The Pros and Cons of Water Softeners

The benefits of a water softener system are endless. If you have hard water in your home, installing a water softener can help make the water soft. Water softeners use an ion-exchange method. It passes water through magnetic resin beads that are equipped with sodium ions. The beads attract the chemicals present in hard water, calcium, and magnesium. They are then stripped from the water and replaced with sodium ions. Once these minerals have been removed, soft water can enter your home. Continue reading to learn more about water softeners’ pros and cons.

Pros of Water Softeners

Water softener installation is simple. Here are several ways a water softener system can benefit you and your family.

• Protect the plumbing in your home. Once the water has been softened, you will avoid damage or blockage to your pipes. This can save you a ton of money on repairs to your plumbing system.
• Prevent the buildup of limescale. This buildup can be seen on sinks, shower screens, and faucets. Limescale appears as white, crusty, and not attractive. Hard water also leaves stains on your appliances such as water heaters and washing machines, which can actually shorten the life of these appliances.
• Doesn’t use as much soap. Soft water helps detergents and soaps lather easily. This means that you will not need as much soap, since soft water makes doing laundry easier.
• Protect clothing. Now you can avoid the damage that hard water can do to your clothes as they are being washed in the machine. Soft water enables your clothes to last longer, fresher, and brighter.

Cons of Water Softeners

With everything, cons are almost inevitable. Here are several cons of installing a water softener.

• Expensive. High-quality water softeners are not cheap. The costs to purchase and have these devices installed can range anywhere from several hundred to thousands of dollars. Additionally, if you choose to purchase a salt-based system, you will find that you will need to frequently replenish a supply of special water softener salt pellets or crystals to add to the tank.
• Maintenance. Like many household appliances, a water softener system requires frequent maintenance to keep it in great working condition.
• Health conditions. Maybe someone in your home is on a strict low sodium diet. If this is the case, you should definitely seek approval from your doctor prior to installing a salt-based water softener to treat your drinking water.
• Not suitable for irrigation. Water that is soft lacks magnesium and calcium but contains sodium which is not good for irrigation. This is because it causes alkali soils to develop which consist of a poor structure and are unable to support irrigation.