Water softener installers

nrpvk

New member
I've called several water softener companies in the area and their pricing seems very opaque. They want to schedule a home consultation to make a hard sell I guess. Has anyone had any experience buying a water softener system off of Amazon or Home Depot and just hiring a plumber to install it? I have the plumbing loop in the garage and so it really shouldn't take very long or involve too much effort.

Any suggestions for plumbers? Also, ballpark installation pricing would be helpful. Thanks.
 
The site visit isn't unusual. They need to identify what your plumbing looks like, where the brine tank and softener will go, and how far that is from your pipes. Pricing can differ depending on the complexities of your house.
 
Our first house we bought the softener from some small company in Ohio, and hired a plumber to do the plumbing. It is not too bad but things may be tricky depending on the drain location (i.e. need drywall work) and you need to know how hard your water is so you can have the right settings.

Our current house we just hired a professional company to do everything. I dont think the saving is worth the hassle of DIY + plumber.
 
Our first two homes, we decided to hire EcoWater to do everything, including RO. When they come out for the home consultation, they measure the hardness of the water, so they know what settings are needed. For those two homes, the laundry room is at the entrance to the house from the garage, so draining was easily done.

For the current home that we just bought, we decided to include water softener + R0 in the upgrades. We figured that since they're charging like $500 just for the piping for the water softener and then drilling a hole for the RO is needed, we might as well just have them do it.
 
we had a company do the install and bought through them, looks very time consuming, the RO (undersink) took much longer than the water softener (including pipe welding, main line to tank) in the garage
 
CalBears96 said:
Our first two homes, we decided to hire EcoWater to do everything, including RO. When they come out for the home consultation, they measure the hardness of the water, so they know what settings are needed. For those two homes, the laundry room is at the entrance to the house from the garage, so draining was easily done.

For the current home that we just bought, we decided to include water softener + R0 in the upgrades. We figured that since they're charging like $500 just for the piping for the water softener and then drilling a hole for the RO is needed, we might as well just have them do it.

This is the company that handles water systems/RO for Irvine Pacific. They also do individual installation for home owner.
https://falskenwatersystems.com/
 
Danimal said:
CalBears96 said:
Our first two homes, we decided to hire EcoWater to do everything, including RO. When they come out for the home consultation, they measure the hardness of the water, so they know what settings are needed. For those two homes, the laundry room is at the entrance to the house from the garage, so draining was easily done.

For the current home that we just bought, we decided to include water softener + R0 in the upgrades. We figured that since they're charging like $500 just for the piping for the water softener and then drilling a hole for the RO is needed, we might as well just have them do it.

This is the company that handles water systems/RO for Irvine Pacific. They also do individual installation for home owner.
https://falskenwatersystems.com/

Just spoke to them. Apparently they don't do installations and only manufacture the systems. I guess they've changed their policies.
 
nrpvk said:
Danimal said:
CalBears96 said:
Our first two homes, we decided to hire EcoWater to do everything, including RO. When they come out for the home consultation, they measure the hardness of the water, so they know what settings are needed. For those two homes, the laundry room is at the entrance to the house from the garage, so draining was easily done.

For the current home that we just bought, we decided to include water softener + R0 in the upgrades. We figured that since they're charging like $500 just for the piping for the water softener and then drilling a hole for the RO is needed, we might as well just have them do it.

This is the company that handles water systems/RO for Irvine Pacific. They also do individual installation for home owner.
https://falskenwatersystems.com/

Just spoke to them. Apparently they don't do installations and only manufacture the systems. I guess they've changed their policies.

Do they have authorized vendors that do installation?
 
For my last two homes I had a water softener, whole house conditioner, and a R.O. Faucet in the kitchen (the wife wants her water extra clean) installed by So Cal Water. They use Fleck systems and were market pricing. I?m satisfied and would use them in my next home if I could afford to buy one!?

www.socalwater.com
800-688-7298

Good luck
 
Danimal said:
nrpvk said:
Danimal said:
CalBears96 said:
Our first two homes, we decided to hire EcoWater to do everything, including RO. When they come out for the home consultation, they measure the hardness of the water, so they know what settings are needed. For those two homes, the laundry room is at the entrance to the house from the garage, so draining was easily done.

For the current home that we just bought, we decided to include water softener + R0 in the upgrades. We figured that since they're charging like $500 just for the piping for the water softener and then drilling a hole for the RO is needed, we might as well just have them do it.

This is the company that handles water systems/RO for Irvine Pacific. They also do individual installation for home owner.
https://falskenwatersystems.com/

Just spoke to them. Apparently they don't do installations and only manufacture the systems. I guess they've changed their policies.

Do they have authorized vendors that do installation?

They did say that they don't have anybody on the field. So I didn't ask any follow up info.
 
nrpvk said:
Danimal said:
CalBears96 said:
Our first two homes, we decided to hire EcoWater to do everything, including RO. When they come out for the home consultation, they measure the hardness of the water, so they know what settings are needed. For those two homes, the laundry room is at the entrance to the house from the garage, so draining was easily done.

For the current home that we just bought, we decided to include water softener + R0 in the upgrades. We figured that since they're charging like $500 just for the piping for the water softener and then drilling a hole for the RO is needed, we might as well just have them do it.

This is the company that handles water systems/RO for Irvine Pacific. They also do individual installation for home owner.
https://falskenwatersystems.com/

Just spoke to them. Apparently they don't do installations and only manufacture the systems. I guess they've changed their policies.

Perhaps you can try EcoWater. We installed the water softener + R0 in 2007. Water softener did break down once after 10 years, but RO still works. Unfortunately, they stopped making filters for my RO model, so I would have to get a new RO. I guess you could say life span for RO is about 15-20 years.
 
nrpvk said:
I've called several water softener companies in the area and their pricing seems very opaque.

It definitely is opaque. And there isn't much information usually on the softener itself although there are plenty of brochures/marketing. It is hard to compare offerings across installers. Many of them also offer under the sink RO systems.

Last year, we spent ~$4700 with Crystal Clear (one tank softener/carbon filter combo, RO, kitchen faucet replacement labor):https://www.yelp.com/biz/crystal-clear-water-systems-garden-grove-4
Our installation was a pain and these guys did a great job with routing the pipes and the drain.
I would use them again.
 
I did it with McCowin Water and it was for a new construction. It cost $3695 to install softener + RO. If you reach out to me I can refer you and you will most likely get a similar price
 
Infinity Plumbing (does the softeners when you buy thru Irvine Pacific) and Diamond Pure are well-known and well-reputed in our area. $3-5k depending on capacity of the system.
 
We had ours done by a plumber. He purchased the water softener system as well. The cost was almost half of what the name-branded companies quoted. Unfortunately the plumber no longer services the Irvine area.
 
bitmaster20 said:
We had ours done by a plumber. He purchased the water softener system as well. The cost was almost half of what the name-branded companies quoted. Unfortunately the plumber no longer services the Irvine area.
If the plumber buys it and installs it shouldn't be an issue. But if you're buying it and wanting to find a plumber, it's different as the softener system doesn't warranty improper installation. Lots of times contractors try to blame the material when in fact it's improper installation that is the culprit.

That's why I decided to go with a one stop shop. They take care of everything from end to end. Granted it's more expensive, but the last thing I want to be cheap about is plumbing in the house. If something goes wrong, it can potentially be a pain in the butt.
 
Mind elaborating what was a pain about your install? I've had 2 vendors come out (including Diamond Pure) and they couldn't identify a suitable drain location (without tapping into walls to look for a drain pipe). Well, Diamond Pure gave option to route drain to a clean out port on the garage floor, but it would involve routing the small drain piping on the garage floor and putting a protective plate over it so cars could still drive in. Didn't seem visually appealing.

zovall said:
nrpvk said:
I've called several water softener companies in the area and their pricing seems very opaque.

It definitely is opaque. And there isn't much information usually on the softener itself although there are plenty of brochures/marketing. It is hard to compare offerings across installers. Many of them also offer under the sink RO systems.

Last year, we spent ~$4700 with Crystal Clear (one tank softener/carbon filter combo, RO, kitchen faucet replacement labor):https://www.yelp.com/biz/crystal-clear-water-systems-garden-grove-4
Our installation was a pain and these guys did a great job with routing the pipes and the drain.
I would use them again.
 
box said:
Anyone recommend going with a Water Conditioner in addition to the Water Softener?

I have this setup. The original homeowners had a conditioner installed and after a few months of the ownership transfer - we quickly realized it was useless. We added a Water Softener. The conditioner is still operational and works with the softener - but is not necessary.
 
zovall said:
nrpvk said:
I've called several water softener companies in the area and their pricing seems very opaque.

It definitely is opaque. And there isn't much information usually on the softener itself although there are plenty of brochures/marketing. It is hard to compare offerings across installers. Many of them also offer under the sink RO systems.

Last year, we spent ~$4700 with Crystal Clear (one tank softener/carbon filter combo, RO, kitchen faucet replacement labor):https://www.yelp.com/biz/crystal-clear-water-systems-garden-grove-4
Our installation was a pain and these guys did a great job with routing the pipes and the drain.
I would use them again.

Crystal Clear is solid. Honest pricing and willing to work with you. Their guys know their stuff too.
 
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