whole house water softener system and love it. We originally got it to help with my daughter's eczema and it did wonders for her skin. I noticed a difference immediately on my skin and hair. Much better for your appliances. If using a tankless water heater, then will prolong the life of the heater. Irvine water is very hard. Any reputable water sofener company will come out and test your water so you can see for yourself. Here's a tip. Salt-free whole house water softeners don't work well and I would never recommend one of those. It's simple chemisty, you need salt to neutralize the elements that cause hard water. Most companies use the one tank system which regenerates on a timer usually every 10-14 days. Others like Kinetico, use 2 tanks and don't need electricity. This is the system which I will probably install in my next home. There's a ton of info out there and not all manufacturers are created equal. Check out gardenweb, there's tons of discussions on this topic over there. Just an FYI, softened water is not recommended for watering plants or discarding into the sewer as there's an environmental impact.
I like your motto. Does the salt come with the softener?gaogi said:Here's a calculator:
http://www.qualitywatertreatment.com/water_softener_sizing.htm
My motto is, when in doubt, go big. So, I bought the 45,000 grain, even though it might be overkill. Plus, the GE discount site gave the biggest discount for 45,000 grain.
How long does that 260lbs of salt last for? I'm a newbie when it comes to water softeners.gaogi said:No salt with the system. But they're like 5.00 for 50lbs at HD. I think the 45K model holds 260 lbs of salt, so about 25.00 to start.
I have a brine tank that hold 150 lbs. If I fill it all the way up (which you shouldn't do cuz it crushes the salt at the bottom), I could probably get around 6 weeks usage, and that's for a family of 3. You don't really need a brine tank that big if it's just you. One great use and I know you'll appreciate this, is softened water is so much better for car washing. Better slickness and none of that calcium spotting. If you do decide to get a water softener, make sure to pipe it to your outside or garage wall bib, unless you use that bib to water plants, than you shouldn't pipe it there.USCTrojanCPA said:How long does that 260lbs of salt last for? I'm a newbie when it comes to water softeners.gaogi said:No salt with the system. But they're like 5.00 for 50lbs at HD. I think the 45K model holds 260 lbs of salt, so about 25.00 to start.
I suppose so. My guy installed it in my garage and I had him pipe it to my garage bib since I don't use that bib for watering plants. I think some companies will try to install it only to the water heater but that's not ideal as only the hot water will get softened.annabanana said:So if they plug the whole house system water softenerer into the main line into the house, does that mean your garden faucets will have softwater too?
thedude111222 said:Is Irivine's water really that hard? I've spent some time out in the IE, and you can't even take a sip out of the tap without making making one of these cringeworthy ??? faces. Since then, my rule of thumb is if it doesn't taste that bad, its probably not that hard. That said, when buying a new construction house, we opted for the option ot pre-plumb for a water softener system....just in case...