Both water softeners and water descalers aim to solve the problem of hard water and dangerous scale deposits from your home. Nevertheless, they use different technologies and lead to different results. Today, we will discuss their features and capabilities so that you can make an educated choice.
We already offered a guide on how a water descaler works versus how a water softener works. Here is the short version:
Now that we saw how these two different devices work, it is time to summarize the similarities and differences between water softeners and water descalers by pinpointing their advantages and shortcomings. Both types of devices address the issue of hard water and limescale, but each has its strengths and weaknesses.
Traditional water softeners, based on sodium chloride replacement, are easy to find in home improvement stores and from online retailers. They work very well, offering water a “slippery” feel, and helping you achieve more abundant soap lather. While expensive, they do have decent rates of return, as they can last for years with the proper maintenance.
Nevertheless, they come with some drawbacks you need to consider:
A water softener indeed removes the hardness minerals in your water, leaving you with the feeling of immaculate skin, no limescale deposits around, better soap lather, and brighter colored clothes coming out of the washing machine. Let’s learn, however, if you need a water softener for your home or business.
Get a water softener if:
If you live in some parts of California, chances are you cannot install a traditional water softener, so you should opt for a water descaler instead. As of 2014, the governing board banned the use of water softeners that use sodium or potassium and discharge the brine into the sewer lines. Michigan, Connecticut, Texas, and Massachusetts also enforced regulations and prohibitions so that the salt solutions from water softeners do not reach sewer lines. Similar environment protection rules are also under scrutiny in the European Union.
As we said, water descalers work in a simpler, more straightforward manner. As installation goes, you need an outlet and minimal technical skills to set them. But let’s see more about these devices.
First things first, they are harder to find. At least yet. Since the technology is new and manufacturers still improve on their performances, electronic water descalers are available more often via dedicated manufacturers’ online stores.
A water descaler extends the lifespan of your pipes and appliances at an affordable price. They also help you put some money on the side.
Here are the situations when you might want to consider getting a water descaler instead of a water softener:
We have seen each product’s strengths and weaknesses, but we have to make an important point: they both work best in the company of a water filtration system, be it carbon-based or relying on reverse osmosis technology.
Now that you saw the significant similarities and differences between water softeners and water descalers, the choice is yours. It all depends on your needs, your sustainability inclinations, and the money you are willing to spend on maintenance.
If you want an eco-friendly, affordable, low-maintenance, and easy-to-use device to treat hard water and prolong the lifespan of your appliances, then yes, you should go for a water descaler. If the hardness level of the water severely interferes with your life, health, business, and budget, then you should consider a traditional water softener – provided you comply with your local laws and regulations.
However, do take into account that our lineup of softeners output a great deal of capacitive signals, so they can tackle even the hardest GPG and GPM levels out there - a great example for most homes would be our CWD30 system. So even if hardness seems to be at an all-time high, you might still want to consider a descaler despite the fact that it can take up to three months to descale the existing limescale deposits inside your pipes.
At the end of the day, modern people need a convenient solution due to their already busy schedule. Because of this, even though we might seem biased, we wholeheartedly recommend a water descaler instead of a traditional salt-based water softener.
The simple reason is that the descaler works out of the box and keeps working endlessly as long as it's plugged into a power source. A softener, on the other hand, requires you to change the salt, break down salt bridges if necessary, and perform maintenance tasks that can be daunting at times. Not to mention that the installation process is worlds apart from a descaler when it comes to the difficulty level.
The one argument that keeps popping up in the debate regarding water softener vs. water descaler is the fact that people have gotten so used to softeners that they find it hard to change them. In truth, it's the same old thing that happens when choosing a new operating system or smartphone. People get used to a certain platform and find the idea of trying something new scary.
However, you might change your mind once you see all the advantages that a Yarna water descaler can bring you:
Yes, there are other softening methods that you can try. However, these two are the most convenient overall. The next best thing is a Reverse Osmosis system, mainly because it acts as a water filter as well.
However, it does tend to waste a lot of water, which is a major inconvenience for people who want to save money and for those who want to protect the environment.
Otherwise, water softener alternatives are not as diverse as one might think. However, if neither a softener nor a descaler seem like a good deal for you, then you'll be happy to hear that you can choose between several types of softening gadgets.
As previously mentioned, while a water descaler does benefit your water supply, it is not a filter and it’s not meant to be one.
The USA needs water filters because municipalities often don’t do a great job. If you’ve been watching the news anywhere in the last five years, you’ve probably already heard of the disaster in Flint, Michigan.
But the problem doesn’t stop there. Some of the most common water pollutants can greatly affect your health in ways that you wouldn’t want to experience. In short, you absolutely need a water filter. But what type of water filter do you need exactly?
It all depends on the pollutants found in your area. We recommend getting a test kit or calling a water testing agency to do it for you. This way you’ll determine exactly what filters you should get (because sometimes you might have several types of pollutants).
In any case, regardless of where you live, one of the most common pollutants is sediment, so a sediment pre-filter is necessary, especially if your filter can't trap sediment or if you don't have a filter at all. Also, you need to consider this: sediment can, at times, block your descaler's capacity to soften water properly.
We hope this water softener vs. water descaler guide helps you make an informed and practical choice from now on. Now, it is your turn to share with us some of your experiences. Did you ever use softened or conditioned water before? How did you feel about such experience? What is your opinion on water softeners and descalers? Did they work as you hoped?
]]>You see, there are many things you need to consider if you want your water softener to benefit from such a long and prosperous lifespan. In today’s article, we’ll get through the nitty gritty details of how to extend your softener’s lifespan as much as possible and what maintenance steps you should take to ensure you won’t need to call a repairman anytime soon.
First and foremost, you need to be aware of any and all hard water “symptoms”. This is the best way you can detect in due time if your softener is having trouble softening the water. Have you noticed any white spots on your dishes? How about the soap lather? Or have you noticed any small limestone deposits on your bathtub recently?
These are a few of the things you should be looking for to determine if your softener is performing up to speed. If you notice any of these things, your softener might be calling for a little maintenance. The easiest and most obvious thing to check here is the salt. Are there any salt bridges formed? If so, take care to poke them gently with a stick until the salt goes back to normal.
Also, you should check the owner’s manual to see all the necessary maintenance procedures that you should perform on your particular model, since many of them can differ quite noticeably. Another step you can take is to change the filter at regular intervals and always put new salt whenever the tank is only 1/3 full.
If you have a single tank electric softener, you will need to flush the resin bed with water softener cleaner about once a year to retain the effectiveness of the resin beads. Lastly, out of all the basic tips, one of the most important is to not make your water softener work too hard. You will want to set it high enough to work depending on your hardness level, but just low enough as to not overwork it and cause irreversible wear and tear.
Unfortunately, water softeners are bound to fail at some point since they’re being constantly exposed to hard water. If they had the capability of softening water without having it get through their resin bed, then they would probably never break down. However, as it stands, your softener is going to need a replacement at some point.
We’ve already covered the basic gist of things in the previous part of this article. Right now, we want to get a little more in-depth regarding the signs of wear and tear, and especially the signs that clearly tell you that your softener needs immediate replacement.
Make no mistake, by taking the necessary maintenance steps mentioned above, you can make your softener last for up to 20 years, though that’s not a 100% guarantee. However, if you notice any of the following signs and no amount of maintenance seems to be working, then it’s high time for a replacement.
If you’ve had your softener for more than ten years, then chances are that it will need a replacement sooner rather than later, especially if you haven’t bothered so much with maintenance or if hardness in your area is especially rough.
Even if you have only had your water softener appliance for a few years and you begin to notice evidence of hard water around your home, then you may need to consider getting a professional to check your system. We don’t want to alarm you or anything, but it never hurts having an expert come and check it out from time to time. That way, you’ll know that you’re getting the softener serviced as it should.
Anyway, here are a few significant signs to look for when dealing with an older and unserviced salt-based water softener.
One of the biggest gripes when showering is having to use large quantities of soap and shampoo simply because hard water reacts with the chemicals inside of these two things. It can be quite a pain, it makes your skin dry and itchy, and it inadvertently increases your spending. There’s no need to talk about this even further; the bottom line is that you should really call a repairman if this problem persists despite good maintenance practices.
One of the more noticeable differences will be the amount of limescale or limestone deposits around pipes and faucets – the places where water circulates most frequently. If you notice this, it’s clear that your softener isn’t exactly working as it should. Consider using vinegar to descale these zones after repairing or replacing the unit, whichever comes first.
Washing clothing in hard water can make them scratchy, stiff, and uncomfortable. Fabric softener can help with this issue, but you’ll need to think about examining your water softener long-term. Hard water can also damage your washing machine and other household appliances too, so it’s imperative to use a fabric softener and a liquid water softener until you can manage to fix your regular water softener.
Hard water tastes significantly different when compared to softened water. It’s because of all the excess calcium and magnesium that you’ll find in it. While the taste isn’t exactly ideal, you should know that drinking hard water comes with many benefits. Even so, it’s a clear sign that your softener isn’t working properly anymore.
Because of the high concentration of calcium and magnesium in hard water, you'll start seeing white spots on your dishes once you take them out of the dishwasher. Cleaning them properly inside your dishwasher requires rinse aid if you have hard water, or the use of a water softener, water descaler, reverse osmosis system, or other similar device.
We know how hard it can be to keep a traditional salt-based water softener running properly for years and years to come. Not to mention the maintenance costs and the ever-increasing price of salt packages and so forth.
For this reason, we recommend ditching traditional water softeners altogether and opting for a more modern and convenient approach. The salt in softeners damages the environment and makes the water unsafe to drink. Not to mention all the previous downsides such as cost of maintenance and so forth.
With that in mind, we’ve made it our purpose to create devices that will aid people with hard water problems while still retaining the benefits of hard water and negating any softened water downsides. In short, we’ve developed some convenient, easy to use, maintenance-free, and economical water descalers.
After years of hard research and development, we have finally perfected our water descaler formula. In short, a control unit works in tandem with your pipe’s GPM and GPG to provide the exact amount of descaling necessary without you having to configure anything on your own. Instead, you only need to install the unit exactly as shown in the manual and plug it into a power supply.
Once all of that is done, you can sit back and relax as the descaler works to reshape mineral crystals into smaller and less sticky chunks, effectively removing any limescale problems you might have had up until that point. If you want a more scientific explanation of how this process takes place, you can read more about that here. But in short, all you should know is that capacitive electronic signals react naturally with hard minerals to reshape them.
Water descalers require zero maintenance. You can install them in just about 15 minutes worth of time even if you’ve never done so before. And no, you won’t be needing any specialized tools. Everything required for installation comes straight out of the box. One electronic water descaler is enough for your entire household. Another electronic descaler is excellent for entire office buildings, and so forth.
Furthermore, you don’t need to worry about pipe material or the maximum water flow, as the descaler adapts to the specific needs. All you need is to get the right model for your pipe size directly from our homepage or from our Amazon shop page.
And that’s not all. For every single purchase, we’re offering a 100-day money-back guarantee so you will have enough time to test it and see the results for yourself. A water descaler can also eliminate existing limescale spots in your pipes, and it can take up to three months depending on the harshness of the situation. But with this money-back guarantee, you’re pretty much covered.
Not only that, but once you register your product on our website, regardless of which page you’ve purchased it from, we’ll extend your warranty to a whopping 10 years. If that’s not enough to convince you to give it a shot, then consider the following: ZERO MAINTENANCE. And zero salt packets ever again.
If you want a summary of this article, a water softener can last up to 20 years with proper maintenance, and usually a minimum of ten years with the same level of care. Of course, it also depends on the make and model, as well as how you respect the things written in the manual, what type of salt you use, etc.
All in all, we still think that you should give a descaler a try simply because it will save you significantly more money in the long run – up to $1000 per year in water, energy, and heating bills combined. And no more spending money on extra accessories, maintenance, or salt, as previously mentioned (yeah, we can’t stress this enough). We wish you good luck in whatever it is that you choose at the end of the day.
]]>When it comes to the quality of our water, the first unpleasant things we notice about it are its color, odor, taste, and traces it leaves behind.
If you are tired of low flow rates, inefficient appliances, and stained surfaces, you might want to test for hard water in your house or place of business.
We will discuss today whether a water descaler improves your water quality and to what extent, reminding you that you will still need pro water filters for your water to become 100% pure and safe to drink.
But first, let's look at how hard water affects your life so that you can get a better understanding about the importance of a water descaler or other water softening method.
Hard water affects more than 80% of all American households. While some cities enjoy soft water – or at least lower levels of hardness – others have to deal with high and even extreme levels of hardness. As we have already discussed on our guide to hard water, this issue puts a lot of stress on our lifestyles altogether.
It manages to make everything harder (pun not intended), from the way we drink our coffee in the morning to the endless hours and huge budgets we spend on weekly cleaning activities.
To summarize, here are the worst consequences of hard water:
What we described above is just a big picture. Let’s now look at a smaller one – your everyday life and comfort. Here are the most significant nuisances caused by hard water and its monstrous progeny, limescale:
These are just a few facets of life made difficult by hard water and limescale. To counter them, you need a system that deals with all these issues.
Did you know that showering in hard water for prolonged periods can lead to hair loss? The calcium in hard water sticks to the scalp, preventing it from taking in nutrients and oxygen.
In turn, this leads to scalp calcification, which inherently brings tons of problems for your hair and scalp. Luckily, there are ways to wash hair in hard water that prevent hair loss and other problems caused by the minerals.
However, with the help of a water descaler, you won’t need to rely on such methods ever again. Furthermore, by using a descaler, you won’t need to do the following:
We’ve mentioned earlier that limescale deposits and hard mineral stains can appear on several surfaces. Removing them can be tricky and time-consuming.
Fortunately, we have prepared an article detailing how you can remove limescale deposits from several surfaces. Some of the methods are relatively simple, but they’re still time-consuming. A much better option would be to soften water using a descaler.
So, the next logical inquiry is, can a water descaler improve your water quality and, consequently, improve your life? Let’s find out!
In short, yes. But we need to discuss more what a water descaler does for your water and how these results convert into a better quality of life as well.
As you learned from our guide on how water descalers work, such a device does not remove the hardness minerals in your water (which are healthy and even recommended for consumption). What it does is change their molecular structure, so they do not stick to anything anymore. Water descalers remove the existing scale buildups and prevent new ones from forming.
It means a water descaler will leave those minerals in the water but in a different shape with different behavior and properties.
There are some crucial aspects of water quality improvements generated by a water descaler. Let’s see them:
Water Nutritional Value: Since a water descaler does not remove calcium and magnesium from your water (it just makes them non-adherent to surfaces), your tap water will keep all its nutritional properties. As we all know, calcium and magnesium are vital for our health, and we can absorb them from drinking water just as we do from milk and foods.
Water Taste: If we are to compare the water treated with a traditional water softener and the one treated through a water descaler, the latter tastes better. Salt-based water softeners replace the hardness minerals with sodium chloride. Drinking salty water does not feel great, let alone it comes with restrictions for people with specific health conditions, children, and pets.
Water Cleanness: Limescale is a breeding ground for bacteria. Once you start using a water descaler, this breeding ground disappears, leaving your water cleaner. Also, a water descaler helps with the reduction of the corrosive rust (iron molecules) that stick to the limescale inside your pipes. Consequently, your water will show less rust in it, thus getting a better color, odor, and taste.
Softer Water: In all honesty, a water descaler does not give you that slick, slippery water feeling against your skin as you can achieve with a traditional water softener. However, it will soften the water enough so you can enjoy better soap lathering, brighter clothes colors, more efficient cosmetics and moisturizers, and better-working laundry detergents and cleaning agents.
You need to understand is that a water descaler is not a water filter.
A whole house water filter based on active charcoal filtration or a reverse osmosis system is your go-to choice if you deal with lead, chemicals, pollutants, viruses, radioactive elements, and other contaminants in your water.
The next thing you need to understand is that water descalers are not water softeners.
The installation of a water descaler is a blessing for dynamic people who show mindfulness about their money and the environment as a whole. Let’s see how a water descaler improves the quality of your water with consequences on the quality of your life:
Yes, when compared to a water softener, a water descaler is significantly better for the environment. Now you might be thinking "doesn't a descaler require electricity every second of the day?" and you'd be right.
However, you should take into account the fact that it doesn't disperse any sodium or chemicals in the sewage line. As such, it won't affect your septic system or grey water systems in your vicinity. And, as far as electric consumption is concerned, it's almost unnoticeable.
In fact, as stated earlier, it actually helps you save money by making your water heater's job much easier. No more extra pollution or extra pressure on the local power and water plant because of this.
A water descaler leads to a handful of improvements when it comes to the quality of your water and your life.
Have you ever used a water descaler before? How do you think it improves the quality of water? Would you consider buying one for the home or your small business to live a completely stress-free life with plenty of time, money, and resources savings? Click here to see all of our models.
]]>There are several methods in which you can achieve water purification. Some of them remove all possible contaminants, while others focus solely on a certain group of pollutants. The water purification process also includes distillation and ionization methods. We felt the need to mention this since many people think purification and distillation are two different things.
To avoid wasting precious time purifying water that doesn’t need to be purified, you’re going to need to determine the body of water’s quality.
Many times, it’s impossible to determine water quality based solely on appearance. You’ll need to rely on a water testing service or get a water testing kit and do it yourself. The main elements you should be looking for are pathogens (bacteria, viruses, parasites), microorganisms, VOCs, heavy metals, TDS (total dissolved solids), chlorine, lead, and bleach.
Normally, people rely on municipal water treatment plants to give them clean and healthy water. However, in recent years, Americans’ trust in public water supplies has decreased dramatically.
It’s no wonder why this is happening. With so many boil water notices being issued seemingly more and more, plus other factors such as increased contamination in public drinking water, it’s no wonder why you should consider water purification.
Depending on what contaminants are in your drinking water, you’re going to need to rely on a water purification method that targets that specific group of pollutants. With that said and done, let’s see what purification methods you can use to a good degree.
This is by far the simplest method of purifying water. All you need is a metal container and a fire to place it on. Do note, however, that this method only works on pathogens and light sediment.
The good part is that it’s completely safe and you can do it practically anywhere you want without the need of electricity or fancy tools. In most cases, boiling water for five minutes will kill most microorganisms. The one factor that affects the effectiveness of boiling is altitude. If you are in on a mountain, for example, you might need to bring the water to a boil for ten minutes just to be safe.
Once done, place the water in a container using a strainer or a clean cloth to trap the remaining sediment. After the water reaches room temperature, you can put it in the fridge to let it cool down. Do note that boiled water will have less “taste”. You can solve this by thoroughly shaking the water bottle after it cools or by adding a pinch of salt.
A regular water filter won’t be able to eliminate radiation, lead, salt, metals, and many other contaminants effectively. You’ll either need a highly expensive whole house filtration system or an industrial water filter. Of course, if you’re reading this, you probably can’t afford such a luxury, especially in a small home.
For that, you can rely on water distillation as the safest way to drink water that’s been contaminated by a significant amount of pollutants. You can heat water into steam and then trap the steam to eliminate most forms of contamination – including radioactive fallout.
Distillation won’t remove all possible contaminants, like volatile oils and certain organic compounds, but most heavy particles will stay behind. The best way to distill water is to purchase a water distillation system. If you’re out in the field, try building a solar still.
As a last resort if you’re out in the wild and have no other option, you can try SODIS. As the name suggests, the method implies leaving water out in the sun for disinfection, preferably during the time when UV rays are most abundant.
You only need a plastic bottle to collect the water with. It’s easy to use, inexpensive, or even free sometimes, and it doesn’t require any chemicals whatsoever. The sun’s abundant UV light kills or damages almost all biological hazards in the water. Do be aware that this method should be used as a last resort.
The disadvantages are that you need sunny weather or two days of overcast sky for full effectiveness. If the sky is cloudy or if it’s raining, this method won’t work at all. And even if the weather is in your advantage, the water you’re trying to treat should have no other pollutants. Both the bottle and the water should be clear to allow for maximum penetration of UV rays.
Let’s leave the outdoors for a little while and focus on what you can do to purify water in the comfort of your own home. A UV water purifier is by far the best method of getting rid of bacteria, parasites, viruses, and other pathogens. The only real downside is that it doesn’t work on anything inorganic.
Much like the previous method we’ve talked about, this one also relies on UV rays to do its job. However, since the rays are far closer to the water, the disinfection process takes mere seconds. As long as there are no other pollutants in your water supply, a UV water filter will do wonders at minimal costs.
Much like a neon bulb, this type of filter consumes minimal electricity, so you won’t notice a huge increase on your bills. Just to be safe, you should also install a sediment pre-filtering system to ensure that no inorganic elements enter the water supply and the UV-C rays can reach their target.
If you can’t afford any other more efficient water purification system, you can use the time-tested method of chlorine or bleach disinfection. Even though chlorination is often used by municipal water purification plants as the primary method of disinfection, bacteria might still get in your supply depending on where the water travels.
Let’s say it travels through old, cracked pipes that have also managed to form mold. In that case, the previous chlorination process will have been ineffective to say the least. In this case, using bleach in small amount or getting some chlorine tablets are both cheap methods you can use to disinfect water at home.
Generally speaking, the amount of the chemical you use will depends on the water quality and temperature. For cold or murky water, you’ll need to add a bit more disinfectant than you’d normally add to hot or clean water. More specifically, cold or murky water will require four drops of bleach per quartz, while warm or clean water will only require two drops per quart. Once you’ve added the substance, let the water sit still for at least half an hour. But for the best results, we recommend leaving the water still for an hour. Some parasites, like Giardia, can survive chlorine and bleach for up to 45 minutes.
Reverse osmosis is a relatively complex set of processes that remove a significant number of contaminants from drinking water. To make things easier to understand, a RO system applies pressure on the water and takes it through a semi-permeable membrane that traps pathogens, sediment, heavy metals, chemicals, and much more.
The advantages are numerous. For a start, restaurants prefer reverse osmosis systems because the resulting water used for cooking significantly improves the taste of food. RO water is also free from salts, hard minerals, and any particles that’s large enough to get trapped by the system’s membrane.
With that said, there are a few elements that do pass through a RO membrane. Certain pesticides and solvents will still make their way through it, which is especially concerning if you use drinking water from a private well placed on a farm.
You’ve probably heard of iodine treatment before used to combat thyroid problems. However, not many people know that it can also be used to treat water. This water purification chemical is available in tincture, crystal, liquid, or tablet form depending on your preference.
While it’s ineffective against Cryptosporidium, it can kill giardia within 45 minutes. Other bacteria and viruses can be effectively eliminated using iodine treatment in just around 30 minutes.
To purify water with tincture iodine, combine two drops of iodine for every quart of clear water. If the water is cloudy, use 10 drops for every quart. Let the solution stand for at least 30 minutes and let the iodine do its job. Do note that this will change the water’s flavor.
For crystal or tablet iodine, you should follow the manufacturer’s instructions, as many of the versions found on the market vary in concentration levels and other factors. But as an average, you should know that a typical iodine crystal bottle will be able to treat about 2000 quarts of water. In any case, this is a healthy alternative if you can’t invest in a purification system and you don’t want any bleach or chlorine in your water for whatever reason.
It’s also a much healthier option if you’ve got thyroid problems. Think of it as a two-in-one solution. Either way, you’re getting an excellent value for your money’s worth.
There are numerous types of water filters currently available on the market. Installing a water filtration system that targets specific contaminants is one of the best choices for purifying water.
The thing is, like with all other purification methods mentioned in this article, a filter won’t remove just about anything. You have to do your research and see which filter removes most, if not all, contaminants that directly affect your household’s water supply.
However, a good filtration system can target molecules much smaller than the ones a reverse osmosis system can remove. Again, we encourage you to test your water beforehand to ensure you’re getting the right purification device for your specific needs.
While it’s true that some small regions have a significant number of contaminants, the majority of Europe and the US most commonly have to deal with pathogens as the main threat to their health.
Also, more than 80% of US households have to deal with hard water. These two facts mean that, in most cases, if you’re reading this, you have to deal with the harshness of water hardness when showering or using appliances AND with potentially disease-causing microorganisms in your drinking water.
And if you take into account the fact that pipes tend to rust or that water might collect some sediment from the ground, you might also need a sediment filter beforehand. So now we can conclude that for most of the people reading this, you’ll probably need a purification system that can handle these three major risk factors at once.
However, the problem comes when coming up with a solution that can handle all these pollutants. You see, a whole house filtration system might do the tricks, but it’s not a perfect fix. Such a filtration system is highly expensive and requires a lot of maintenance and significant hassle in regard to the installation process.
In this case, we recommend going for several purification methods that will cost you much less than a whole house filtration system. We’ll get to it right away.
What we consider by far the most effective setup for most households will net you significant benefits in the long run. The solution we propose removes sediment, eliminates bacteria, and softens the water without eliminating beneficial minerals or adding sodium to the supply.
Now you might wonder how it all works. The softening solution reshapes mineral crystals to make them smaller and less sticky, so they’ll no longer cause limescale buildup inside pipes, appliances, and on faucets or fixtures. It also solves the lathering problem and prevents minerals from sticking to your scalp or triggering your dermatitis.
But we’ll get to that part a little later. Right now, let’s focus on the first piece of equipment you’ll need for this excellent setup:
When it comes to installing a pre-filtering system, most people are worried about the cumbersome installation process.
However, with Yarna’s spindown pre-filtering system, the process is far less complicated. It comes with the excellent build quality and is very easy to install as long as you have a 1" or a 3/4" pipe. You’ll also need only eight to twelve wraps of Teflon tape around the brass fitting to prevent it from dripping.
Our filter is easy to maintain and traps sediment effectively before it can come in contact with the rest of the pipe or the rest of the filtration system. It’s also excellent at removing tiny particles such as sand or what they call brown sludge. It will also stop any large sediment from clogging up your softener and other filtration systems.
Speaking of maintenance, all you need to do is flush it without removing the housing or taking the product apart. The housing is clear so you can actually watch as the sediment accumulates at the bottom of the filter. You can then use the included spigot to flush it all away and make enough room to trap more sediment.
Now that we’ve solved the sediment part, let’s get to solving the hard water issue. You may have heard about traditional water softeners before. They’re those big tanks that use salt to create an ion exchange process between the sodium in that salt and the calcium and magnesium ions found in hard water.
Well, we’re not going to give you that. There’s a reason why salt-based water softeners have started losing their popularity. Well, not only one, but several. First off, the flushes sodium water directly affects your septic system. And fixing it is costly. Secondly, sodium prevents plants from getting the nutrients that they so desperately need, and they eventually die out.
Finally, drinking water with high sodium concentrations can greatly impact your health. For all these reasons, you can clearly see why salt-based water softeners are heavily regulated. Now we’ve got that out of the way, so let’s move on to what we’re proposing to you today.
We have a line-up of water descalers available on our website, including models for up to 1-inch pipes, for up to 2-inch pipes, and even for up to 4-inch pipes. Whichever one you choose, the capacity signals emitted by the unit actively reshape the calcium and magnesium crystals in water. That means no more limescale or other nasty side effects caused by hard water. however, you still get the full benefits of drinking those minerals straight from the water supply.
With our products, you’re guaranteed to get an excellent price as we often create offers and discounts to incentivize people to live a healthier life.
We believe that all people should have access to clean and healthy water regardless of where they live. And while we do appreciate the authorities’ best efforts to do so, they don’t always manage to succeed.
That’s why we want to offer people an efficient alternative. And to prove to you that we stand by what we believe in, we are offering a full one-year money-back guarantee on all of our products. That’s more than enough time for you to test out their efficiency and decide if they’re a worthy investment.
Not only that, but if you choose to register your product on our website, you’ll also receive a 10-year extended parts and manufacturer warranty. Think about it this way: for just a few hundred bucks, you’ll be ensuring that your home’s water supply is 100% safe to drink for the entirety of the following decade.
We are committed to ensuring sustainable and eco-friendly alternatives to traditional water purification methods. And we won’t stop here. Our R&D department is constantly researching and developing new ways in which we can accomplish our mission.
There are plenty of water purification methods that you can rely on whether you’re in a survival situation or in the comfort of your own home.
Not all of these methods will work in both scenarios; however, with all the given information, you now have the power to clean your own water whether you’re out camping or just waiting for it to get from the pipes to your faucet. Here’s to a brighter and more environmentally-friendly water solutions for everyone!
]]>Therefore, because you use water in most daily activities as well as for drinking and cooking, these contaminants can have a major impact on your life. Even so, most people are not thinking of the quality of their water and they later face the consequences of not filtering it.
Because more than 60% of the human body is water, people need to drink water to keep every part of their bodies functioning properly. In fact, an adult should have a regular daily intake of water as the following:
If the water consumed daily is untreated, it can transmit diseases such diarrhea, cholera, dysentery, typhoid, and polio. Contaminated drinking water is estimated to cause 485 000 diarrheal deaths each year.
Sounds worrying, doesn't it? Well, the truth is that the only one who can deal with the effects of contaminated water is you. This article aims to give you some tips to choose the best water filtration solution to remove harmful substances from the water you consume and use at home.
There are many ways you can treat water at home. Among the most common methods that people use are boiling, distilling, or solar purification - these are usually preferred by people because they are fast and involve no cost.
The biggest downside of filtering water on your own is that you never know for sure if you have managed to completely remove the contaminants from your water or even if you have removed the beneficial substances from it through the process.
However, home water filtration systems are the recommended solution to treat water impurities in a household. These devices have been tested over time to remove all contaminants from your water successfully, which DIY methods such as boiling, or distillation cannot do.
If you have never used a water filtration system before, the way to find the ideal product should be largely based on well-informed research.
Buying a suitable water filtration system for your needs is a long-term investment. This means that you cannot just pick the first model you see as soon as you enter the store.
After a quick-5-minute online research, you will be surprised by the variety of models on the current market. Technology has advanced so much that the water purification systems today came with an impressive number of features designed to enhance the user experience.
Therefore, to make sure you don't spend money on a product you don't need and that you won't be stuck with the same unfiltered water issue in your house, here are a few things you should consider before buying a water purification system:
You can't choose a water softener if you don't know exactly what kind of contaminants it should treat. Knowing the level of contaminants in your water and the consumption in your house, you will be able to determine the ideal capacity for a water filtration system.
First of all, you should take a sample of water and check it at a specialized laboratory. This is the only way you can find out exactly what contaminants are in your water and to determine what capacity is needed for the ideal filtration system.
As we mentioned in one of our previous article, there are water softeners of different capacities, ranging from 15,000 to upwards of 80,000 grains capacity. Most water softener dealers would recommend a 32,000-grain water softener unit or one cubic foot of resin in the majority of US houses.
But this is only the case of salt-based water softeners. There are several models that treat water in different ways.
If you are not at all familiar with home water filtration systems and you have no clue of how they work, it will be quite difficult to understand how the various models on the market work.
Should it operate based on the ion exchange process? Are electric impulses more efficient? Should you choose a water filtration system just to filter your drinking water or do you want it to be a whole house unit?
Given that no water purification system succeeds in removing absolutely all contaminants from the water, you will need to determine exactly what you expect from such a system.
This table made by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describes the technologies used by current water purification systems, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of using each one.
Treatment Device |
What It Does To Water |
Treatment Limitations |
Activated Carbon Filter |
|
Is efficient in removing metals such as lead and copper. Does not remove nitrates, bacteria, or dissolved minerals. |
Ion Exchange Unit |
|
If water has oxidized iron or iron bacteria, the ion-exchange resin will become coated or clogged and lose its softening ability. |
Reverse Osmosis Unit |
|
Does not remove all inorganic and organic contaminants. |
Distillation Unit |
|
Does not remove some volatile organic contaminants, certain pesticides, and volatile solvents. Bacteria may recolonize on the cooling coils during inactive periods. |
In some cases, you do not have to be an experienced plumber to install some of the home water filtration systems available on the market today.
Even if the installation is not a decisive criterion in buying a water filtration system, many people invest more money in a product thinking that they can take care of its installation without hiring a plumber. And we can't blame them, because installing a water softener with the help of a professional can cost up to 4,000$.
Therefore, installation time and difficulty differ from system to system. Some water softeners require quite a lot of space to be installed, others need cutting pipes to be attached to the main water supply line in your home, while some models can be installed in less than half an hour.
If you want to skip the costs involved in installing a water purification system by hiring a professional, you can choose one that can be easily installed just by following the instructions in the user manual. We actually have prepared a short guide on installing water softeners systems depending on the chosen model.
No one wants to invest in a product that requires daily maintenance and constant purchase of consumables.
For example, if you decide on a salt-based water softener, you will have to constantly buy bags of salt to supply the softener's brine tank. This system needs salt for its regeneration cycle that happens after a certain period, and it cannot function without it.
Even though this needs to be done once every 6-8 weeks, some older models won't let you know when it's time for a salt refill. So, you should avoid these water softeners if you do not get too well with your memory.
Moreover, some water purification systems use filters that need replacement after a few months, usually twice a year. If the filters are not replaced in time, they will not only stop the system from working, but may worsen the condition of your water once it passes through. This is the case of refrigerator water filters that filter back the impurities retained over time into your water if not changed without delay.
The best thing you can do is to inform if the filtration system you want to buy uses filters or a certain "fuel" to regenerate such as salt or potassium chloride. If so, find out how often you will have to change those filters or refill the system and what costs each one involves.
If so far we have discussed the dissimilarities that water purification systems have in terms of technology, maintenance, and installation, there is one more thing that differentiates them - the price.
A water softener can start from 200-300 $. However, their price can vary greatly depending on additional costs like in the case of salt-based water softeners that need regular salt refills and money invested in hiring a professional for installation.
At the same time, an advanced system can cost up to 1000 $ but will never require professional help for installation or even user intervention after is done. The purpose of buying a water filtration system is to solve the problem of hard water and impurities in its consistency. Therefore, such an investment is meant to bring long-term benefits, not to constantly attract costs.
Apart from a water filtration system, we also recommend a water descaler to ensure the reduction of hardness. Unlike a water softener, a descaler won't put any sodium into your water, nor will it modify its composition.
Our Yarna Water Descaler CWD24 is very affordable when compared to other available options. It isn't limited by GPG or GPM and it can be installed in just about 15 minutes using only the things that come inside the box.
Moreover, our water descalers came with a one-year money-back guarantee that you can even extend to 10 years by simply registering your product on our website.
Unclean water is a serious matter. Therefore, choosing a suitable water filtration system for your home cannot be a hasty decision.
We hope that our article will help you find a suitable filtration system for your home. Keep in mind to choose a model that can treat the contaminants present in your water, that does not require time-consuming maintenance or an installation almost as expensive as the initial price of the product.
]]>With so many options available on the market, the only hard job for you will be to find the proper water softener for your household. However, if you have already passed this step, this article is going to help you to get over the next one: how to install a water softener.
Before going through the installation procedure, we will make a brief recap of how does a water softener work. Shortly, a traditional water softener works on a principle called ion exchange. This system removes minerals like magnesium and calcium from hard water by an exchange with sodium ions from the resin beads. For every milligram of hardness that is removed, 0.46 milligrams of sodium will be added to the water.
Despite its popularity, this system is not the only one available on the market. There are several models of water softeners that work on principles other than ion-exchange. Regardless of how they work, they all aim for the same thing: solving the hard water problem.
However, among those that can be easily installed by the user, there are types: the salt-based water softener, the salt-free water softener, and the magnetic water softener.
First thing to think about above all is the installation place. Water softeners should be kept away from any activities that may affect their function. This means you must secure them from children's access or pets, somewhere not to stand in anyone's way. The best place to install a water softener is near the water's point of entry into the house. Secluded places like garages, pantries, basements, or utility rooms are the best options.
However, this may also depend on its size and technical specifications. Some water softeners must be placed under-sink or in other places to function properly. That’s why you should always check the user manual of your product before following our recommendations or others.
Equally important, the area in which it is going to be placed must be voluminous, especially if it needs a separate draining recipient. Also, if you choose a salt-based water softener, you may need the salt to always be near the brine tank. That means extra space for salt storage.
Therefore, if placed somewhere with temperatures lower than 40°F/4°C, your water softener may break faster than you expect. That being said, make sure that the place you choose is suitable for your water softener, otherwise, the installation will be in vain.
Next, we have prepared some installation suggestions for water softeners that can be installed without the help of a professional plumber. Remember that each system has a different structure, so it is also important to check the manufacturer's specifications before starting.
Even though it is one of the most preferred option, this water softener requires a fairly long installation process. As mentioned before, the basis of its operation is the concept of ion exchange, and the "fuel" that makes it work is salt.
However, due to its easy maintenance and convenient market prices, a salt-based softener is worth installing.
STEPS TO FOLLOW:
This water softener is quite similar to the previous model. Unlike the salt-based softener, this one does not remove minerals from the water. It acts chemically to morph these minerals so that they no longer have negative effects on your house's piping system, fixtures, and appliances.
However, the main difference is reasonably obvious: there is no salt. That means not only the usage and maintenance will be much easier, but also its installation.
STEPS TO FOLLOW:
If a quick installation that involves little effort is a must for you, this water softener is the one. Although it should not be a defining criterion in your purchase decision, magnetic water softeners have many other qualities. Having a mode of operation other than ion exchange, this water softener does not eliminate water hardness but reduces it through a magnetic field.
The good part is that good minerals in the water will stay there, making it not only safe for pipes and house appliances, but also ideal for drinking. Moreover, the price for such a system is usually affordable, and maintenance will never be a hassle.
STEPS TO FOLLOW:
Make sure there is enough space under the kitchen sink for the tank and filters. Take measurements of the available space—in a sink space filled with a garbage disposer or other items, an RO unit with its tank and multiple filters may be hard to fit.
Unbox the storage tank and filter components and double-check to make sure that they will fit under the kitchen sink in the desired locations. Test to see if all of the components fit properly so that you won't have surprises down the line. The following steps should be all in this particular order. Consult your user manual to see that you've done it right depending on the make and model:
We couldn't complete this list without giving suggestions on how to install our CWD30 Water Descaler! It is a salt-free alternative that prevents the minerals in your water from adhering to the inside of your plumbing, including things like: shower heads, faucet aerators, clothes washer, dishwasher, or the inside of your water heater.
Compared to other systems, the operating temperature of CWD30 ranges from -13°F to 122°F (–25°C to +50°C). However, one of the biggest advantages is that the installation can be done quickly, without any moving parts
It fully deserves its place here due to its ease of installation and the little time that it involves.
STEPT TO FOLLOW:
Looks like installing a water softener does not require divine skills. Yet, each system comes with different installation instructions and various methods to complete it, so you have to be well informed before starting it by yourself.
Even if these ways of how to install a water softener alone seem to be cost-efficient and the entire process will help you better understand every component of your system, it is not recommended to do this if you have never done any technical repairs and you have no clue how to do it at home.
Obviously, hiring a professional will relieve you of any worries in case of something unforeseen occurs during installation.
]]>In a nutshell, water softening would not be possible without the exchange between sodium ions and hard minerals.
Before getting into how a water softener works, you must first understand what exactly happens if it indeed runs out of salt. And for this you need to understand why that salt is important and why it is used in the first place.
Because the salt is used to prepare the brine solution, if your water softener runs out of salt, the first thing that will be affected are the resin beads. These will soon become unable to absorb minerals from hard water, making the entire system useless.
However, the lack of salt will generate other consequences such as the following:
To put it another way, you should never let your water softener run out of salt. This mistake is likely to cause permanent damage to the system components and your fixtures and appliances as well.
Water softeners have been around for about 110 years. Since then, they have endlessly tried to develop the best water softening solutions. One of the most popular is the ion exchange, the process used by salt-based water softeners to remove hardness from water.
A traditional water softener consists of two tanks and a control valve. In the first tank are the resin beads, which exchange ions with minerals in the water. In the second it is prepared the salt brine, used to wash the beads from the first tank once they reach their maximum absorption capacity.
The role of salt here is to create salt brine that washes the mineral deposits off the resin beads. In other words, sodium is detaching the mineral build-up from resin beads, taking away the calcium and magnesium accumulated there.
Currently, there are certain models of water softeners on the market that display the amount of salt left. With one like this, you won't have to worry about checking the salt level in the brine tank manually. However, if your water softener is not that advanced, you will need to check the amount on your own and add salt every 6-8 weeks.
To check the salt level of your water softener, you need to open the tank brine and look inside. If the salt level is less than half, that's a sign you have to do a refill.
Ideally, the salt must take up about three-quarters of the tank volume. Adding too much salt will prevent the system from regenerating properly.
As shown above, a water softener that runs out of salt can be a real hassle for users. However, to avoid such situations, a suitable alternative are the salt-free systems. These water softeners do not use the ion exchange for softening the hard water. This means you will not have to buy bags of salt regularly or to find a place to store them.
There are 3 such water softeners on the market: the basic salt-free water softener, the magnetic water softener, and the osmosis water softener. Each of them offers a different user experience and different ways of softening the water.
The maintenance of this system is easier without the ion exchange procedure that requires the use of salt. However, this salt-free water softener does not remove minerals from hard water like the salt-based one. Therefore, it changes the chemical composition of these minerals such as calcium and magnesium, so as not to affect the surfaces they encounter.
Pros:
Cons:
Quite similar to basic salt-free systems, but different by their method of installation and operation, the magnetic water softeners are the latest on market. These softeners reduce water hardness by draining it through a magnetic field. With such a system, you will enjoy softened water without any good missing minerals.
Pros:
Cons:
The reverse osmosis water softeners act more like water filters removing absolutely all substances from the water, adding back good minerals at the end. However, this water softener is usually an under-sink unit that provides soft water for only one faucet.
Pros:
Cons:
However, if you are looking for a water softener for your home, consider the size of your family as well. To make a quick and easy calculation, multiply the number of people in your home by the gallons/litres of water they use each day.
That number should be multiplied by the grains of hardness in your water to identify how many grains need to be removed each day. Then add this criterion to the list of features that the right water softener for you must have.
Not least, we would like to discuss about another suitable salt-free alternative: the water desclaer. What makes a water descaler different from a water softener is the way it is softening hard water. A water descaler is using a magnetic field for charging the water's minerals, reducing the build-up and scale deposits caused by hard water.
Additionally, water descalers won't take up as much space in your home as a traditional two-tank water softener which will probably need a place to store salt as well. Another important thing to mention is that water descaler requires minimal maintenance. No brine solution used for cleaning resin beads means no salt level to frequently check.
Without the bags of salt which you have to buy regularly for a traditional water softener, the costs will be much lower in the long run, and sodium excess will never be an issue for your softened water.
However, to better understand the difference between water softener and descalers, we recommend reading one of our articles that addresses this topic.
Next, we will present some examples of water descalers to support all the above statements.
Yarna descalers CWD24, CWD30, or CWD48 requires no salt or chemicals to be effective as hard water scale removers and limescale prevention solution. Traditional water softeners, on the other hand, use salt and chemicals that are discharged into the waste stream and unable to be removed by wastewater treatment facilities.
Our descalers soften hard water with the use of chemical reaction, induced by electricity, with no need of salt and regular refilling to do that. These systems work based on capacitive effect, also known as cathodic protection. It is a method that relies on physics principles to protect metal against corrosion and is essential for metal pipes, ships, and boats that have to stay a long time in the water. It also offers corrosion protection to steel structures buried in the soil.
In other words, Yarna descalers prevent the minerals in your water from adhering to the inside of your plumbing like shower heads, faucet aerators, clothes washer, dishwasher, inside of your water heater, and others. The minerals are supposed to simply pass through the system and down the drain.
If so far we have demonstrated that low maintenance and efficiency are their fundamental characteristics, in terms of installation, you will enjoy a lot of versatility. Yarna descalers can work with any pipe type up to 1” thick: iron, copper, stainless steel, plastic, and they are easy to install without any moving parts.
If your water softener runs out of salt, not only its components will be affected, but also the pipe system in your home, the appliances, and fixtures due to hard water that could not be softened. To avoid this, it is recommended to regularly check the salt level in the water softener tank if it doesn't provide this information on its own.
However, you will never encounter this situation if you choose a salt-free alternative. Depending on your needs and the water consumption in your home, you may want to consider a basic salt-free water softener, a magnetic water softener, a RO system, or one of our descalers, which will save you from constantly checking the salt level.
]]>Research has shown that hard water posed serious problems for your skin and hair, even if it does not correlate with other health problems most people fear.
To put your mind at ease and help you circumvent the hard water health effects, we have gathered a few tips for washing your hair in hard water to help you prevent such problems. While some are only temporary fixes, there is one that can help you out in the long run. Read further to find out all the benefits.
The most convenient method for preventing the negative impact of hard water is using a moisturizing hair mask.
Hair masks are a quick fix for dry, frizzy hair, and they provide numerous health benefits in just around 20 minutes. A good hair mask will give you the shine that hard water takes away. And it also offers you softening and moisturizing properties that boost growth.
While it might take a bit of effort and time to do so, it’s free. And once you catch a good rain, you’ll have enough water to shower for at least a couple of days. Rain water is soft and usually free of other pollutants as well.
Natural shampoos, especially clarifying shampoos, are yet another great product that you can use to counter the effects of hard water.
Out of all the tips for washing hair in hard water that we’ve mentioned so far, this is probably the most effective. Many people recommend a nut and shikakai shampoo because it restores volume, shine, and integrity much faster than other solutions.
Once a week, you can use some leave-in conditioner to counteract some of the effects of hard water.
If water hardness is exceptionally high in your area, you might want to use this method two times a week. Leave-in conditioner is great if you’ve experienced hair discoloration. Jojoba oil, almond oil, coconut oil, and argan oil are some of the ingredients you should be looking for in a leave-in conditioner.
Bottled water isn’t perfect per se. Manufacturing it requires wasting a lot of plastic. And the costs add up enormously over time.
However, bottled water is usually soft enough to use on your hair without any compromise. Now, before you go stockpile on tens of water bottles, here’s a little disclaimer. Using bottled water to wash your hair means you’ll need a lot of it.
And we do mean A LOT. We recommend using it only for the final rinse, as it will wash away lather and soap scum more efficiently than hard water. Afterward, it would be best if you still used a conditioner or a hair mask to get the full benefits. This is one of those tips for washing hair in hard water that isn’t all that effective on its own. However, it still is better than nothing.
The pH level of citric acid is perfect for breaking down hard water minerals. Dilute lemon or lime juice in a glass that is filled three quarters with water.
After using shampoo, just pour the mixture on your head and spread it thoroughly, especially on your scalp. Leave it on for about 5 minutes and then rinse it away. One more benefit of citric acid is that it also fights dandruff.
Vinegar is good at getting rid of limescale, but it’s also effective for your hair. Just like using citric acid, vinegar’s pH also neutralizes the effects of hard water.
We recommend using apple cider vinegar, but any type will work just fine. Mix one third of vinegar with two thirds of water in a small jar or cup. The rest of the process goes the same as when using citric acid. Just one warning: don’t do this every day. Do it only once a week.
Installing an anode rod protects the pipes from water hardness, and because the powered anode rod functions similar to the principles of cathodic protection, it can also theoretically prevent hard water buildup when taking a shower. Thus, your hair should theoretically be safe from the effects of hard water.
Now you've seen 7 of the best tips for washing hair in hard water. However, we're only now reaching the top one.
You've probably noticed that the tips mentioned so far are temporary and require some effort on your behalf. We saved the best for last. It's a product that will last you at least several years without any extra effort.
It is time to introduce the water descaler. With a simple installation that only takes a few minutes, you’ll receive gallons upon gallons of softened water. The descaler works by sending electronic impulses throughout your pipe and modifying hard mineral crystals’ shape to make them less sticky.
If you want to learn more about how a water descaler works, click here. The main takeaway is the fact that it softened water without adding chemicals or salt. Unlike a water softener, it’s easy to install, doesn’t require any plumbing, and doesn’t require you to buy any extras. You only have to install it, plug it in, and it works.
Hard water shrinks the lifespan of washing machines and dishwashers by a large margin. The resulting limescale deposits block the components and inhibit them from working properly.
Not just that, but all appliances that use water will suffer the same consequences. Furthermore, hard water leaves stains on dishes, clothes, faucets, showerheads, etc. This can make cleaning a bigger hassle than it already is.
By getting a water descaler, you will avoid all of these problems. And you’ll also save money in the long run. How so? By eliminating limescale and preventing it from forming in the future, water will circulate more easily. This is especially noticeable if you use a water heater.
Also, you’ll use less water when washing because shampoo and soap will form lather more easily. And you’ll also get rid of soap scum without much effort. We also have a special 10-year warranty for parts and labor. So with just a small investment, you’ll be able to save up to $1000 in a single year.
]]>To which extent does this problem affect your daily life depends on the water hardness level that your pipes and water-based appliances have to endure.
However, even the slightest shift upwards in hardness can become quite detrimental in the long run for your entire plumbing, showerhead, faucet, toilet bowl, washing machine, dishwasher, kettle, and much, much more.
To combat these problems, many people have opted for salt-based water softeners. Despite them being banned in several states, softeners are oftentimes regarded as the go-to method for softening water. However, one thing that sellers won’t tell you is that excessive sodium can cause massive amounts of damage to your septic tank.
Knowing how a septic system functions is the key element that allows people to understand why salt-based water softeners might be a bad idea in the long run.
A conventional septic system consists of a septic tank, a distribution box, and a drain field, all connected by pipes. Once the water gets drained from your household, the sludge is held inside the septic tank until it settles down.
The lighter pollutants float on top of the sludge in what’s known as the primary treatment. Afterward, bacteria that occur naturally in human waste start to decompose the lower sludge layer and the upper materials that float above the scum layer. Finally, the liquid between the solids and the scum flows out of the tank through a baffle and into a distribution.
Ok, so now you know how a septic system works. We mentioned the sludge that accumulates earlier. Well, the thing is that as more sludge and scum accumulate at the bottom of the tank, the septic system will have to work harder.
When the sludge level rises, new wastewater coming from the house has less time to suspend particles and settle them into the sludge layer. What does this imply? It means that the suspended particles flow into the absorption field.
As you can probably tell, you’ll need to pump out the tank periodically to reduce the sludge and scum formations, or otherwise it will get blocked by the excess. If left unchecked, the excess sludge will block the drain field box and subsequently prevent you from being able to flush your toilet, drain your shower water, etc.
Moving on, once you drain the excessive sludge found in the septic system, the secondary treatment method occurs. The distribution box evenly separates the flow into a network of drain field pipes. Each pipe flows the water through the holes found on their underside and allow the water to drain into gravel-filled trenches. Finally, the water seeps into the soil where it gets treated further.
So now you’ve got rid of the excess sludge and sodium in the septic tank and the water is free to enter the soil and subsequently get delivered into your well or the local municipality’s water plant.
Do you know what happens next? That’s right, water accumulates hard minerals from the soil and goes back to being hard yet again. We’ve talked about hard water and its effects on household appliances before, so you can see why this is a problem.
You’re basically paying large amounts of money and wasting a lot of time on maintenance only to have more hard water delivered to you in the future. More salt bags, more energy consumption, more wasted water, more damage to your septic tank, etc.
The current price for a water softener salt bag average anywhere between $5 and $25. More modern softeners don’t consume as much salt but might still require a 40-pound bag every month or so.
But the more costly problem is the damage done to your septic tank. Sure, you can get to work and drain it more often, but you won’t be able to drain all the sodium crystals. In time, they will still accumulate, and the harder work your septic tank goes through, the more prone it is to failure.
And replacing an entire septic system or even just fixing it can be quite costly. You wouldn’t want it to break when you need it the most. However, there’s an even more modern solution that assures you won’t have to deal with this issue ever again. It involves the same principles as a water softener, but without any sodium involved.
More modern water softeners are more optimized in the way they use salt. Brine discharged from well-operated water softeners shows no overflow in the septic system. In fact, the discharge is so low that it's comparable with the amount of sodium from discharged water used by other household appliances.
It is important to understand how the quality of a water softener can influence a septic system. The discussion of a water softener and a septic system is on-going in part due to extremely inefficient softeners that remain in use. More modern variants don't have issues with septic systems because of the small amount of sodium.
However, that small amount of sodium can still have some nasty side effects for drinking water. For example, people with increased blood pressure should avoid sodium as much as they can, and the amount found in softened water is enough to potentially harm them. For that reason, we would like to recommend you a softening method that doesn't involve any salt or sodium whatsoever.
There’s another method to soften water that doesn’t waste any water whatsoever and that doesn’t require sodium, maintenance, or expensive repair fees.
The only thing that you need is electricity and about 10 inches of an exposed pipe. No plumbing skills or any additional tools required. Even better, this device doesn’t depend on water speed. It works just fine at 0.5 GPG as it does at 100 or more GPG.
Want another reason why you should switch? It doesn’t matter what type of pipe you have, as this little solution works on any material. And there are absolutely no other expenses to speak of. Just one device that creates a capacitive effect to reshape calcium and magnesium crystals and make them less sticky.
A water descaler works by using the same principles as cathodic protection to keep limescale away from the pipes.
Limescale is the main culprit that keeps your appliances from working efficiently and reaching their full lifespan potential. It forms when calcium and magnesium crystals in hard water build-up and start clumping together.
The main difference in how a water descaler handles limescale compared to a softener is huge. Instead of adding sodium, a descaler emits capacitive electronic signals that actively change the hard mineral crystals’ shape. This way, you’ll still get hard water’s health benefits while keeping your plumbing and appliances safe.
The only things you’ll need when installing a water descaler are the pieces it comes with inside the box:
Do you see the difference? An electronic water descaler doesn’t require any plumbing whatsoever. And the device is so thin and light that you will surely find room to fit it on your main pipe. Unlike a salt-based water softener, the descaler only requires electricity. You’ll never need to purchase extra or worry about sodium and other chemicals infiltrating the water.
The ease of installation is just one of the reasons you should opt for a descaler. Its space-saving design and lack of need for maintenance are also some reasons that people have switched to a descaler over the years.
The main unit sends electric impulses through the two copper bands which create a capacitive effect inside the pipe. Mineral crystals get reshaped into smaller dots or straight spear-like particles. This way, they no longer stick to anything. While water keeps its “hardness”, it will no longer cling to pipes, washing machines, faucets, etc.
Now let’s see just how easy it is to install the Yarna Capacitive Electronic Water Descaler:
The Yarna Water Descaler doesn’t just prevent future limescale buildups. It also slowly softens the current buildup that’s latching onto your pipes.
Even on the hardest water levels, you should still see visible results in water quality in just three months. And you’ll have enough time on your hands to test it out because of our one-year money-back guarantee.
Because of the descaler’s effects on water and no need for maintenance or extras, you will most likely end up saving up to $1000 in detergents, soap, water and electricity bills. And because the mineral particles no longer stick, you’ll have a better time washing your hair and skin.
Finally, you’ll also benefit from our 10-year warranty when you register the descaler on our website.
The Yarna Water Descaler can greatly improve your life by eliminating the negative effects of hard water and keeping only the positives.
Moreover, it only costs a fraction of what you’d spend on a water softener plus all the salt bags, plumbing, and maintenance one requires. Get your descaler today and see the benefits for yourself thanks to our full-year money-back guarantee!
]]>To highlight the credibility of our statement, we prepared a detailed guide on how does a water softener work, going through key points about its main purpose, components, and essential advantages for users.
Hard water is a phenomenon that gives headaches to many homeowners. It is responsible for causing heavy mineral build-up all along the pipes of your house and shortening the lifespan of appliances you invested in.
The most common minerals that create water hardness are calcium and magnesium. Therefore, the transition from hard to softened water is made by removing these minerals through the ion exchange process of water softeners.
In brief, a water softener is an ionic exchange system that removes the mineral excess, metal particles, and contaminants from your water supply, acting as a magnetic sponge to pull them away. The result: soft water.
First of all, the main contrast between hard and soft water is reflected in their harsh mineral content. Hard water contains large amounts of dissolved calcium, magnesium, iron, and other particles that can cause problems to your home. In other words, water hardness is caused by huge amounts of these minerals from its consistency.
General guidelines for classification of water types are: 0 to 60 mg/L (milligrams per litre) as calcium carbonate is classified as soft; 61 to 120 mg/L as moderately hard; 121 to 180 mg/L as hard; and more than 180 mg/L as very hard.
In less scientific terms, hard water marks can be spot on glasses and silverware coming out of the dishwasher, the feeling of a film on hands after washing (caused by the soap reaction to calcium), mineral stains on clothes and much lower water pressure.
In the long run, hard water will affect the amount of soap and detergent used for cleaning, making them less effective; will affect the fabric of the clothes, making them unpleasantly stiff to the touch, and perhaps one of the critical issues is that minerals of hard water can build up in pipes, plumbing fixtures, and appliances, significantly shortening their lifespan.
Moreover, even if there is no evidence that it could affect health, hard water can damage your hair and skin in some ways.
The minerals it contains can cause dryness for your skin, making natural oils from sebaceous glands less effective, leading to faster ageing in the absence of proper nutrition.
As with the skin, hard water makes it difficult to rinse products off the hair, leaving the scalp dry and potentially irritated. Consequently, this will make you question the capabilities of the products you use for your hair and skin routine.
To understand how water softeners treat the water hardness condition, you must first understand the role of each component.
A water softener contains three basic components: the main tank, where is found the resin that cleans the water and makes it soft, the second tank - where the salt brine is produced, and the control valve.
Also known as the exchange tank, this component plays the most important role in water filtration. Here is happening the whole process of water purification by removing the minerals calcium and magnesium through the resin beads.
At the bottom of this tank, there is also some water that mixes with salt in order to produce salt brine used to regenerate the entire process.
When the system needs to regenerate is going to draw that heavy brine solution out of the tank and run it through the resin. Every couple of days, the salt brine is flushed into the first tank to clean away all the hardness ions, after which it gets rinsed and sent into the wastewater drain.
This way, the system recharges and washes itself depending on how often it’s set, how hard the water is and how much amount is used in your house. If you live in a big house with a large family, it is normal for the regeneration process to happen more often.
As much as the water flows through the mineral tank, the resin beads make an exchange between sodium ions and hardness ions, wearing out over time. The control valve measures the amount of water that passes through the mineral tank back to your house and determines when to regenerate the system.
In the absence of this component, the measurements and regeneration time should be set by the user.
As we mentioned before, a water softener works on a principle called ion exchange. In the mineral tank, the resin beads with a negative charge are full of sodium ions. At the opposite pole, hardness minerals from the water have a positive charge.
As the hard water flows through this tank, the minerals it contains are attracted to the resin beads, which releases the sodium ions, removing all the hard minerals. The whole process is an exchange between the sodium from the resin beads and the calcium and magnesium minerals from hard water. After the mineral deposits cling to the resin, softened water exits the system and flows throughout the house.
During use over time, the beads will no longer be able to absorb efficiently the minerals from hard water, so the softener will have to be regenerated. Thus, the brine tank produces the brine solution which is flushed through the resin during regeneration. This salty water will wash the mineral deposits of the resin beads, giving back their maximum absorption capacity.
However, the regeneration could not be possible without the control valve. This one calculates the amount of water that has flowed through the softener. Depending on the predefined settings of the water softener, regeneration is repeated after a certain period.
If you want to avoid periodic replacement of pipes and water heaters, worn faucet ends, fading laundry, and endless soap marks caused by mineral build-ups, you should consider buying a water softener.
In financial terms, a water softener lowers the energy costs reducing the scale build-up in your water heater. Water softening can save as much as 30% in energy - a cost savings of $243 per month (more than $2,916 annually). Moreover, water softeners can save up to 35% on detergent costs and up to 25% on downtime for equipment maintenance repairs. This will also reduce amount of soap you need in order to create lather and will give a feeling of silker skin after washing.
Softened water will expand the lifetime of your house plumbing. Hard water causes build-up not only on showers, sinks, and tubes but also inside appliances and pipes. The first signs of damage caused by hard water can be seen through less efficiency, which over time leads to complete deterioration and the need for replacement. Therefore, a water softener will save you from worrying about investing in your plumbing system over again.
Furthermore, a water softener will give your clothes the look they had right before you bought them. Hardness visibly affects the fabric of your clothes and turns whites into faded shades of yellow. Without the hard minerals, your laundry will always be safe from deterioration.
Similarly, the products you use for your hair and skincare will be able to act at maximum capacity, without being hindered by the negative effects of hard water.
As shown above, all these advantages can be obtained using a basic water softener. But you could get more than that with an alternative.
If you want a no-salt alternative to a water softener, the best option is a water descaler. It greatly enhances the quality of water without any chemicals and it uses the principles of cathodic protection to remove existing limescale from pipes and prevent rust.
And, unlike a water softener, our descaler isn't limited by GPG or GPM or even total hardness for that matter. You won't be needing any salt or extra equipment regardless of hardness levels. And that's just the beginning. See the full list of our water descaler's benefits down below:
If space and maintenance were problematic for you, the Yarna Descalers will relieve you of both. However, compared to a traditional water softener, this descaler comes with a lot of other benefits for homeowners.
Yarna descaler softens hard water with the use of the chemical reaction, induced by electricity. That means low maintenance and no need for salt refilling.
One thing that people often ignore when buying a water softener working on the ion-exchange principle is the negative effects that salt has on health. Besides the ease of installation and the small size that will take up little space, our Yarna water descaler can soften your water without using salt.
This system does not need salt brine to regenerate because it treats the water with electric impulses. Furthermore, because it is a salt-free water softener, this descaler will not pose any risk to people on salt-restricted diets and will also save you from regular costs for filling the system with salt.
Due to its ionic exchange process, a traditional water softener can exclude good minerals too. Yarna descaler would not eliminate wanted and necessary minerals like calcium and magnesium from your softened water.
Ultimately, if you decide on buying our CWD24 electronic water descaler you’ll get a full one-year money-back guarantee and a 10-year manufacturer warranty once you register the product on our website.
Water hardness is a phenomenon that can go unnoticed over time. Now, that you know how a water softener works, you certainly understood what impact can have hard water on your house's plumbing system, fixtures, and appliances, along with other side effects.
We hope that this information will help you choose the best water softener for you and your home!
]]>With these simple life hacks, you will be able to rid yourself of all those nasty hard water stains – and even prevent them in the first place with some of these tricks. Without further ado, let’s get going and see how you can remove existing limescale, and then we’ll focus on how to prevent it altogether in the future.
You might want to contact your local municipality or the water company directly to find out what exact level of hardness your water has. Otherwise, you can purchase a TDS kit to measure the exact amount of total dissolved solids in your water supply.
Why do this when you’ve already seen the telltale signs of hard water? Because it gives you a good indication of how bad your situation is. For example, moderately hard water might not leave nearly as much limescale on fixtures but it can trigger the effects of dermatitis in people who suffer from this skin condition.
If you want to have clean dishes without having to deal with pesky film or those distasteful white stains, you should consider getting detergent that’s specifically formulated to fight against the effects of hard water. To top it all off, purchase quality rinse aid agent to further enhance the results.
For even better effects, we also recommend either washing dishes by hand or cleaning your dishwasher on a regular basis – more specifically, once a month. It is best to consult your dishwasher’s manual to see how to clean each individual piece for maximum results. However, if you don’t want to bother with the manual for some reason, here is the basic rundown:
Since this is the place where you’ll inevitably use the most water, there are bound to be a plethora of hard water stains and limescale deposits here.
The good news is that removing those stains isn’t complicated at all. As far as ingredients go, all you’ll need are things that you most likely already have lying somewhere around the house – namely white vinegar, a spray bottle, and a cloth.
Here’s what you’ll need to do first: create a 50/50 mix of white vinegar and fresh water and pour it inside a spray bottle. Spray surfaces liberally and let the vinegar solution sit for at least 15 minutes. Wipe clean with a clean, dry microfiber towel.
For extra hard limescale deposits, you can try adding equal parts white vinegar and baking soda. Mix them together until they form a paste and spread them over the affected surfaces. Let the solution sit for about 15 minutes and wipe away with a clean microfiber cloth.
We’ll start with the showerhead since all you need is a small plastic bag half full of white vinegar. Use a rubber hand or anything similar to tie the bag around the showerhead and leave it in place for an hour or two.
Alternatively, you can unscrew the showerhead and place it in a bowl filled with white vinegar. Whichever method you’ve chosen, you’ll have to take out a toothbrush afterwards and scrub all the limescale away with it. Afterward, take a needle and poke each one of the showerhead's holes so that you'll get the last bit of limescale out.
As for faucets, the solution consists of dipping a clean rag or cloth into a solution of vinegar and then wrapping it around the tap, especially focusing on areas where limescale and white spots are visible. Let it sit for a few hours, just as you would for the bag and showerhead. Afterwards, do the same as you’d do with that – namely, take a toothbrush or clean cloth and wipe away all the remaining limescale.
Note that you can rinse afterwards with some fresh water to get rid of the vinegar smell. You might also want to leave the window open for a few hours; cause we all know that vinegar smell can persist.
Finally, for the toilet bowl you can pour one and a half cups of vinegar, leave it there for a few minutes, and then use the toilet brush to scrub the hard mineral deposits away. Afterwards, just flush the toilet as you would normally do after doing your business. optionally, you can also search for toilet fresheners with hard water-fighting properties.
Sinks, tubs, glass shower walls, and doors are all common places for mineral deposits to collect. Sure, those aren’t nearly as problematic as a limescale clogging your showerhead or pipes clogged by limescale.
However, leave the limescale to thicken and it will slowly turn to a yellow-ish color that’ll make those surfaces look as if someone “did their business” on them, if you catch our drift. Fortunately, if the deposits are still low, you can remove them without a lot of elbow grease. Just create a formula of half white vinegar and half water like we mentioned earlier in the article. The solution can be mixed in a spray bottle and sprayed directly onto the affected area. Once it has set in, just scrub it away with a clean, soft cloth or a sponge and then rinse with fresh water.
Many people have been using salt-based water softeners until recently to get rid of hard water and all the problems it causes. However, a salt-based water softener causes other problems that were not present before.
In short, it puts sodium in your drinking water, which increases your heart rate, blocks plants from getting their much-needed nutrients, and greatly affects people with certain health conditions.
Furthermore, a salt-based softener completely removes beneficial minerals from your water, so you will also get less calcium and magnesium in your daily diet. And lest we forget, your septic system might also be affected by it. Overall, it’s not a great solution for the environment, and it’s no wonder several states and counties have either banned them completely or heavily regulated their use.
Given this context, it’s clear that you’ll be far better off looking for salt-free alternatives. However, not all alternatives are versatile enough to fulfill each person’s needs. That’s why we have strived to create something so easy to install and use that even your grandma could benefit from it without any outside help.
What makes our water descaler special is its ability to soften your water without taking out the beneficial minerals or adding in sodium and other potentially dangerous chemicals.
It uses capacitive electromagnetic signals that are regulated by an internal CPU and transmitted through the two ultra-wide flat bands. The bands then transmit the signals further inside the water pipe (regardless of the material it’s made out of) and actively reshape the calcium and magnesium crystals.
In short, it smoothens out the mineral particles to prevent them from sticking to surfaces. This way, you’ll still get the benefits of drinking hard water but without the negative parts such as dermatitis or hair loss caused by bathing in it. All of these benefits only require a bit of electricity and nothing more.
There are plenty of other benefits that the Yarna water descaler offers. Not only does it soften your water without sodium or chemicals while only requiring a bit of electricity, but it’s also easy to install. No plumbing skills or special tools needed whatsoever.
All you need comes inside the box. And to make the deal even sweeter, we’re offering a full one-year money-back guarantee so you will have more than enough time to test it out. Note that in some cases it’s possible to only notice its effects after three months of continuous use if your water is truly hard. But you won’t have to worry thanks to this guarantee.
Also, we’re offering a full ten-year warranty to anyone who registers their descaler on our website. So get yours today and enjoy all these benefits at a highly affordable price compared to traditional salt-based water softeners!
Unlike a traditional salt-based water softener, our descalers are made with ease of use and convenience in mind. You won't need any specialized tools and you won't need to modify your plumbing in any way, shape, or form.
The installation process is as simple as it gets and you will be able to do it yourself in just about 15 minutes as long as you pay attention to the instructions found in the manual that comes inside the box.
However, if you prefer, you can watch the following clip to see how to install it with a live demonstration:
Also, you you want to know something even better? Our entire descaler lineup requires absolutely no maintenance whatsoever. As long as it's connected to a working power source, it will do its job without any hassle. You can check out our entire lineup of descalers here.
Using any of these life hacks will make it much easier for you to manage all the nasty side effects of hard water.
We hope you’ve found these tricks useful and that they were described explicitly enough so that you can apply them with ease.
]]>Our ultra-flat impulse bands wrap better around the pipe and create a broader array for the electronic signal. This gives it a max capacity of 15.4 GPM, higher than many other models on the market.
However, by far, the best feature is that our electronic water descaler also reduces the current levels of limescale buildup in your pipes within 3 months. Other descalers on the market only prevent future buildup and nothing more.
The Yarna CWD24 electronic water descaler has an IP54 rating, making it highly resistant against dust, water, and other elements. As such, you can use it both indoors and outdoors. Let's see some of the most important tech specs and features of the Yarna electronic water descaler!
While other descalers have a 100 GPG limit, the Yarna model doesn't have any restrictions. Its high-frequency range and capacitive effect make it highly resilient no matter how much mineral content the water has.
The case is made out of resilient ABS plastic. It's resistant against chemical corrosion and high physical impact. So don't worry if you drop it when taking it out of the box. Chances that it will break are meager.
The power cord and impulse bands are five feet in length each. This makes the unit effective up to 1.2 miles from the installation point along with your pipe system. Speaking of the impulse bands, they offer a 97.5% direct contact ratio due to their isolated copper material.
Finally, to make things even better, the Yarna electronic water descaler works with any type of pipe:
Just by looking at the above specs, you can tell that the unit can handle the job well.
As you'll see down the line, the installation process is so seamless that it will take you only around 15 minutes.
Our electronic water descaler requires no maintenance whatsoever. And you don't need a plumber to install it. You also don't need to cut the pipes or install complex systems. Even better, the descaler doesn't require salt packets or other accessories.
The only thing it requires to work is electricity. A 90-240V power outlet is good enough to assure the unit's proper functioning. Once plugged in, it does the work automatically—no need to adjust anything. The chip does everything for you automatically. And it detects even the slightest pressure fluctuation and adjusts itself accordingly.
We've given you some examples of why our descaler is the best option for hard water. However, let's see some of its pros compared to similar products. This way, you will get the bigger picture:
The iSpring electronic water descaler is limited to 19 grains compared to the regular 100 GPG limit. Yarna's descaler, on the other hand, has absolutely no GPG limit thanks to its capacitive properties.
The iSpring's model comes with two regular coils that you have to wrap in a specific manner. The one right after the water entrance needs to be wrapped under the pipes, while the next needs to be wrapped over the pipe. This can get confusing, especially if you live in an apartment complex and aren't sure which direction is which.
Yarna's copper coils do the job just fine no matter which direction you choose to wrap them. No more guessing games or wasted time.
While similar in many ways to our own product, it's again one of those models with regular coils. When installing, you have to wrap the wires tightly so that the current has enough reaction time.
Also, each wire has two heads that need to be connected to the unit. This can make the installation process quite tedious. On top of that, the company only specifies that it works on plastic and metal pipes. It does not say anything about other types of pipes whatsoever.
The ScaleWatcher water conditioner only comes with one light to tell you if it functions properly. Our product has two separate lights for each band. This way, you'll be able to see where the problem lies in case it stops functioning. For the ScaleWatcher product, you'll most likely have to consult the manual and call a technician.
And it only comes with one wire that wraps around the pipe. In theory, this gives the conditioner less time to act in case the water pressure goes up. And because conditioners function slightly different than descalers, its lifespan might be reduced if you're dealing with exceptionally high water hardness.
HQUA's offering is only meant to mild water hardness, as it is limited to 25 GPG. Even so, it might take a couple of months before the existing limescale gets removed. With our descaler, you will see results in three months even on the hardest water level.
Scalesweeper's descaler functions based on electromagnetic principles. This can cause certain disadvantages, as it is directly affected by water pressure. Not only that, but certain elements inside the house can interfere with the magnetism, making it lose some of its effectiveness.
And it only works on galvanized, copper, or PEX (plastic) piping. You already know how our product differs regarding this aspect from the previous examples we've given.
It's easy to see how our descaler differs from this one based on just the picture alone. The unit is massive. It looks like a whole house water filter. To its credit, this system comes with a pre-filtering unit, so there's that.
However, the conditioner is also hard to install and requires a bit of plumbing. That's the exact opposite of the Yarna electronic water descaler. With our product, you only need to wrap the coils around the pipe and plug the unit in a power outlet.
Disclaimer: our intention isn't to belittle any of our competitors. We're simply pointing out the pros of our descaler compared to others that are currently on the market.
You can safely purchase our descaler from our website or from Amazon. On these pages, you can also see other buyers' reviews. So in case you don't trust us, there are over 100 people on Amazon alone who can vouch for us.
We offer a unique 100-day money-back guarantee to let you test out our descaler. Even in the harshest conditions, you should be able to see a big difference after 90 days of use. This gives you enough time to see if the Yarna CWD24 or the CWD30 are right for you.
We also offer a 10-year extended warranty if you register the product. As long as there is no visible intentional damage done, we will replace your unit as soon as possible. However, the biggest benefit is your health. No chemicals or salt added to the water, ever. You know the old saying: health is above wealth.
We recommend installing the Yarna electronic water descaler at the entry point of the main water supply line. Also, make sure you have a power outlet nearby.
The descaler works up to 1.2 miles throughout the plumbing system. You should also take note of the water temperature if you want to store it. The descaling effect should last up to seven days if you're storing hot water. But it lasts only two if the water is cold.
The bands are 51 inches long each. Out of each one's length, you should use a maximum of 39 inches to wrap the pipe with. The rest of the bands' length allows you to install the descaler at a distance if necessary.
Here is a short guide on how to install the Yarna electronic water descaler!
Now you can start enjoying the benefits of water softening without the negatives.
We have talked about this differences between a descaler and softener on a previous occasion, but it doesn't hurt to remind you.
A water softener works by replacing minerals inside the water with sodium. You need a professional plumber to install the unit and get it working properly.
More specifically, the softener pumps water through a brine solution into a resin tank where resin beads trap the hard water minerals in exchange for sodium. You can quickly test the changes in the water by using a TDS meter.
However, a softener comes with some disadvantages.
Furthermore, the cost can add up in time, even if you do save some money on water bills. And having sodium in the water also comes with its downsides. For starters, drinking a high amount of sodium has negative health effects. Increased blood pressure and heart disease are the first two things that come to mind. Not to mention that your water will taste off.
A water descaler, on the other hand, gives you no such troubles. It works by modifying the mineral crystals' shape instead of replacing them with sodium. No sodium, no risk when drinking water. and as mentioned earlier, the installation process is far simpler compared to that of a water softener. Also, descalers require practically zero maintenance – yet another cost-effective aspect.
Yes, there are other water softening methods out there apart from softeners and descalers. Let's explore each one in short to see their strengths and weaknesses.
RO systems filter water through a membrane that rejects pollutants based on their ionic charge and size. They act as both a softener and a filter at the same time.
Pros:
Cons:
TAC is comprised of a tank that contains a treatment medium inside. When water passes through the granular medium, it gets treated.
Pros:
Cons:
Water conditioners work by emitting a sonar pulse inside the water pipe. These signals cause ions to collide; it makes them grow until surface charges are eliminated. This means no more calcium or limescale on your pipes.
Pros:
Cons:
Unlike regular softeners, these use liquid polyphosphate. It's a non-toxic food grade solution that prevents limescale buildup. The same polyphosphate has been used in drinks and food for years. No toxicity reports whatsoever.
Pros:
Cons:
As you can see, some of these alternatives have benefits. However, as you can see, they also come with disadvantages that an electronic water descaler doesn't have.
A descaler isn't meant to replace a water filter. Don't expect it to filter out sediment, chemicals, pathogens, etc.
A descaler doesn't necessarily improve the smell and taste of water. That depends on water hardness. As it doesn't eliminate minerals, but rather change their shape, you might still experience a "hard" taste.
No, you will no longer need any other water softening methods. Although the descaler doesn't remove minerals, it changes their shape drastically. They won't affect your clothes, dishes, or appliances anymore. You'll no longer need money for hard water detergent either. Moreover, you'll be saving around $1000 a year on detergent, soap, and water.
It consumes a minimal current amount. Approximately the same amount as your smartphone. Even so, you will still save money on energy because your water heater won't have to deal with limescale anymore.
Yes, it is. The descaler doesn't add any chemicals to your water. It doesn't waste an ounce of water whatsoever, so rest assured if you're worried about conservation. Also, it doesn't require a drain, so nothing dirty gets poured into the septic system. Furthermore, it outputs zero carbon emissions, smoke, or any other pollutants that you can think of.
Unless your main water pipe is located behind walls, there's almost no way the descaler couldn't fit. It's only two inches tall, 1.8 inches thick, and 5.9 inches wide. And the power cord is five feet long, so you won't likely have any trouble reaching a nearby power outlet.
No. You can just unplug the descaler from the power outlet and cut the zip ties holding the bands on the pipe. Then just place the descaler back in the box for transport. Finally, install the descaler in your new home the same way you installed it in the previous one.
You can review all the details and buy the descaler from our home page. If you're lucky, you might also unlock an exclusive offer by checking it out.
In the unlikely event that the LEDs show signs of incorrect operation, check the manual. You'll find a troubleshooting section for the most common problems that can occur.
If you don't find a fix for the problem, remember that you're covered by our 10-year warranty. Just register the product with its respective order and serial number. We'll gladly replace any unit broken during that time frame. The only condition is that you don't intentionally try to break your unit. Signs of negligence from the owner are not covered by our policy.
The Yarna electronic water descaler is a fantastic choice for over 85% of Americans. Its capacitive properties and lack of maintenance requirements make it ideal even for those who don't know anything about plumbing.
And if that isn't enough reason for you to give it a try, we would like to remind you about our 100-day money-back guarantee. Even if you have the hardest possible water levels, you'll still see results in three months. This gives you enough time to decide if our product is right for you.
]]>No, that’s not the point. We just wanted to show people which descalers are currently available on the market and what are their strong suits. We won’t be ranking them in any particular order. You can decide which one is right for you on your own.
Before we start, we want you to know that these are the descalers we are familiar with or have heard about. There is a possibility that other companies might’ve made their own descaler while we were writing this article.
In any case, these are the best water descaler systems we could find at the moment and we think that whichever one you’ll choose, you’ll most likely see great results against the dreadful thing we call hard water.
Let’s get out own lineup of water descalers out of the way before talking about the others that we could find on the market right now.
We have chosen to place all three of our currently available products in the same place because the only real difference between them is the supported pipe diameter.
The CWD24 electronic descaler supports pipes up to 1 inch, the CWD30 water descaler can go up to 2 inches, and the CWD48 descaler goes all the way up to 4 inches and is meant for commercial usage as well, not just residential usage like the former two. Also, all of them can be installed both indoors and outdoors.
Now let’s talk about the things that make our descaler unique when compared to the others that we have seen so far. First off, our ultra-flat impulse bands cover a significantly larger area of the pipe when compared to the regular wires found on all the other models on this list.
This way, the water gets treated better and even the hardest water levels can become significantly softer because of this. Furthermore, the impulse bands work with any pipe material, including PVC, iron, copper, stainless steel, plastic, PE-x, and much more.
Our descalers don’t affect GPM and aren’t limited by high GPG either. And as a bonus, we’re offering a one-year money-back guarantee for any of our models. That way you’ll have more than enough time to see its effects in action. And if you choose to register the product on our website, you’ll receive a full ten-year manufacturer warranty for any potential defects that weren’t caused by your mishandling of the product.
One of the most appreciated water descaler systems on the market right now is the one offered by Eddy Electronics. In terms of efficiency, the Eddy unit helps prevent rust on different surfaces, such as pipes, sinks, and faucets. Water-utilizing appliances, including washing machines and coffee makers, can also prevent damage because of the improved water quality.
Just like with our own descaler, you’ll need zero plumbing skills to install the unit in its place. While its wires cover a lesser area of the pipe, it still does a good enough job of preventing limescale in most people’s cases. It comes with standard cables that can cover pipes up to 1.5 inches in diameter, so if you want it to cover a larger pipe, you’re going to need to contact them for special extension coils.
The main downside is that its wires are only compatible with metal or plastic pipes, and there’s no official support for any other type of pipe material. And there’s no official fix for this, so if you plan on purchasing the Eddy Electronic Water Descaler, you’ll have to go for aftermarket fixes or figure it out yourself if you’re good with physics and electronics.
iSpring is a company known for making all sorts of water treatment-related products. And as far as descalers go, this is their only model so far. However, it is a good product that comes at a fairly decent price when compared to its capabilities.
Just like our models and the one from Eddy, this one also actively works to dissolve existing limescale and treat future limescale as well. The overall hardness removal capability of the system is 19 GPG, which is fairly limited when compared to the former two, but, again, it’s still a good unit at the end of the day.
Weighing only two pounds and coming with the ability to work on any type of pipe material, the iSpring water descaler system also offers a one-year money-back warranty and lifetime customer support. As for manufacturer warranty, we couldn’t find it specified in any place, so you’ll probably have to contact customer support to find out how long the unit will be covered for potential defects.
But what we truly like about this descaler is that the folks at iSpring donate a part of their sales to their own charity program that helps provide clean drinking water to families and facilities in dire need.
This particular water descaler can easily go on a one and a half inch pipe and can treat water as long as the GPG doesn’t exceed 25. Sure, it might not offer the most extensive pipe coverage, nor the best maximum supported grain treatment, but for what it’s worth, it does a good job at preventing limescale and its nasty side effects.
What makes it stand apart from other water descaler units on the market is the fact that it uses similar flat impulse bands instead of traditional wires, much like our own descalers. And also similar to our own offerings, this one also works on any type of pipe material, so you won’t have any trouble with aftermarket solutions like you would with the unit offered by Eddy.
The problem, however, lies in the fact that some buyers reported that their package came with missing installation parts. However, those were only isolated cases, and we’re pretty sure that HQUA’s customer support team has already solved this issue for those who have encountered it.
Overall, this unit is eco and pocket friendly. It doesn’t cost much to operate vs. a traditional water softener that requires frequent maintenance, especially if your water supply has an excessive hardness.
Being capable of treating hard water up to 35 GPG is quite a plus when compared to some of the previous units we’ve shown. The H2oEliteLabs team also notes that a family of four living in a mildly hard water area can produce 1 millimeter of scale buildup within the pipes in just a single year.
We agree with them. And yes, it doesn’t seem as much, but take into consideration the fact that the interior of a pipe is much smaller than how the pipe’s exterior looks. With that said, getting a water descaler is a must, and this one is pretty good. We like that it can be installed on any type of pipe, not just a limited number of materials like the Eddy model, but we also like that its GPG capacity is far increased when compared to HQUA and iSpring. With that said, this is a cheaper alternative than the previous two if you live in an area where water hardness is a little more significant.
However, a few people did complain that their unit only lasted about a year and then needed to be sent back in for repairs. Sure, there weren’t many who reported this, but it’s quite concerning considering the fact that out of all the units on this list, no one reported other descaler to cease functioning in such a short time frame.
Finally, what we consider to be another good choice for a descaler is the SB-75 model coming from the folks at ScaleBlaster. This unit is specifically made for indoor use only, as the manufacturer specifically states in order to avoid any misunderstanding and misusage by its potential customers.
It can be used in homes that are up to 4000 square feet, and it can be installed on pipes of up to one and a quarter inch in diameter. Unfortunately, it only works on PVC, PE-x, copper, and other non-ferrous pipes. With that said, if your particular main pipe is made out of iron or other ferrous materials, you’re out of luck if you purchase this unit.
As far as performance goes, it works on hard water levels of only 19 grains (325 ppm), which is quite decent. The small enclosure requires minimal space for installation, as it is measured at only 7.5 x 4.75 x 2.2 inches, which is even smaller than some of our own descalers.
What we found weird with this unit is that the manufacturer offers three purchasing options: one with no warranty (why would anybody want such a thing?), one with a three-year warranty, and one with an elite warranty that doesn’t explicitly specify how long it will last. Other than that, the unit is decent for the price and as long as you respect its limitations and instruction manual, we think it will last for quite a while.
By now, it is a known fact that salt-based water softeners negatively impact the environment. Water descalers, on the other hand, affect the environment in no way, shape, or form. Even if descalers consume electricity, the consumption rate is almost insignificant.
And because they eliminate the hard minerals’ ability to stick to surfaces, and thus reduce limescale, they pretty much ensure that you will be able to save up to $1000 per year on water and heating bills. They don’t affect your septic system, unlike salt-based softeners, and they don’t put any sodium or chemicals in your water, so you and your family’s health will be totally unaffected.
In fact, because the minerals are only modified to become non-sticky, they remain in water, so you’ll get a boost of calcium and magnesium every time you take a drink. Thus, drinking hard water is highly beneficial. Furthermore, water descalers require absolutely no maintenance and you will never be required to purchase salt packets or any other “accessories” to continue getting the same great results (with the condition that the hardware still works properly, obviously).
Finally, one of the reasons we recommend getting a descaler instead of a softener is because some counties and jurisdictions in the USA have either banned or have heavily regulated the usage of traditional salt-based water softeners. Why bother with bureaucracy, limitation, and legislation when you could just install a descaler on your own (unlike requiring a plumber to install a softener)?
As stated earlier in the article, we offer a few advantages that the competition doesn't offer. Now you might be thinking that since this is our website and storefront, it would be obvious that we were biased.
And no one would blame you for thinking such a thing. However, if you look around the web, such as on our Amazon page, you will find that many customers with a verified purchase have left us incredibly positive reviews.
On a similar note, some people have also made videos where they test our product and show others the results that they have seen. And, mind you, many of these reviewers live in areas where water hardness is extremely noticeable. Like this guy right here:
And he's not the only one that saw good results using one of our descalers. This fellow who has a DIY channel on YouTube has also seen drastic improvements in his water hardness results after using the CWD48 extensively:
The best water descaler systems currently on the market offer a ton of benefits when compared to traditional salt-based water softeners. Look at this list carefully, take in all the benefits and downsides of each descaler and choose the one that’s right for you.
With all that said and done, we wish you a wonderful experience with any water descaler that you end up purchasing for you and your family’s home!
]]>As such, we will be going through each available type of water softener and how it handles the softening process, its approximate size, and other variables that you will need to take into consideration. Although all of these systems will reduce the mineral content in your water to leave you with beneficial softened water, they do so in different ways. So let’s see how they all work.
First off, we would like to point out that there is no “perfect solution”. Each type of water softener has both advantages and certain disadvantages that you’ll have to take into account before making a purchase.
The reason we insist on pointing this out is because we wouldn’t want you making a choice that you would regret down the line. So, did you understand all of that? Great. Let’s get on with it then.
Traditional water softeners, also known as ion-exchange water softeners, have been around for what seems like an eternity. Although they’re the most common type, many have started moving away from them simply because of the softening method itself.
How it works is relatively straightforward: a resin inside attracts calcium and magnesium from your water and replaces them with sodium ions in a process called ion-exchange. Once the resin ends up with no positively charged sodium ions to exchange for the hard minerals in your water, you’ll need add more sodium to the mix.
Is it effective? Definitely. A salt-based water softener will completely remove hard mineral from your water supply. However, the concentration of sodium can cause other problems in the long run, such as making the water undrinkable for people with heart conditions or negatively impacting your septic system. And you’ll have to perform some weekly maintenance as well. But, for all intents and purposes, it works. Salt-based softeners are also relatively cheap these days, making them relatively desirable despite the obvious disadvantages and the requirement of more and more salt bags. In short, let’s look at the pros and cons:
If you’re worried about sodium intake or any of its other side effects, or if having a salt-based water softener is heavily regulated in your region, then this is a good option for you. Salt-free systems don’t require the same continual upkeep that ion-exchange systems do since they don’t need regeneration or salt for that matter.
The one difference in the softening process is that saltless water softeners don’t actually remove hard minerals. Instead, they work by neutralizing the hard minerals and making them less sticky. With that said, you still get the benefits of drinking calcium and magnesium from hard water, but you’ll no longer have to deal with the nasty side effects like limescale, hair loss, dingy clothes, and other harsh things caused by sticky minerals.
Another great thing you can say about salt-free water softeners is that, depending on the make and model, it can also come with additional filtering solutions that can screen out common pollutants like sediment or even heavy metals.
However, there is a catch. Salt-free water softeners are significantly more expensive than their salt-based counterparts. Sure, they cost less in the long run since they don’t require salt bags or maintenance, but the initial asking price is a major turnoff for a significant amount of the population. In short, the rundown is as follows:
Since we’re on the topic of salt-free water softening solutions, a very similar type of device is an electronic water descaler. However, physically speaking, the size of a water descaler is significantly smaller than that of either a salt-based or salt-free water softening system. More specifically, a water descaler is about the size of a traditional TV remote, whereas water softeners are, as you probably know, much, much larger.
It works similarly to a saltless water softener, except that instead of neutralizing hard minerals, it reshapes their crystals from a rough, chunky form to a smooth round form that guarantees they won’t stick to any surface. This is all thanks to capacitive electromagnetic signals that directly affect inorganic minerals. The installation process is very easy and the descaler doesn’t require any maintenance whatsoever. All you need is electricity.
With that said, it won’t work if there’s a power outage and no backup generator or any other alternative power source. Otherwise, the water descaler requires no maintenance and no additional accessories or extras.
If you’re the type of person who travels a lot, then you might want to consider a portable water softener. They require no electricity and can go for several weeks between regenerations. And you won’t be needing those special salt packets that traditional salt-based water softeners use. Instead, you can just regenerate the portable softener with a bit of regular or kosher table salt.
You should be aware, however, that these units contain the word “portable” in their name for a reason. Well, a couple of reasons. Sure, they’re great for traveling purposes, no doubt about that. But don’t expect a large amount of water from them. They won’t give you the same water flow compared to regular softeners and don’t expect to be able to chain a few of them together for a whole-house solution.
However, they’re significantly less expensive, they can produce enough softened water for a small group of people, and can even soften the water for a bathroom for about an hour or so depending on the amount of water and the GPM. As such, they’re ok for the RV traveler. Just don’t expect such a unit to fulfill a bigger role and you’re good to go.
This is somewhat of a newer system, even if it works the same as a regular salt-based water softener at its core level. However, there are a few key differences that might make it worthwhile especially for larger families.
The caveat here is that unlike a single-tank water softener, this model has two tanks that allow it to keep working while one of the tanks is regenerating. As such, you'll no longer have to go through the downtime that you would otherwise endure with a regular water softener. Even though it's not as good as a water descaler from this point of view, it's still a far better option if your household sees constant water usage.
Pros
Cons
It’s true that most American households have to deal with hard water. However, not everyone has to deal with the same hardness levels. For example, only slightly hard water won’t necessarily leave an observable amount of limescale, but it might still cause nasty skin conditions such as eczema.
In those cases, you’ll only need a softener for your showerhead and not for your entire home. Showerhead water softeners are much more affordable than traditional softeners regardless if we’re talking about salt-based or salt-free units or descalers. They are fairly comparable to portable water softeners when it comes to price.
Using a showerhead softener will make your hair and skin will feel much more hydrated and healthier. You’ll also have no more hard water spots on your shower walls and doors, and you’ll have less soap scum to clean up as well. Showerhead water softeners can be installed very easily by unscrewing your old showerhead and screwing on the new one. That’s it. Nothing more.
As for maintenance and upkeep, the showerhead softener uses cartridge filters to condition the water and remove any unwanted minerals and more. As a general rule of thumb, the filter needs to be replaced once every two or three months. It’s best to read the manual to know exactly when you need to change it.
While not meant solely for softening, reverse osmosis is by far one of the best options if you want to get rid of the nasty effects of hard water. Well, it’s not perfect, if we’re going to be honest. But neither are all the other methods mentioned so far.
They strip the water of all substances, including hard water causing minerals like calcium and magnesium. These systems often feature extra steps to re-introduce healthy minerals into the water, so you’ll still have them for drinking. Many restaurants around the world prefer using reverse osmosis units because they make the cooking water, and subsequently the food, taste much better.
If you’re wondering how it works, an RO system pushes water through a membrane where all pollutants get trapped, leaving only the fresh water to flow through the pipes. The best part is that the membranes filters pollutants out at a microscopic level, so it’s also great for getting rid of bacteria and parasites.
Long story short, we recommend it more as an all-in-one solution if you don’t want to spend extra money on filters and other water-related necessities in your household. Fair warning, however, that an RO system tends to waste a lot of water. if you’re concerned about the environment, you should take note of this.
After looking through this extensive list of the available types of water softeners, you should have a much better idea about what works for you.
If you’re still uncertain, we can make a few small specifications that might make your decision a little easier. A traditional salt-based softener is straightforward and cheap if you don’t mind sodium in your water. On the other hand, a salt-free softener is just as straightforward but far more expensive, with the added benefit of no sodium or other chemicals.
Going further, they are extremely easy to install, require no maintenance, do an extremely good job with the only real downside being that they require electricity. RO systems are meant as an all-in-one solution, though they do come at a high price and waste a lot of water.
Finally, portable and showerhead softeners are extremely affordable but very niche and only meant for specific purposes. At the end of the day, it’s up to you to choose which benefits and downsides you can afford to live with. And with all of this said, we wish you the best of luck in choosing your next water softening device!
]]>However, there are certain factors that you should be aware of when drinking water from a private well. One of those important factors is what hardness, which in private wells can also consist of extra iron, and not just calcium and magnesium.
Because of this, you need to be extra careful when choosing a water softener. Sure, you could always install a pre-filtering system specifically made for iron, but having extra protection never hurts. With that in mind, here are a few softeners that caught our attention plus one method of softening water without the use of salts or complicated-to-install water softeners.
Before getting to the actual ranking list, we need to inform you that this is not a list made after thorough testing. It’s merely a list that was done based on user reviews and first impressions, not about how they perform in the long run from our own experience.
However, we did our research from numerous review sites as well as retail sites that give customers the possibility of reviewing the products that they purchase. With that said, let’s get to the water softeners for well water that have caught our attention the most.
We like this particular water softener because it reaches an excellent water flow of up to 27 gallons per minute, whereas many other softeners impede the flow of water due to the way they’re built and their respective pipe fittings.
You can choose between the 30k or 45k grain model so it’s pretty easy to choose one for your particular level of water hardness. What we also like is that the company offers a five-year warranty for the valve and a ten-year warranty for the tank itself. That’s tremendous value for something that handles water hardness so well.
While the GPM capacity is lower on this model, namely only 9-11 GPM, we find it satisfying for relatively small homes that get their water from a private well. We like it because it also comes with a sediment pre-filter that traps iron, rust, dust, and other common pollutants that can be found on a farm.
As for post-filtration, it comes with a carbon filtration unit, which is one of the best filter types you can get, as it can trap a large number of pollutants that would otherwise get into your drinking water. Overall, we consider it to be one of the best water softeners for well water that the market has seen in recent memory.
This is one of the most known brands of traditional salt-based water softeners out there. You can customize your unit with many features as well as filters for several types of pollutants. The Rhino is truly astounding thanks to its capability of conditioning water without the use of any salt. And even though it might not be as easy to install as other conditioning media, we think that it’s still great overall.
Unlike salt-based softeners, Aquasana's Salt-Free Water Conditioner will not demineralize your water, harm your pipes with harsh salt, or put excessive amounts of sodium waste into our communal water supply. It’s practically the closest thing you are going to get to a descaler, although a little more expensive overall.
This is exactly the type of softener one should be looking for when dealing with well water. As mentioned earlier in this article, iron can be a major issue when getting your water from a well, which makes this American-based company a great market researcher in this particular case.
The Fleck Iron Pro 2 is a combination water softener and iron filter which eliminates the need for an additional iron filter to be incorporated into the system. That kind of says everything you need to know about this particular unit in the context of softening well water. Other than that, it comes with a five-year warranty for the control head and a ten-year warranty for the tank.
Coming with a digitally-metered control head and a five-year warranty, this particular water softener is a great almost bargain deal for those who need to soften well water. While the complex controls may make it a little difficult to operate for newcomers, it’s really a breeze once you get used to it.
The corrosion-resistant fiberglass is yet another reason why we recommend it for those with dealing with hard well water. Furthermore, the tank is lined with premium high quality resin and comes with a bypass valve for even more control over the flow and other aspects regarding traditional salt-based water softening.
This is by far one of the most recognizable brands in the appliance industry and in generally all industries if we’re honest. As such, it’s no surprise that we’ve chosen to include one of their models on our list. The softener is great for families of up to four people and has a demand-initiated resin regeneration system which allows it to regenerate based on encountered hardness instead of pre-scheduled intervals.
As such, the softener will save you a lot of money and salt in the long run, so you’ll be damaging your septic system and the environment far less than with other similar units. Also, the NSF-certified design allows for efficient water softening for homes with high concentration of calcium and magnesium. And what’s more, the unit also wastes less water than other similarly-priced models, which can net you more savings in the long run.
Our final pick comes from iSpring, yet another one of those reverse osmosis and softener brands that people really love and respect. It has a 75-gallon per day capacity, which makes it a great choice even for large families. Even so, the unit is relatively small, being able to fit under the sink without too many problems.
The system has no moving parts, so it’s fairly quiet and you won’t have to mess with maintenance nearly as much as with other similarly-priced salt-based water softeners. Though, to be fair, the system is mainly focused on reverse osmosis rather than softening per say, so it wastes a significant amount of water.
Let’s face it, all that sodium in your water can’t be good. A salt-free alternative is needed if you want to get the full benefits of soft water without sacrificing your health or having your plants die much faster.
Yes, hard water and soft water each come with their own set of benefits and downsides. In short, hard water is bad for your appliances, bathroom surfaces, scalp, and skin. However, drinking it can prove quite beneficial since you’ll be getting a large amount of minerals like calcium and magnesium.
Soft water, on the other hand, is great for appliances, surfaces, and for showering, but it has quite a few noticeable downsides for drinking. The sodium in soft water can increase blood pressure and severely affects those with heart problems. And don’t even think about giving water with sodium to plants, as it inhibits them from getting their nutrients, thus slowly killing them.
In short, you’re going to need a device that gives you the best of both worlds. A device that reshapes mineral crystals to become smaller and less sticky without adding any other substance to your water supply. And, lucky you, such a device does exist – it’s called a water descaler.
We have spent years and years researching and developing these devices with one goal in mind: to improve people’s water quality without sacrificing absolutely anything. Extra required accessories? Zero. Maintenance? None of the descalers need such a thing. Repairs? You’re covered by our ten-year warranty once you register your product.
And the benefits don’t stop there. Because we have so much trust in our water descaler selection, we’re offering a 100-day money-back guarantee so you’ll have enough time to test it out and see the results for yourself. And if you don’t trust us, you can purchase our products through Amazon so you know you’ll also have backup from them in case of any defects.
With our descalers, you’re covered regardless of pipe material. All you need to look for is the pipe’s diameter to figure out which one is right for you. Because of the capacitive effect of the signals emitted by the unit, you don’t need to worry about GPG or GPM whatsoever. It can effectively treat even the hardest water levels regardless of your home’s water usage.
Getting a good water softener for well water is a great choice, but you’re better off with a combination of a saltless descaler and a filter for iron in the long run. As stated earlier, sodium can really damage the environment and make your water really unsafe to drink for long periods. That’s why we’re offering our descalers along with so many benefits such as a 100-day money back guarantee and extended warranties. However, at the end of the day it’s up to you to choose what’s better for your particular needs.
]]>Today, we will discuss such issues as the definition and formation of hard water, how to learn if you have hard water, hard water vs. soft water differences, and solutions you have to mitigate this issue, among others.
Hard water is usually tap water that contains high amounts of dissolved minerals, especially calcium and magnesium, but other trace minerals as well. The more calcium and magnesium accumulate in your water, the harder it becomes.
You have probably heard about water softening systems, whose job is to reduce the mineral concentrations in your water. They are usually the go-to solution when water hardiness starts to become a genuinely costly nuisance. We will detail water softening later on, but here are some things you should know right now:
An electronic water descaler and softener system, for instance, uses electric fields to change the way these minerals behave and adhere to surfaces. The ideal water softener turns them into their ionic state without adding extra salt to your drinking water.
Water hardness varies from state to state, city to city, and even home to home in the same town. It can become an even bigger issue for those residents who rely on groundwater sources and private wells.
According to statistics, 85% of homes in the U.S. have hard water. Experts measure water hardness in grains per gallon (GPG), or parts per million (PPM), which is a measurement identical to milligrams (of calcium) per liter (ml/L). Here are the average limits you should know:
People usually start to see the negative effects of hard water when it revolves around 7 GPG hardness.
While it is sometimes difficult to tell if you have hard water, you do have some telltale signs to follow. The most noticeable “symptoms” are hard water stains on dishes, faucets, clothes, and cups/glasses. Here are the most common signs of hard water:
If you are still in doubt regarding whether you have hard water or not, here are a few methods to check for hard water!
You can purchase a hard water test kit for your home from a hardware store, a home improvement shop, or online retailers. Before you buy a hard water test kit, make sure it comes from a reputable water-testing manufacturer (or a reliable company producing hard water solutions and appliances). Pay attention to the instructions on the label and follow them to a tee.
Most hard water testing kits come with paper strips and charts. You can also get electronic devices showing you the GPG of your water.
Make sure you get kits that test for hard water, not only water contaminants, pH, or overall water quality and safety.
Of course, you can call or ask your local city or municipal water supply authorities to give you their charts and numbers, but take these measurements with a grain of salt. If you want to know how hard your water is, send water samples to a certified third-party laboratory.
They can also offer you a detailed report on the contaminants they found in your water, so, for good measure, you should take this path.
Now that we learned what is hard water and how you can know if you too need to deal with this problem, let’s dive deeper into the issue.
Dubbed the “invisible killer” of pipes, plumbing, and some devices, hard water can pose plenty of issues if you do not treat it. Besides the nuisances we detailed above, hard water can cost you a lot of money and stress. Here is why:
When we talk about hard water, we tend to narrow things down to our apartments and homes. However, some of the greatest victims of hard water are hotels, restaurants, and hospitals, to name a few.
When it comes to commercial or industrial heavy use of water, the hardness becomes an issue with ramified consequences.
Also, speaking of the infrastructure damages hard water can cause in buildings, we should talk about the health risks associated with hard water.
We now know what is hard water and what it can do to your pipes, appliances, and everyday items. But what can it do to your body in the long run?
It is common knowledge that the EPA and health experts do not consider hard water a significant threat to our health, even if we consume it daily. Some claims (which still need rigorous scientific backup) also insist that hard water adds bits of necessary minerals to our daily diets. After all, calcium and magnesium per se are critical for our wellbeing.
However, some health issues are correlating with hard water exposure, and you need to know about them:
If you noticed such issues on yourself or the members of your family, water-softening systems are the way to go to mitigate and remove the effects of hard water on your health. So let’s see what your options are!
The first thing coming to mind regarding hard water solutions is a standard water softener you can buy from a hardware store or an online retailer. However, as we said at the beginning, soft water coming from traditional systems tends to have higher concentrations of salt (sodium).
Rich-salt water comes with its downsides as well.
Electronic water softeners and descaling systems gained momentum and are becoming increasingly popular. One of the biggest reasons propelling this trend is that such a device saves you a lot of money on the course of a single year.
Moreover, the use of electronic water softeners does not involve sodium, leaching heavy metals in your water, complicated installation, time-consuming, and expensive maintenance or hefty prices.
While hard water does not correlate with health risks for humans and pets, it does have a negative impact on your water-using devices. It decreases the lifespan of appliances. It also causes a mineral buildup in water pipes and heating systems.
If left untreated, hard water causes a myriad of issues, which, in turn, lead to subsequent problems:
Hard water treatments involve the use of water descalers or water softeners. There are many differences between the two technologies. In short, water softeners change the chemical composition of your water, are costly to buy and maintain, come with environmental restrictions, and take up a lot of space in your house.
This depends on the type of calcium particles that your water contains. If your water contains calcium bicarbonate - AKA temporary hard water - then you can boil it and thus get a softened version of the same water. However, if you have permanent hard water - the one that contains calcium sulfate - boiling will not decrease hardness levels at all.
Yes, hard water is one of the main culprits when it comes to eczema and topical dermatitis alike. The hard minerals inhibit the skin pores from opening up properly and emanating taking in the necessary air. These clogged pores can also lead to acne, as they can no longer release the beneficial oils necessary to maintain the skin's health.
Considering the fact that hard water causes limescale and skin problems, you might think that it's not safe to drink. However, you'd be surprised to hear that the opposite is true. Hard water contains beneficial minerals like calcium and magnesium, which in turn give you a lot of benefits. Softened water, or at least the one softened by a traditional salt-based water softener, has a high sodium output, which is not good for people with certain health conditions. Learn how to make it safe to drink here.
It is essential to know what hard water is, its effects on your life or business, and the solutions you can employ to deal with it. We use water every day, everywhere, and for pretty much everything. If its quality is low, it can hurt our lifestyles, budget, and health. And even if the opposite of hard water is soft water, do your homework thoroughly and make an educated choice before you get any water softening system for your needs!
]]>For this reason, we have thought about creating a buying guide for those who are looking for the best of the best. Even better, if you stick with us till the end, we’ll show you a solution that doesn’t require any salt whatsoever to get the best possible water softening results.
First and foremost, the water softener salt we chose had to be of high quality. We don’t accept sacrifices in quality whatsoever, especially if the salt doesn’t offer other neat advantages of its own.
Secondly, the salt needs to have what we call “availability”. We don’t like sending our readers on a quest to search for “hidden treasures”. Instead, we will offer you options that are available in most stores and that come in large bags instead of small ones that practically force you to buy more often.
Finally, we have looked for options that have had plenty of reviews at the ready so we could get a confirmation from multiple verified purchases whether that particular water softener salt was worth it or not. User feedback is critical for us, both when judging others’ and our own products. It’s our philosophy and we think more people should think like this.
Anyway, enough about that. Let’s get into the top best water softener salt options that you can find on the market right now. And don’t forget to scroll all the way down to see how you can soften your water without any salt.
We like the Morton 1501 Salt because it comes in a 50-pound bag. That’s more than enough to last you for at least a few weeks even if your household has the highest possible water hardness level.
What’s more, this salt option comes with absolutely no added chemicals, so it might also extend the lifespan of your water softener to a certain degree. The Morton salt comes in the form of pellets, so thanks to this design, it’s easy to measure, pour, and prevent the appearance of salt brides.
Furthermore, it is available in an easy-open tab along with a hard handle, which can make pouring and carrying from one place to another convenient.
Finally, if there’s one bad thing you can say about this product, it’s definitely the price. It’s not exactly the most affordable option, even if it will last your for quite a while. However, since we value quality above everything else, we’ve chosen this as our top pick for the best water softener salt.
These salt crystals are absolutely fantastic at softening water regardless of hardness, so much so that they stand in direct competition with our previous entry. The product is completely natural and free from any chemical additives.
What’s more, it prevents any formation of salt bridges due to the way that each individual crystal is shaped and textured. As such, you’ll have peace of mind knowing that you’ll have to deal with one less water softener maintenance task.
Even better, the salt is multi-purpose, as you can also use it for some cooking. For example, you can use the Cargill 7304 in quality grading sensitive veggies, processing meat or poultry, and curing pickles and olives. Finally, what we also like about it is the packaging. It’s a polyethylene bag with film liners for protection against humidity and moisture.
While not exactly perfect, these pellets still have a purity rate of 99.8%, meaning that there aren’t any noticeable traces of additives that could damage your softener or other appliances. Coming in a 50-pound bag, this offering is slightly more affordable than what the Morton pellets brought to the table.
These pellets not only remove calcium and magnesium particles, but they also deal with iron, barium, and a few other lesser-known minerals as well. As such, you can say that they do a better job than most offerings (even though most people with hard water only need to deal with calcium and magnesium).
However, we do not recommend them if you have soft hands or don’t really have all that much strength because the bag isn’t all that easy to open. As such, you’ll have to cut it with a pair of scissors and then ruin the entire resealing mechanism. Still, it’s your decision to make whether you can handle a hard to open package or not.
When looking at the best water softener salt options, you can’t ignore the Compass Minerals 40-pound True Value pack. These extra coarse water conditioning salt crystals have a purity level of 99.8%, so they’re just as great at dealing with hard water as our previous selection.
We like these crystals because they don’t cause salt bridges, nor do they block your water softener’s innards, which makes them both economical and a great choice for those who want to tackle less maintenance tasks on their unit.
We like the fact that the price is quite affordable when compared to the previous offerings, so you might want to check them out if you want to shop on a budget yet still get 40 pounds of almost pure water softener salt. In short, it may be a little less expensive, but it does not sacrifice quality one bit.
These potassium-based salts are slightly safer to put in your water when compared to classic sodium-based salts, so you might want to give them a shot if you own a traditional salt-based water softener.
First of all, their efficiency is on par with all of our previous selections, and it’s more environmentally-friendly as well. Potassium-based salt affects plants and other life far less since it doesn’t block their ability to absorb nutrients nearly as much.
Also, potassium-rich water is also good for making sure that you meet your dietary potassium goals, which is one of the main reasons people choose it.
With a purity level of 99.7%, the Windsor water softener salt offering is truly magnificent considering it usually retails for a very low price compared to most of its competitors. What many people appreciate about it is its ability to regenerate the softener resin much faster when compared to a multitude of its top-of-the-line competitors, including Morton.
The reason for this is that this formula contains additives that clean the resin beads very effectively, which in turn enhances the effectiveness of your water softener. Fear not, however, for the additives that it does contain are not toxic.
You’ve come so far, so it’s only fair that we let you in on a little secret: you can have softened water without maintenance, the use of salt, or hefty installation processes.
Thanks to technological advancements, researchers have been able to create what we now know as water descalers – a simple yet effective device that uses the principles of cathodic protection to prevent limescale buildup, rust, and many other negative things that come with increased water hardness.
Now you might be asking yourself how it works. It’s relatively simple. The device is connected to the main pipe via two wires through which it transmits capacitive electromagnetic signals. These signals actively work on reshaping the mineral crystals that flow through the pipe, making them far less sticky and much smaller.
There is no need to modify your plumbing or read through hefty instructions, as the unit is easily installable without any special tools in only 15 minutes. Afterwards, you just need to plug it into a power supply and let it do its thing. The unit will also eliminate current limescale deposits within three months depending on hardness levels, so no need to fiddle with that either.
Fortunately for you, we have several descalers available for purchase right from our homepage. You’ll notice that each of them is means for different-sized pipes, so choose the one that will be suitable for yours.
Other than that, you’ll also notice that all of them are compatible with any pipe material, so you won’t have to worry about changing anything. Regardless of GPM, hardness, or any other factors, any water descaler you choose from us will deal with your hard water problems flawlessly.
However, we don’t want to leave you with that claim alone. We want to back up what we’re saying, so we’re offering a 100-day money-back guarantee in case you are not satisfied with the product.
Furthermore, our default one-year warranty is extendable up to ten years once you register your water descaler on our website. As such, you’ll get the full benefits of both hard and soft water for an entire decade without having to worry about anything. If you want to know more about how a descaler works so you can better understand the science behind it, click here to read this simple guide.
For all intents and purposes, getting the best water softener salt is great, but you’ll be far better off once you switch to a water descaler for numerous reasons. In any case, we wish you the best of luck in keeping your water hardness problem under control regardless of your chosen method.
]]>Distilled water has a high purity value, and it’s the main reason that laboratories and pharmacies consider it the most. This is because the distillation process removed 99.9% of dissolved inorganics, bacteria, and chemicals from water. But how does this translate to human consumption? Let’s find out.
While distilled water is probably the purest form of water you’ll ever get, its effects on the human body once ingested are still largely a mystery. It’s one of the most debated topics to date regarding hydration and health in general. You have to take into consideration the fact that even beneficial minerals such as calcium and magnesium are removed from distilled water.
Not only that, but your body has a certain way in which it responds to certain nutrients in various forms. For example, there’s one way in which it metabolizes nutrients coming from solid foods and a whole other way in which it processes nutrients coming from liquids. As such, you’re losing quite a few benefits from the get-go when opting to drink distilled water.
A distiller removes a lot of contaminants but also TDS (total dissolved solids), much like a reverse osmosis system or a deionization unit. However, the main difference is that a carbon post-filter is attached to a water distiller to further remove VOCs and other inorganic materials.
Basically, water distillers remove just about anything you can imagine from water, both beneficial and detrimental. Fun fact: water distillers are the go-to choice when people want to convert sea water into drinkable water.
The thing is, water without minerals may be more soluble and can absorb metals and other substances from old pipes, which is one reason why distillation is not used for city water treatment.
Distillers for drinking water, however, purify water after it flows through pipes, so you're in no danger from chemical leaching. As such, drinking distilled water from such a unit might not be dangerous as some people speculate.
To see more details about the allowed levels of contaminants and how they affect you, click here.
Even though distilled water has a few downsides here and there, there are times when it can benefit your body immensely. For a start, if you’re trying to limit your sodium intake, distilled water can be a great alternative even when compared to bottled water.
The thing is, we don’t recommend distilled water as a permanent replacement to other forms of water simply because of the lack of minerals. This is especially the case if you’re an athlete or if you’re sick. When you sweat or vomit, you’re not only losing water from your body, but also essential nutrients.
As such, you need to drink water that contains minerals and electrolytes so you can recover faster. If not, you risk staying in a less than ideal shape. That is why we don’t recommend distilled water when you’re sick or if you’re very physically active.
So, to summarize, let’s take a quick look between the advantages and disadvantages of distilled water to determine if it’s ok for you to drink it.
As you just saw, water distillation does indeed have some advantages, but it’s far from being ideal. To solve the issues that persist with distilled water, let’s look at a few alternatives that might just offer you the same benefits with fewer downsides.
In any case, it might be a good idea to consult your doctor or nutritionist before starting a diet based on one assortment of water. We are not health experts, nor do we claim to have the ultimate advice regarding diets and so forth.
The information presented here is solely as a basic guide, and not to be taken as the ultimate medical advice. Again, seek professional help when it comes to diets. With that out of the way, let’s get to the alternatives to water distillation.
If total dissolved solids aren’t of any concern to you, then you can disregard distillation completely and go for regular carbon filtration. An activated carbon filtration system removes chlorine and other chemicals, as well as contaminants that cause bad tastes and odors. Some carbon filters are also rated to remove lead or cysts.
Reverse osmosis filtration might not remove as many minerals as a distillation system, but it is far faster than a water distiller. However, it is one of the best filtration methods that were ever created, so much so that many great restaurants prefer RO water above anything else.
The beauty of RO systems is that they have been highly perfected over the years, so you will find a lot of options with several advantages over others.
For example, if you want to keep the important minerals in your drinking water, you can buy a reverse osmosis system with a remineralizing filter. If you want to waste less others than you otherwise would with traditional RO system, you can get one with a permeable membrane. And the examples could go on and on.
Whole house water filters are made to trap as many pollutants as possible without sacrificing the mineral content. If you were to ask us, this would be the perfect filtration system for just about everything except limescale.
While the unit won’t remove limescale, you can always install an additional tool to help you turn that limescale into a benefit. You see, limescale is merely a combination of calcium and magnesium crystals that bond together and stick on a variety of surfaces, including pipes, sinks, your skin, and much more.
However, if you want to prevent such a thing, you can use a process called ionization to modify these minerals’ crystals to make them less sticky, and thus prevent them from giving you the disadvantages we’ve talked about earlier. Speaking of which:
Finally, we have the solution that we think will give you the optimum result. To make it clear, a water descaler does not remove any minerals from the water, nor does it filter out other pollutants.
What it does, instead, is to modify the shape of the mineral crystals to make them less sticky. As such, you will still get the benefits of drinking calcium and magnesium but without the downsides of limescale.
We need to reiterate; distilled water isn’t for everyone. It won’t do you any damage, but it won’t help you that much either. In fact, it’s detrimental thanks to the lack of minerals. So, in layman’s terms, descaled water is much better and offers tons of advantages as long as it doesn’t contain other pollutants. That’s why we recommend placing the descaler after the filtration unit.
We have a variety of easy-to-install water descalers available on our store page. Each one is very easy to use, as you only need to plug it into a power plug to get it working once you’ve installed it. And the best part is that you don’t even need any specialized tools or plumbing knowledge to install one.
It's so easy that you can do it within 15 minutes on the first try with the user manual in front of you. And what’s more, everything you need for installation is included in the box, so you won’t have to shell out extra cash for tools or accessories that you’ll only use once in a long while.
Furthermore, you won’t need to perform maintenance, change out filters, refill salt, or add any chemicals whatsoever. Once the descaler is installed and plugged into a power source, just let it do its thing and it will clear out existing limescale in about 3 months while also preventing new limescale deposits.
And, finally, while it does require some electricity, it will save you more than $1000 per year on heating, showering, washing clothes, dishes, and much more since you’ll be needing far less water for lathering and everything else.
When it comes down to it, drinking distilled water is safe in most cases as long as you don’t overdo it. What matters most is that you drink regular water after an exercise or when you’re sick, as distilled water doesn’t contain any of the important minerals that our bodies need to recover properly.
Other than that, you won’t have to worry much about the lack of nutrients in distilled water as long as its cleanliness is far more important to you than any other aspect relating to drinking water.
]]>Emergencies come and go, but your health is vital to your survival, so take your time to do a bit of research beforehand. Fortunately for you, we’ve created this helpful little guide in case you don’t have the possibility of boiling your water. Use this knowledge to purify it with bleach.
First off, use only regular, unscented chlorine bleach products that are suitable for disinfection and sanitization as indicated on the label. You should know what the concentration of said product is so that you won’t put more than necessary in the water. Having excess chlorine makes the water dangerous to drink and greatly affects its taste.
First of all, take a look at the label and you should most likely see that it contains either 6 or 8.25% sodium hypochlorite. Do not use scented, color safe, or bleaches with added cleaners. Also, note that if the water is cloudy you should let it settle and then filter it through a coffee filter, paper towel, or clean cloth.
First, you’ll need a clean dropper from your emergency supply kit or medicine cabinet. If you don’t have a dropper, go to the pharmacy and get one.
Next, get a bottle of liquid chlorine bleach that you have stored at room temperature for less than a year. Ideally, you’ll want the bleach to be as fresh as possible.
Figure out the right amount to use for your water. As an example, you should use 8 drops of 6% bleach or 6 drops of 8.25% bleach for one gallon of water. And you need double that amount if said water is cloudy, colored, or extremely cold.
Now stir for a while and let the water sit for 30 minutes. You should feel a slight chlorine odor coming from your water, which is a sign that the disinfection process was successful. If you can’t feel any chlorine smell, then repeat the process and let it sit for another 15 minutes.
Finally, if the taste of chlorine is too powerful, simply pour the water from one clean container to another and let it sit for a few hours before trying to drink again.
To make things easier for you, here is a basic table of how much bleach of which type you should add to an existing body of water. We’ve chosen to show the graph for 6% and 8.25% sodium hypochlorite bleach because those are the most common ones.
Volume of Water |
6% Bleach |
8.25% Bleach |
1 quart/liter |
2 drops |
2 drops |
1 gallon |
8 drops |
6 drops |
2 gallons |
16 drops (1/4 teaspoon) |
12 drops (1/8 teaspoon) |
4 gallons |
1/3 teaspoon |
1/4 teaspoon |
8 gallons |
2/3 teaspoon |
1/2 teaspoon |
You should be aware that you might need to store purified water for some time just in case of an emergency. For additional guidance regarding this subject matter, we recommend checking out FEMA’s website.
Ideally, you will also scout for other sources of water around your home if none is available for use, or if it contains way too many contaminants that bleach cannot eliminate. You could also try melting ice cubes or draining your heater’s hot water pipe if not in use for some time.
Of course, take all the necessary precautions. Use testing kits to see what contaminants are in a body of water so you can figure out the best filtration method one a case by case basis.
In case you own a private well, we recommend you thoroughly read this document. Private wells come with their own caveats and types of pollutants, especially if you live on a farm. With that said, we recommend following your local authorities’ guidelines to a pulp.
If you have the possibility, you can boil the water to provide a similar disinfection level to that of bleach. Similarly, a lot of chemical compounds won’t be eliminated through boiling, so be careful about that.
Another method you can use is by letting a body of clear water stand in the sunlight for hours on end. The UV rays emitted by the sun have the power of removing just as many germs as chlorine, bleach, or boiling. However, you will need a clear glass or plastic bottle (but preferably glass) so you can leave the water to bask in the sun.
For emergency situations, the methods mentioned above are great if you don’t have any drinking water stored somewhere. However, in an ideal scenario, you would already be storing clean and fresh water for later consumption.
To do this effectively, we recommend getting a professional water filter based on the types of pollutants that you have. There are numerous types of filtration units that you can read about online so you can decide which is better for your needs.
The thing you should remember is to always test your water before and after installing a filter. That way, you’ll know if the filter is actually doing its job as advertised. If it shows a major improvement, it means that the filter is working properly, and you should continue following the instruction manual when it comes to maintenance and cleaning.
Did you know that one of the most common problems with drinking water isn’t necessarily a toxic element, but rather something that greatly affects your appliances, plumbing, and similar stuff?
Limescale is the ultimate enemy in most American and European households. And for this reason, getting a water softener or a water descaler is a must. Even if you have a filter that can take out hard particles, we still recommend getting a descaler for the remaining ones.
Limescale has the ability to decrease your water-based appliances’ lifespan by half. It also reduces the pressure of water thanks to large deposits of limescale inside the pipes. This, of course, also affects your water heater’s performance because it needs to work harder. And that means having to pay bigger bills.
If you want to have the best of both worlds – the limescale-free advantages of softened water, but still be able to ingest the calcium and magnesium found in hard water, then we recommend getting a water descaler.
What a water descaler does is reshape the mineral crystals to make them less bulky and sticky. Thus, the crystals become smoother and smaller and will no longer cling onto surfaces such as your skin, scalp, pipes, or any other thing that hard water comes into contact with.
If you want to find out more about how descalers work, you can check out our homepage for all the technical details, pricing, and much more.
Two cups of water usually means that you’re dealing with a total of 500 ml of water, so with that in mind, you should put ¼ teaspoon of bleach in that mix. As usual, test out how well this works by following the instructions above, namely letting the water sit for half an hour after stirring and checking to see if there is any chlorine taste. And, of course, filter the water through a clean cloth, coffee filter, or a paper towel.
Chlorine dioxide is indeed found in bleach, but it is not the same thing. There are a few key differences you need to consider when using either of these items for water disinfection purposes. For starters, bleach does not remove biofilm, while chlorine dioxide does. Chlorine dioxide does not form unwanted carcinogenic byproducts, while bleach does. Bleach is ineffective against complex organisms like protozoa or cysts, while chlorine dioxide can kill all of these and much more. And finally, chlorine dioxide is effective in only a few minutes when compared to regular household bleach. So, yes, chlorine dioxide is much better overall.
In most cases, water that has been disinfected with bleach should last for up to five years if stored properly in a cool and dark place inside an air-tight container so that it will be kept away from dust and other pollutants. If you want to know more about safe and effective water storage, we recommend you read upon some excellent resources.
The answer is a little more complex than a simple yes or no, but if we were to put things into perspective, the short answer is yes. Chlorine dissipated from the water after about six months of storage, and if you’ve stored the water improperly, bacteria and algae will start to grow, thus affecting your health once ingested. To get more info about this subject, we recommend visiting this excellent Time article.
Bleach is a powerful substance that you can find most homes and stores and that can be effectively used to disinfect water. However, you must be aware of the warnings and indications above, otherwise you risk putting your health at great risk. Please share this article with others so that they’ll know what to do in case of an emergency situation.
]]>And because bottled water is not affordable for everyone, people prefer to consume tap water instead.
But how confident can we be of its quality?
Some of the most common contaminants found in tap water include lead, which can produce permanent brain damage in children, and PFOA, which has been linked to cancer.
The quality of tap water mostly depends on the area where you live. In some cities, tap water may contain high levels of contaminants, while in other areas it may have a low amount of pollutants.
Therefore, even if tap water passes through a municipal water treatment plant before it reaches your house, in its composition can also be found substances such as arsenic, chlorine and fluoride.
Excessive consumption of each of these the substances listed so far can have harmful effects on your health.
Numerous studies in recent years based on water quality have linked fluoride from drinking water to many health issues such as dental fluorosis, high blood pressure, thyroid problems, severe acne, or even cancer.
And now comes the big question – Is it safe to drink tap water? Well, as you have seen, there are a variety of contaminants in tap water.
Even if these are only present at levels that do not pose high risks for human consumption, there are cases where drinking tap water is contraindicated. Therefore, new-borns, pregnant women, the elderly, people with a weakened immune system or chronic diseases should avoid consuming tap water.
The differences between bottled water and tap water are not noticeably big. Even if Americans invest money in bottled water because they think it is healthier than tap water, this is not exactly true.
Many of them prefer bottled water over tap water claiming that it has a better taste and smell. Yet, in a 2018 blind test, people could not tell the difference between bottled and tap water.
To better highlight the similarities between the two, we'll reveal something you probably didn't know - some brands of bottled water actually use ... tap water. Therefore, 64% of bottled water comes from municipal tap water sources.
If you are reading this article and wondering if it is safe to drink tap water, we are here to tell you that not even what you find on store shelves will keep you away from health risks because bottled water is NOT free of contaminants. The water you see in the good-looking bottles at the supermarket may contain microplastics – some chemicals that can also harm your health.
Perhaps the biggest difference between the two is that bottled water has a major impact on the environment. In fact, a million plastic bottles are bought around the world every minute. This number will jump another 20% by 2021 and will create a huge environmental crisis.
This means that if you drink bottled water you will only spend money that you could use on something else, accumulate more chemicals in your body other than those already existing in tap water and also contribute to environmental degradation.
You can never be one hundred percent sure of the quality of your water, even if it is bottled or tap water. Therefore, in order to stay away from all the health risks that drinking water can bring you, you should use a water filtration device regardless of the water source in your house. Here are three of our recommendations based on the highest ratings and positive feedback from users.
This water filter pitcher an excellent and quick way to remove tap or bottled water contaminants at home. Its 5-stage filtration system is designed to deliver pure-tasting water for drinking and cooking based on the ion exchange technology.
The pitcher can reduce lead, PFOAS, and other contaminants, and includes an extra quality mater that lets you taste your water to make sure that harmful substances have been removed from its composition. It is also BPA-free, which makes it a great choice if you have a newborn in your family.
Here are the contaminants removed by each stage:
If contaminated water is a problem in your home, you can combat it starting directly from the source using this faucet. By attaching it to your sink, you will have easy and quick access to cleaner, great-tasting filtered water.
It is certified to reduce over 70 contaminants, including 99% of lead, 92% of agricultural pesticide, and 96% mercury. That means you will never have to buy bottled water again. This water filtration technology uses both activated carbon and ion exchange for better results.
Even if its maintenance requires filter replacement every three months, the costs will not be higher than the ones generated by the purchase of bottled water.
If you are a big fan of traveling, you must add this bottle to your backpack. Its replaceable 2-Stage filter makes it a great choice for hiking, travel, and emergencies.
Think about how many bottles of water you should buy for an 8-hour hike. Or better, think about the effort of carrying them all.
Because it is using a carbon filter, this bottle can remove 99% of waterborne bacteria, protozoan parasites, and more without adding any chemicals to your water.
It does not require batteries and has no moving parts and it is a great alternative to iodine tablets and bulky purifiers that are usually used in camping. However, even though it is recommended for traveling, we cannot deny that it is just as effective in treating water at home.
If you care about the water you consume, you should also think about the water that flows through the pipes of your house. The taste and smell of your water are no longer important in this case, but its quality can affect your daily activities that involve water usage.
Hard minerals and contaminants from the water in your house have a direct impact on the life of your appliances, the efficiency of the soaps and detergents you use, the water pressure in your house, and even on the fabric of your clothes.
To avoid all these damaging effects, you should also use a system that filters water throughout your home, not just the one you consume.
Our Yarna water descalers CWD24, CWD30, and CWD48 can do a great job together with the devices you use to filter drinking water. These water filtration systems are specially designed to protect your pipes and appliances from the unfavorable effects of hard water.
Using electric impulses to treat your water, our electronic descalers prevent the minerals in your water from adhering to the inside of your showerheads, faucet aerators, dishwasher, and any other appliance that uses water. These can be easily installed without any moving parts and will need no intervention on your part after they have been set up.
Tap water is neither the most harmful, nor the healthiest option for you. At the same time, bottled water is not as safe as most people may think.
As you have seen, the only way to be completely sure that the water in your house is free of any contaminants is to filter it with a system specially created to do this.
Moreover, if you want all the water in your house to be high quality, including the one that flows through the pipes and appliances, you can use an electronic water descaler along with your drinking water filtration system for optimal results.
]]>However, some popular myths arouse curiosity about home water purification methods. Are these effective? Can they successfully remove any contaminants from your water? Is it fine to use these methods on a daily basis?
Let's find out!
If you are wondering how to purify water at home quick and easy, boiling is the most used method. It is an effective way to destroy the pathogens present in the water such as bacteria, viruses, and protozoa. You must boil it for at least 1 minute and a maximum of 10 minutes to get rid of these contaminants.
However, boiling water will only remove bacteria and viruses, but it is not effective in removing lead, heavy metals, fuel, or chemicals.
This is a quite common and wrong opinion at the same time. The two procedures seem to be similar because water distillation actually starts with boiling but is a more detailed process.
After the water hits its boiling point, the resulting vapors are first condensed, then cooled. Within this transition, impurities are removed, leaving behind clear and drinkable water.
Even if it is a more complex method, distillation has a higher efficiency because it manages to remove impurities such as heavy metals that simple boiling cannot.
Obviously, you can't drink directly from a bleach container and do not expect side effects for your health. However, household bleach can be a good DIY water purification solution if used in the right amounts.
You can treat water at home by adding liquid household bleach such as Clorox or Purex. Always read the label before adding bleach chlorine to your water. It should be odorless and free of dyes and any additives.
Therefore, you should let the bleach action 60 min before consuming the water. Follow these instructions to know exactly how much bleach to add.
Although these tablets are generally used by campers and hikers as a quick way to purify water, their effervescent action makes them a great and very quick method to purify water at home.
Chlorine tablets work by killing harmful microorganisms, making your water safer to drink. After adding them to the water, there is nothing left to do but wait for these to take effect.
However, water purification is not exactly a DIY thing. This means that you should do it yourself only as a temporary or emergency method.
People prefer this water purification method because it does not involve any cost. Indeed, solar purification is cheap and affordable for everyone.
However, this method requires the longest time to be effective and, of course, sunny weather. As with boiling and distillation, solar purification relies on heat to remove impurities from the water.
Fill a few bottles with water and leave them in the sunlight for approx 8 hours before drinking. Sunlight acts as a powerful disinfectant against bacteria and parasites in the water. For the purification process to be complete, make sure the water is stored in clean containers.
By exposing water to UV lights, bacteria and waterborne pathogens are deactivated without using harmful chemicals that can alter its composition. The same thing happens with air and surfaces because UV light is not only effective for liquids, being a universal disinfectant for a wide category of bacteria.
However, people often use portable UV bulbs or blacklight lamps instead of UV filters because these are a cheaper alternative. Unfortunately, because those are a low power UV source, they are not effective in killing some microorganisms such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia.
In terms of costs, solar purification, boiling, or distilling does not require any money invested. However, other methods such as household bleach or chlorine and iodine tablets can be worth a few tens of dollars.
Even if they seem cheaper, DIY methods will cost you a lot of time and energy. On the other hand, a water purification system will remove impurities from your water without the need for your intervention.
The human body needs a daily intake of certain substances and nutrients to stay healthy. Iodine is one of them. More than that, it has a great capacity to disinfect contaminated water.
However, as with chlorine, you should not use liquid iodine or tablets as a daily method of water purification. The recommended dietary dose must not exceed 2mg/day.
In fact, with DIY methods, you will never be sure which substances have been removed or left in your water.
At the opposite pole, some water purification systems on the market have been designed to remove only certain contaminants from your water. They also aim to remove impurities while also keeping healthy minerals in water's consistency.
It would be great for these systems to really work, but unfortunately, they cannot be as effective as the certified systems on the market today. Manufacturers have spent years testing and improving water purification systems, which is why a home-built water softener may not be a safe alternative.
After we have managed to debate the most common myths about home water purification methods, it is time to move on to serious things! Do you want to discover how to purify water at home without changing its chemical composition, removing healthy minerals, or leaving behind dangerous substances?
As shown above, there are several ways you can purify water at home. These are really fast and involve low costs but are not very secure. Each of them removes certain contaminants from water, which is why we cannot say they are the best solutions to purify your drinking water.
In order to treat the water in your home effectively and to make sure that you remove all its contaminants and impurities, it is best to use a certified water purification system.
Here are some reasons why you should do so:
If you have read this article so far, it means that the quality of drinking water matters to you and that you want to find solutions to improve it. But how about the water that flows through the pipes of your house?
If left untreated, it can cause a lot of issues in your home and can make your daily activities more difficult. Thus, you will wake up one day with clogged pipes, broken appliances, and hard to clean stains everywhere in your bathroom and kitchen.
Our Yarna CWD30 Water Descaler can stop all this before it happens. Using a chemical reaction to purify your water helps to maintain the pipe system running as well as the appliances in your house.
Moreover, it prevents the minerals in your water from adhering to the inside of your showerheads, faucet aerators, clothes washers, dishwashers, and more. The minerals are supposed to simply pass through the system and down the drain.
Therefore, once you install it, it will function on its own without requiring maintenance on your part. Even if your intervention will no longer be necessary after installation and it is even possible to forget that your water descaler is there, you will definitely enjoy and feel its effects immediately.
As you can see, there are several ways you can purify water at home. However, these are not indicated if you are searching for a permanent filtration solution to treat the water in your home that you either use for consumption or daily activities.
Methods such as boiling, distillation, or solar purification are only temporary or in case of emergency solutions and are not effective in removing all types of harmful batteries, viruses, and contaminants.
Therefore, a system specially designed for water filtration such as a water softener or a water descaler are the most effective ways to purify water at home. These will ensure that both the water you consume and the water flowing through your piping system is completely clean and safe.
]]>Stop for a second and think about the last time you cooked something without using water. Most likely the only thing you managed to prepare in your kitchen without using water was a basic sandwich.
But have you ever wondered if the water you use for cooking is completely clean? Given that 85% of American household water is hard water, as long as you do not use any water filtration solution in your home, the water you use for cooking is full of hard minerals.
You can find out if the water in your house is hard just by checking your dishes, bathtub, or showerhead. If you discover stains on their surface, this is due to the evaporation of hard water that leaves deposits of hard minerals behind like calcium and magnesium.
To better understand the impact of hard water in your home, check this table of concentrations of dissolved calcium and magnesium in soft and hard water accordingly to PMC – US National Library Of Medicine.
Dissolved Calcium And Magnesium
|
||
Water |
Milligrams per liter (mg/l) |
Grains per US gallon (gpg) |
soft |
0-60 |
0-3,5 |
moderate |
61-120 |
3.5-7.0 |
hard |
121-180 |
7.0-10.5 |
very hard |
>180 |
>10.5 |
1ppm = 0.058 grains / US gallon |
Of course, stains on surfaces are just a quick test that can confirm the presence of hard water in your home. To find out the level of hard minerals in the water you use, check a water sample at a specialized laboratory. The results will show you exactly what kind of water you use at home according to the metrics in the table above.
For more information about hard water, testing methods for the level of hardness in your water, and the possible dangers of not treating hardness over time, read our previous article on this topic.
When they first hear of it, many people are questioning if “is it safe to drink hard water?”. There are no major risks in drinking hard water, but its effects do not stop here.
In the long run, water hardness can cause problems for your skin and scalp due to its high amount of hard minerals. The result is dry, lifeless hair, and rough skin. Another side effect of water hardness is the mineral deposit left on your clothes after washing them. In time you will notice that the fabric of your clothes is no longer as velvety as it was when you bought them, and the white ones can easily turn their color into a faded yellow.
Not least, perhaps the most severe impact of hard water is shortening the life of the appliances you've invested in or even causing them irreparable damage. We all know how much a washing machine, or a brand-new refrigerator can cost. When you make such an investment, you expect your appliances to last forever and a day. Unfortunately, hard water can ruin your hopes…
As we have mentioned above in this article, is it safe to drink hard water, but it can influence the cooking process in some ways. Unless you are using bottled water to prepare your meals, the water you use for cooking contains hard minerals. Even if there is no concrete evidence that hard water has negative effects on health, it still influences the taste, smell, color, and even texture of the food you cook at home.
This means that no matter how hard you try to choose the freshest ingredients, follow the recipes strictly and add the most flavorful spices to your dishes, the effects of hard water will inevitably influence your results.
Certain recipes ask you to boil some ingredients or maybe you just like to boil your meat or vegetables before eating them. Therefore, if the boiling process involves hard water, you will notice that the color and texture of your foods will change. This happens because dissolved minerals like calcium and magnesium are significantly affecting the appearance of whatever you are boiling with hard water.
Many people avoid boiling their food even if this is a healthier alternative. They rather prefer to fry it because it tastes much better this way. What they don't know is that the poor taste of their food may be due to the water in which it was boiled.
Moreover, the struggle of boiling beans is real for those with hard water issues. Sometimes it takes an eternity to boil dried beans such as peas, rice, or beans because of the calcium and magnesium they are absorbing.
Choosing the right type of yeast for baking is already a difficult task for those who want to bake something at home. With so many options available on the market, it is hard to tell which one is the best product when you are about to bake something in your own kitchen. However, after passing this step and choosing a recipe, there is nothing that can go wrong... Unless you use hard water to dissolve your yeast.
Because it is a living organism, the yeast will be instantly affected by the hard minerals in the water used for dissolving it. The result is a dough that has not grown enough, with a rough texture. Either you are trying to bake bread, cake, or any kind of pastry, it won't have the shape and size you imagined if you use hard water in the process. This is quite frustrating thinking that baking can take more than half a day in some cases.
We all know the health benefits of cooking at home instead of eating commercial foods full of preservatives and chemicals. The same goes for homemade sauces. Why buy ketchup or mayonnaise regularly when you can prepare these in your kitchen?
Well, if you use hard water to do this, you will definitely be disappointed with the taste of your tomato sauce. Therefore, you will probably want to buy a sauce bottle from the supermarket and never try to prepare it at home.
This is the result of excess calcium and magnesium that changes the taste of your sauces, regardless of the quality of the other ingredients. The same happens with coffee, teas, soups, or fruit juices. Even if it is safe to drink hard water, this won't matter as much when the taste of your morning espresso doesn't make you happy.
And because most recipes require water, you can't just skip adding it to your food while cooking. What you can do instead is improving the taste and appearance of home-cooked food by finding an effective solution to treat water hardness.
Fortunately, there are many water softening solutions available today that can remove minerals from hard water, as we have discussed in other articles before. Here are some of our recommendations.
One of the best ways to soften the water used for cooking is a Reverse Osmosis System. This device uses a semi-permeable membrane that retains water impurities and contains four or five filters through which water passes before it is ready for consumption.
Therefore, water is forced to enter through the filter membrane that only allows water molecules to pass, blocking all contaminants which can't get to the other side because of their larger size.
In general, this system is only used to filter drinking and cooking water because it is not the most efficient whole-house filter.
Many people believe that a salt-based water softener is the most effective way to filter water in their homes.It has gained popularity over time because it is one of the first hard water filtration systems to appear on the market.
We can agree that a salt-based water softener manages to successfully combat the effects of hard water, but in the case of water used for drinking and cooking, the taste and smell of salt may not be to everyone's liking.
The ion exchange process changes hard minerals with sodium ions, leaving your water with a salty taste and smell. Although this is not a problem for some people, it can still be harmful to those trying to keep the salt out of their diet.
Moreover, if you have decided to use a salt-based water system, be prepared to constantly buy bags of salt because it needs a constant supply to regenerate.
As the name suggests, this device was designed to act as a conditioner for hard minerals. Therefore, it will not remove them but will change their chemical composition in such a way as to reduce the scale in your pipes. When it comes to the water used for cooking, some conditioners can remove the bad smell and taste from your water. However, hard minerals will still be present, which is not that bad thinking of their healthy properties for the human body.
Therefore, if you need a device to combat hard water in your entire home, our Yarna water descalers CWD24, CWD30 and CWD48 can work together with a filtration solution specially designed for cleaning water for cooking and drinking. This way you will get rid of hard water mineral stains on surfaces, low water pressure, dry skin, and stiff laundry while enjoying tasty food prepared in your own kitchen.
Furthermore, if you are looking for a cost-effective investment, our descalers have a one-year money-back guarantee which you can extend to ten years by simply registering your product on our website here.
If the food you prepare at home is not as tasty as you expect, that doesn’t make you an unskilled cook. The first thing you should consider when this happens is the quality of your water. Find out the level of its hardness and search for suitable solutions to make sure that the water you use for cooking does not affect the taste and smell of homemade foods.
]]>However, people do not often think about the quality of the water in their homes. Even if the US has one of the safest drinking water supplies in the world, yet about 7.2 million Americans get sick every year from diseases spread through water.
This is also because people do not think about the importance of a water filtration system in their homes. If not filtered, the water you drink may contain certain contaminants that are harmful to your health.
A solution designed to remove the harmful substances from your drinking water is the refrigerator water filter. When you buy a new refrigerator, a water dispenser and an ice machine are some big bonuses. By choosing a device with these features, you will always have available drinking water and ice cubes in your home.
Those refrigerators usually came with an included filter that makes the water from your dispenser and ice maker safe to be consumed. Therefore, refrigerator water filters should remove impurities and contaminants that are unhealthy and gives an unpleasant taste and smell to your water due to its excessive amount of chlorine.
This happens through the process of carbon filtration that uses active charcoal to get rid of contaminants by adsorption. In other words, the carbon is attracting contaminants just like a magnet, making the unclean water healthy and safe to drink.
To answer the question - YES, refrigerator water filters are effective in removing chlorine, the substance causing water bad smell and taste, but that's about all it can do. However, even if you are happy to have a refrigerator with a water dispenser and ice machine, you should consider the fact that the water from there is not 100% safe.
In brief, a refrigerator water filter will clear away chlorine from your water but will leave behind many substances such as heavy metals and other contaminants that can’t be removed by the carbon inside.
Below are some of the pollutants that a refrigerator water filter cannot remove from your water:
Even though these are some of the most common contaminants, the list does not end here. The U.S. EPA identified more than 80 contaminants that may occur in drinking water and pose a risk to humans, with higher chances for those with a weakened immune system. Keep in mind that the effects of these contaminants may occur within hours, days, or even years after a person consumes unclean water.
Even if the human body does its best to fight these contaminants, it cannot cope alone with some high-risk bacteria and viruses. Therefore, you should not take your water's quality for granted even if you can't see or taste its impurities.
If you are about to buy refrigerator with a water filter, take into account that it will require some maintenance. An overused filter will not be able to operate at full capacity, and this means that the quality of your water will also be affected.
For this reason, many people who do not pay attention to changing their filters will have issues with the build-up in the water dispenser and ice maker machine which will inevitably lead to damage of the refrigerator over time.
When your refrigerator water filter wears out, the dispenser won't be a clean source of water anymore. But being unclean can be the smallest issue of the water passing through a dirty and old filter.
If not changed periodically, it will become a favorable environment for bacteria causing serious health problems. This usually happens because harmful substances that have been retained over time by your refrigerator filter will be filtered back into the water that passes through it if not replaced at the right moment, giving it a bad odor or a strange taste.
To avoid such situations, you should change the refrigerator water filter at least twice a year. This also depends on the manufacturing company and the technical specifications of the product.
On the other hand, there are many refrigerators using water filters that do not inform you when the filter needs to be changed. Thus, it is very easy to forget or not pay attention to the importance of regular filter change.
Most refrigerators with water dispensers and ice makers have a built-in water filter. But this is not an absolute rule. You can still have a refrigerator that gives you fresh drinking water and ice cubes whenever you need without a filter.
The average refrigerator has a lifespan of about 12 years. If you change the refrigerator water filter twice a year, this means 24 filters over the life of your refrigerator.
Depending on the manufacturer, a refrigerator water filter can cost about 60$ in the US. And that means you'll spend an average of 1,440$ until you buy the next refrigerator. All these numbers have a great chance to make you change your mind about buying a refrigerator with a built-in water filter.
Therefore, using a water filtration system to remove impurities starting right from your house's water supply line will clear all the water you use in the house, not just the one that goes into the water dispenser or ice maker. This way, you will save money from changing the refrigerator filter twice a year or even more often and you will also be sure that any source of water in the house is safe.
NSF International conducted a national consumer survey of 1,106 American adults related to their drinking water. Even if most respondents were aware that there are many types of filtration solutions designed to treat specific water contaminants, most of them are using the filter that came with their refrigerator.
Built-in refrigerator devices were the most used filters with a response rate of 24%. This statistic is quite worrying considering that many people who use refrigerator water filters are thinking that the water they drink is completely clean.
Because refrigerator water filters are not designed to remove all contaminants, the best solution for filtering water in your home would be a whole house water softener. With such a system, your water will be safe from many other contaminants, not just chlorine.
And it is not just water that will be protected from impurities. A whole-house water softener will also take care of your pipes and appliances that can become clogged due to the hard water passing through.
Moreover, by choosing a whole house softening system, you will enjoy clean and fresh water directly from the water dispenser of your refrigerator without a built-in filter. To put it in another way, this system will purify the water in your entire home, including the one that supplies your refrigerator.
There are several types of water softeners on the market at the moment. The best known of these is the salt-based water softener that removes hard minerals from water through the ion exchange process. This water softener is an excellent choice if you want to get rid of scale build-up from your pipes and fixtures and extend the life of your appliances. However, due to its salt usage for regenerating, we cannot say that a salt-based water softener is the best solution for filtering drinking water.
The added sodium from the water resulted after the ion exchange process can be harmful to people on restrictive diets. In such cases, we recommend a Reverse Osmosis System or a Magnetic Water Softener. These two can treat water without adding sodium ions to its composition and they have a higher effectiveness in removing impurities.
Having such a device attached directly to your home's water supply line will give you clean and safe water when using your refrigerator's dispenser and ice maker as well. Therefore, there will be no need for a refrigerator water filter that involves replacement after a certain period.
In fact, some of the advanced water filtration solutions on the market today don't even need a filter to operate. This means that you will only invest one time when buying the device, without having to constantly replace filters or add salt for the regeneration cycle as in the case of salt-based water softeners.
To get the best from both worlds, if your refrigerator already has a built-in water filter, you can pair it with a water softening solution to protect your pipes, fixtures, and appliances. Our Yarna CWD24 Water Descaler treats the water with electric impulses that effectively reduce the scum in the sinks and baths and increases the life of your pipes, fixtures, and appliances.
If you are looking for a cost-efficient and low-maintenance softener that has no adverse effects on the chemical composition of the water, an electronic water descaler meets both aspects.
That being said, we can agree that refrigerator water filters have their advantages and disadvantages. In terms of user experience, it can be time-consuming and expensive to replace the filters twice a year.
However, if a water dispenser and an ice maker are a must for you, you should always think of the water's quality that passes through these when you consider buying a refrigerator with such features. Fortunately, there are various water filtration methods which you can use to replace the refrigerator water filter or to treat the water along with it.
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What exactly makes it be the perfect alternative for its salt-based version? Well, to find out the answer, we will have to analyse this matter right from the root.
This system is the most common water softener, but not the most effective. And we say this because it works by constantly feeding salt, which is not the healthiest or the most cost-efficient "fuel".
Through its ion exchange process, a salt-based water softener removes the hard water minerals through a change with sodium ions. The latter comes from the salt, which is regularly introduced in one of system's tanks for preparing the salt brine.
Therefore, this solution helps the whole process to regenerate but allows the sodium ions to be a part of water consistency. Here come the downsides: salt can affect health and is not cost-effective in the long run.
About 90% of Americans 2 years old or older consume too much sodium. Regardless of the human body needing a small amount of sodium to function, the excess can be harmful, especially for those following restrictive diets.
Moreover, even if salt doesn't have a huge price, it adds up over time. The average price for a 50 lb salt bag in the US is somewhere between $5-$25, depending on the manufacturing company.
Given the typical example of a 60,000-grain capacity water softener, with two people in the house and a water hardness of 110 grains, you can calculate the salt usage following this formula:
[No. of people x gallons per person in one day x 110 (hardness)] ÷ efficiency of salt exchange. 2 x 65 = 130 x 110 = 14,300 grains in one day. Divided by 2,000 grains removal per pound of salt equals 7.15 pounds per day. 90 days at 7.15 = 643.5 pounds.
Softening alternatives are not always based on the complete removal of calcium and magnesium from hard water. In the absence of salt, water softeners usually use various methods, such as reverse osmosis technology, capacitive deionization, magnetic water treatment, and so on.
In order to shed even more light on how salt-free water softeners work, below you will find some specific answers on this topic.
Hard minerals like calcium and magnesium are not completely removed. Compared with salt-based systems methods of treating hardness, these alternatives are neutralizing hard minerals, so they do not stick to surfaces. In this way, water quality will not be affected by the addition of sodium.
The water resulted from the softening process of a traditional system has potential health risks for people on low sodium diets. Summarily, through the ion exchange process are added 7.5 milligrams per quart for each GPG of hardness removed. A no-salt water softener does not use salt and sodium is not introduced into the water’s consistency, just as healthy minerals are not removed.
Because these water softeners do not go through any regeneration cycle, their maintenance is extremely low. Depending on the chosen model, the only thing you will need to do is change the sediment filter once a year. However, there are salt-free water softeners that will not even require this step.
The average price of a saltless water softener can be between 300$-4000$, depending on its operating system, features, and manufacturer. Another important thing to keep in mind if you buy a no-salt water softener that uses a filter is its cost, which you will have to change after a certain time.
They are called this because saltless systems only alter hard water minerals but does not remove them. Minerals are coated by micro-crystals going through this conditioning process. In other words, magnesium and calcium are crystallized, being unable to attach to pipes to form scale.
As we mentioned earlier, salt-free systems generally use other methods to soften the water. However, there is only one exception with the potassium chloride water softeners. These systems are salt-free, but they are using potassium chloride for the ion exchange process.
Just like the maintenance, installing a no-salt water salt softener is not rocket science. On the contrary, the installation of such a system is easier than the salt alternative. There is no brine tank to worry about and, in many cases, installing such a system can only take 30 minutes.
A salt-free water softener has a lifespan of about 5-10 years. However, this is not a rule. The life of a salt-free water softener depends largely on its size and the amount of hard water it is softening over time.
Moreover, some systems can only treat a certain level of water hardness, while others can soften water of any hardness level without being affected in any way. Always check the manufacturer's specifications to find this out. Otherwise, it is possible to buy a product that will last less than you expected.
Below, we have prepared some recommendations for the most effective salt-free water softeners now. Each of them comes with different features and particular user experiences. In fact, our selection is based on high reviews from users who have already tried these products.
The process used by this saltless system attacks hard water particles with electro-magnetic waves, treating the entire water system in your home without the use of salt. Therefore, calcium and magnesium particles remain in suspension, flowing freely through the system and down the drain.
A big advantage offered by The ClearWave Conditioner is that it doesn't only prevent new scale formation. Over time, it helps break down the existing scale, protecting the water heater, pipes, showerheads, and appliances.
Furthermore, this water softener is maintenance-free, environmentally friendly, and uses less water than traditional water softeners. It works on all types of pipes, including copper, PVC, galvanized, and stainless steel.
In this case, the pH level of water is lowered based on the basic scientific process of chelation. Shortly, the mineral ions causing hard water are bound to the chelating agent in NuvoH2O's proprietary formulation, which keeps the minerals soluble and unable to cause hard water problems.
The water resulting from this process is soft and healthy for all your household uses. This means that not only your pipes will be protected, but also your health. If you have a restrictive diet that does not allow salt, the softened water in this system is ideal for you.
With its compact design and no need for electricity, this water softener can fit almost anywhere.
This system will ensure that sediment, hard minerals, and other undesirable substances are removed from your water and provide clean, and healthy water for consumption in your home.
AQUIOS Water softener uses a natural technology based on polyphosphate additive, also known as Siliphos, which inhibits scale deposits. Moreover, this method will slowly reduce scale buildup on your pipes and appliances over time.
Its unique design ensures virtually no pressure loss or reduction in water flow rate and requires absolutely no programming, electricity, or maintenance. Also, The AQUIOS Water Softener comes bundled with a cartridge rated for 40,000 gallons of usage before it requires replacement.
In addition to the previously recommended models, we would like to introduce you to our water descalers CWD24, CWD30, or CWD48. As with the above models, these descalers do not need salt for softening the water in your home.
What makes them special is the fact that they do not need filters like salt-free water softeners. Yarna Descalers are a one-time investment that require no additional water to operate and no filters. The water savings alone makes an electronic water descaler a smart investment for a long time.
Moreover, they treat water hardness through electric impulses, which are generated in the electronic unit and are controlled by a computerized micro-chip that gives protection without having to handle dangerous currents. The microchip inside the descaler regulates how current flows through the two active coils, and only sends small currents inside your pipes, not on the outside.
Perhaps one of the biggest advantages is the extended warranty. If you choose one of our descalers, you will enjoy a one-year money-back guarantee and a full ten-year manufacturer warranty just by registering the product on our website.
There is a water softening solution for any house and needs. For users who want a practical system that does not require regular refilling, salt-free water softeners are the perfect alternative.
The good part is that there are also many other alternatives on the current market that offer various features for users, as in the case of descalers, known as the most advanced water softeners alternative so far.
However, it is up to you to decide which system is the right one for you. With detailed research based on your preferences and your house demands, you will surely find the ideal solution for your water hardness.
]]>The need for a water softener is determined by a common problem that many homeowners face: hard water. However, to find a water softener that fully meets your needs, and which can effectively get rid of hard water in your home, you need to do some research first.
Before taking the final decision, you should establish certain criteria for choosing a good water softener. For this reason, we have prepared a list of our recommendations for the best water softener systems to come with a helping hand.
To make the best choice, among the things you should look for when searching the best water softener should be the following:
Water softeners are the solution for hard water, and there is no better way to treat the hardness of it. However, there are several types to choose from, each with a different way of dealing with hard minerals. Some of them replace hard minerals with other substances, some eliminate them permanently, and others change their chemical composition to be less harmful.
Therefore, there are currently 4 different water softener types on the market: traditional salt-based systems, salt-free water softeners, magnetic water softeners, and RO systems.
As with any device you want to purchase, the way it works is an important criterion. So, think about whether some standard commands will satisfy you or you'll need a more advanced operating system.
Certain water softeners will make your job easier. In fact, some systems will work on their own, without ever needing your intervention. On the other hand, some water softeners will need a human operator to set certain controls.
If you opt for a traditional water softener, its size will be influenced by the water capacity it can soften.
And to identify what kind of water softener you need depending on its ability to soften water, the first things you need to determine are the level of hardness of your water and the water consumption in your home.
Water hardness is measured in "grains" per gallon. You can take a water sample to a water test lab to have its hardness measures. This is the only way you can find out exactly what your water hardness level is.
However, the size or capacity of a water softener indicates how many grains of hardness it can remove before it needs to be regenerated. Usually, the capacity of a water softener varies from 8,000 to 80,000 grains.
Price is also an important thing that you need to consider. After all, investing in a water softener aims to reduce long-term costs, not increase them.
However, costs also depend on other factors such as installation, maintenance, standard or advanced features, and more. Remember that if you opt for a traditional system, you'll have to frequently buy bags of salt as well. An average range for the hardware only is around $500-$1500.
Sincere feedback from a user who has already tried the water softener you are interested in can help you form an idea before spending money on that product.
However, if you want to consult some reviews, it is better to directly check the manufacturers' websites, not of other traders.
As promised, we prepared a list of the best water softeners at this moment. The order is totally random because each of the products we have recommended below are some of the best you can find on market right now, and they come with various features and benefits that cannot be ranked.
With its multi-tasking system, this water softener has the ability not only to remove the hard minerals but also to make the water safe from potentially harmful contaminants by reducing sediment and chlorine as well, which impact the smell and taste of your water.
Because it is a salt-based water softener, you will have to regularly refill it with salt. The good part is that, compared to other salt-based systems that use the same amount every time even though your water use may fluctuate daily, this one reduces unnecessary salt use, minimizing the need to purchase endless bags of salt.
In other words, with its 6th sense technology, this system regenerates soft water for your home as you need it, not on an everyday basis like other water softeners.
Another advantage of this system is that you will be able to install it without the help of a professional. Moreover, even if it is a salt-based water softener, you will not have to deal with the installation of two tanks.
This water softener system is designed for larger homes with 1-inch plumbing. Its installation place is on the incoming water line to filter out sediment, dirt, rust, and sand, making your water cleaner and clearer.
The reason we chose it to be part of our list is that this water softener allows for customized filtration based on filter choice, including carbon options for better-tasting water at every faucet. It uses EcoPure filters like EPW4F, EPW4C, EPW4P, all other major brands of universal oversized whole home filters, such as Whirlpool, Omni, Culligan, Watts, Filtrete, 3M, GE, and DuPont.
Therefore, the mounting bracket and pressure release button makes changing filters easy, saving you time and hassle. Once the water goes through its softening process, the build-up from your pipes, appliances and fixtures will never be an issue again.
This system provides complete limescale-free water for a family of 5 and can generate approximately 400 gallons of filtered soft water every day. It is engineered for both city and well water, and it is equipped with an efficient digital meter control, so it consumes less salt.
Suitable for easy DIY installation in a garage, basement, or apartment kitchen cupboard, it connects to your main water supply and softens water in the entire home.
Concerning the maintenance, Water2Buy W2B200 quietly takes care of itself performing an automatic regeneration cycle when needed. Just like one of our previous examples, this softener measures your water usage and only regenerates when necessary, making it more efficient.
It usually regenerates at 3 am when the water supply is not in use, so there is no impact on normal water usage. This way, you will never have to worry about ever running out of soft water.
Equipped with three filters that work together to provide clean and safe water, the APEC water softener is more complex than the others. There is an entire cycle of water softening going through three different tanks, specially designed to work in addition to each other.
The triple-stage specialized filtration system uses certain filters that effectively treat a wide variety of water concerns. Therefore, its first filter is washable and reusable for extended life service and exceptional dirt holding capacity. The second one captures contaminants such as chlorine, iron, hydrogen sulphide, and other heavy metal contaminants. The last filter removes the bad taste and smell to make water drinkable.
This pre-assembled complete system is ready to mount, making installation easy even for inexperienced users. Even if it takes up a little more space due to its tripe-tank concept, such a water softener promises to soften the water in the most efficient way possible.
Considering that a salt-based water softener must be regularly supplied with salt to function and that salt needs a storage place as well, many users are looking for salt-free alternatives. Our water descaler will not only relieve you of refilling the system and storing the salt bags, but also of the space issue that a traditional water softener usually occupies, because of its two tanks.
Yarna CWD30 Water Descaler works based on capacitive effect, also known as cathodic protection. In short terms, the principle behind this is to connect an external anode to the metal for its protection. After that, a current pass between them, and the metal becomes cathodic and does not corrode. As the water passes through the treated area underneath the two impulse coils, the powerful electric waves break the crystals and transform the minerals into ions.
That means there is no ion exchange in the process of softening hard water, so salt is not necessary as in the case of traditional water softeners. For those on salt restrictive diets, our descalers are the best choice. As can be seen above, sodium will not be introduced into the water, because hard minerals are transformed into ions, not exchanged.
Easy to install without any moving parts, our water descalers can combat the damaging effects of hard water by simply placing them on your water pipes.
By choosing any of our water descalers, you will also receive a one-year money-back guarantee. Moreover, through a quick registration of your product on our website, you will get a full ten-year manufacturer warranty for any potential defects that were not caused by your mishandling of the product.
All things considered, the best water softener for your home can't be a quick choice. Going through an analysis of the models on the market, their style of operation, their price, capacity, and size, there is a suitable water softener for any house.
As could be seen, there are great saltless alternatives as well. For those who are not willing to spend extra money on bags of salt, or they just want to avoid sodium in their diet, a water descaler can be great choice.
First off, we want to get out of the way the biggest concern of them all: the maintenance process isn’t as hard as it sounds at first. With a little practice, you’ll get the hang of it in no time. And by following a set of instructions in the owner’s manual, you’ll be able to keep it running for years and years to come. Let’s start with the basics first and we’ll get onto the more complicated stuff later down the line in this article.
No matter how much money you’ve spent on your water softener or how good the spec sheet looks, you can’t overlook these basic requirements. We can’t stress this enough, so be careful to not overlook any of these things:
On average, a water softener’s brine tank should be refilled once around every two months. In case you don’t know, the brine tank is where the salt goes.
However, you should check it more frequently than that, especially if you live in an area where water hardness exceeds 180 mg/L in calcium and/or magnesium, or more than 900 mg/L in total dissolved solids.
Open the brine tank lid every now and again and make sure the salt is wet and covered in water. If the opposite is true – namely the salt looks dry and the water level is low – it’s time for a refill. Furthermore, if your water softener is more than 10 years old, you should check the salt level at least once every week.
It should be a given, but many people cheap out when it come to the salt’s quality. Always use the best possible salt that you can buy. Even so, salt is relatively cheap these days, so if you can afford a softener, you can most likely afford to buy quality packets.
We recommend using evaporated salt pellets because they are generally the purest form of softener salt that you can find. As another rule of thumb, you should also try to avoid block salt unless your manufacturer’s manual specifically states otherwise.
You should really learn how to clean a water softener’s brine tank if you truly want to keep it running for years to come. Luckily, most models come with an instruction manual that also takes you through this process in minute detail.
The easiest way to do this is by waiting until the brine tank is almost empty. Get a scoop and take out the remaining salt rocks or salt sludge out. We needed to mention this because if your softener is truly dirty, the salt will look more like sludge than rocks and this is an important detail to consider.
If the sludge is caked onto the bottom of the brine tank, you might be able to pry it free by lightly prodding it with a stick or broom handle. Once you’ve gotten the sludge free, clean the tank with detergent, water and a brush. If mold has built up on the bottom, feel free to use mold remover. When you’re done with all of this, rinse the tank thoroughly, refill it with salt at optimum levels, and let it regenerate overnight.
One major question that keeps popping up when talking about water softener maintenance is whether or not it’s OK to use bleach to clean mold in your softener tank.
And it’s understandable, because branded mold removers for softeners can be a little pricey in an emergency situation. Fortunately, a significant number of salt-based water softener models have what is known as a “bleach cycle”. As usual, you should read the user manual to see if your particular unit can support this method.
If the manual states that you can do so, then use one cup of bleach if you have a 9-inch water softener tank, or two cups of bleach if you have a 12-inch water softener tank. Close the tank’s lid and then trigger a manual regeneration of the system.
WARNING: Do not, under any circumstances, drink water from the tap until the softener manages to complete the entire regeneration process. If you plan on cleaning the softener with bleach, buy some bottled water or get clean water from another source until the process is over.
During the regeneration cycle, brine gets moved from the brine tank to the resin tank via the venturi valve. As such, the venturi valve might at times get blocked with sediment, dirt, sand, or other small pollutants.
A clean venturi valve is a must if you want your water softener to work properly. Fortunately, cleaning this valve is pretty simple and doesn’t require any special tools. All you need to do is unscrew the valve cover and remove the internal parts.
Take those internal parts and give them a good clean in soapy water. Pay close attention so that you’ll be able to remove any and all dirt that can accumulate on the small mechanisms. Once done, reassemble the entire thing and let the softener regenerate. You should clean the venturi valve twice a year even if you have a sediment filter installed before the softener, just to be safe.
We’re finally done with the basic maintenance and all of its requirements. As you can see, it is fairly simple once you get a hang of how everything works. Now it’s time to move on to the more complicated side of things.
We’re finally done with the brine tank, which is relatively easy to clean, especially because it’s designed in such a way so that you can refill the salt on a regular basis. Now it’s time to move onto the resin tank, which is a little more complicated to handle.
Sure, you may not need to clean the resin tank nearly as often as you need to handle the brine tank, but knowing how to do it is useful, nonetheless. At the very least, you will end up saving some cash that you would otherwise spend by calling the maintenance service. And in some cases, you’ll end up saving a lot more on repairs or even replacements.
To understand why the resin tank is important, you need to know that the resins within the tank are the ones that gulp in all the buildup. Sure, the regeneration process is supposed to remove most, if not all of the buildup, but the process becomes less effective in time. Generally speaking, most water softener units start losing their buildup removal efficiency after about seven years of use.
The simplest way to deal with this is to have a professional replace the beads themselves. This can be somewhat costly, with beads and a professional’s time running between the ballparks of $100 and $300. Sure, it can be quite expensive, but since you’ll only need to do it once every seven years, we think most people will be able to manage.
Nevertheless, if you want to save even more money and go the DIY route, there’s a solution for that as well. The short version: you’ll need an iron-cleaning formula to cleanse the beads and restore some efficiency to them. Optionally, you can also install a sediment filter before the softener to prevent future buildup even more efficiently.
While it isn’t an exact fix, this skill will help you solve potential problems before they become too overwhelming. Sure, checking the brine tank on a regular basis might be good enough most times to identify potential problems, but there are also more subtle signs that you can look for if you want to prevent unwanted issues.
For a start, look at the soap when you’re washing your hands. Hard water has a particular way in which it interacts with soap. Without going into many technical details, the calcium crystals make it much harder to lather properly. While you’re at it, you might also want to take a closer look at your faucet, fixtures, bathtub, and dishes.
If you see even the smallest number of white spots or film, then your water softener might not be working to its full capacity. Another good indicator is the water’s taste. Also, if your laundry becomes noticeably dingier after every wash, it should be clear that something isn’t right with your softener.
Finally, the last remaining thing you can look out for is the frequent regeneration. Some salt-based water softeners regenerate more often than other models, but the thing is that the process should have a somewhat fixed frequency. Let’s say your softener regenerates once every 12 hours – that’s ok. But if it starts regenerating at 8 AM, then at 1 PM, then at 6PM, etc., then it’s fairly obvious that the regeneration frequency is messed up.
You’ve probably heard of salt bridges before, especially if you’ve had your water softener for some time. But what is it exactly? A salt bridge is a salt crust layer that builds up between the “good” salt and the water in the brine tank.
As you can probably imagine, this prevents the softener from running properly. And because of this, the softener might start to gather even more buildup in the resin tank in due time. To prevent this, check the brine tank frequently to see if any salt bridges have formed and break them down with a broomstick or other similar item. Just be careful not to damage the tank in any way while doing so.
In most cases, this can be prevented by simply choosing quality salt, just like we have already mentioned in the first part of this article. Even so, we still recommend checking the tank from time to time just to be safe.
Hopefully, you’ve learned at least a thing or two about maintaining your softener properly. If you ever stumble upon a problem that you don’t feel comfortable handling yourself, don’t be afraid to call a professional service or repairman.
Often times, when dealing with unusual issues, trying to fix the softener yourself might lead to even more unwanted complications. You should especially consider calling a professional if a certain problem persists even after trying all of the fixes mentioned in this article.
Finally, we’ve covered everything there is to know about basic and advanced water softener maintenance. What do you think? It’s a lot of work, isn’t it?
Although it’s not all that hard, it can still become quite painstaking in no time. Why bother with all this effort, especially considering the downsides of a salt-based water softener? Well, because a lot of people are used to them.
Salt-based water softeners have been around for what seems like an eternity, and some people still have theirs for over ten years already. Nevertheless, technology has evolved, and new solutions have appeared down the line. Going salt-free is beneficial for the environment as well as for your drinking water.
Sodium in water can cause increased heart rate and other health problems. Not to mention that giving your plants water that contains sodium can prevent them from getting their much-needed nutrients from the soil. So, what is the best salt-free alternative to a water softener that doesn’t even require maintenance? We have just what you were looking for.
Apart from maintenance, a traditional salt-based water softener also takes up a lot of real estate. With a water descaler, on the other hand, space will no longer be an issue, as all of our models have short dimensions.
You can choose between the CWD24, CWD30, or CWD48 from our current lineup. Each one functions with capacitive electric impulses that directly affect the shape of hard mineral crystals. As such, the hard minerals will no longer stick to pipes and other surfaces and will no longer cause the formation of limescale deposits.
Furthermore, because the minerals are no longer sticky, you won’t have problems with soap lather, dermatitis caused by hard water, dingy clothes after every wash, or dishes with icky white film. In other words, it works just like a traditional water softener, except you’ll no longer have to deal with sodium or the tedious process of water softener maintenance.
With the Yarna water descaler, all you need for it to run properly is electricity. Forget purchasing salt packets, bobbing your head up with maintenance tasks, or having to filter out the sodium in the water.
It requires no plumbing whatsoever and you can install it in around 15 minutes with the simple instructions that come printed in the user manual. The ultra-wide flat bands work much better than previous water descalers you might have seen on the market because they cover more of the pipe area, thus managing to treat water more efficiently.
Speaking of pipe coverage, all Yarna water descalers work with any pipe material. The way the capacitive effect works isn’t tied to GPM or other factors either. They also have no GPG limit, meaning that they work regardless of your water supply’s hardness levels. And the best part is that the descaler also has an effect on existing limescale and limestone deposits. Even if you have the hardest water level possible, you’ll start noticing its effects within three months of continuous use.
But that’s no all. We’re offering a one-year money-back guarantee with every purchase so you’ll have more than enough time to test it out and see if it works for you. On top of that, you’ll also get a 10-year manufacturer warranty once you register your product on our website.
You have the option of purchasing any of our descalers straight from our website or from our Amazon store in case you want to purchase other things as well and have them all delivered in one convenient package.
Regardless of where you purchase our descalers from, you’ll still get the full one-year money-back guarantee, as well as the 10-year manufacturer warranty once you register the product. We hope you’ll give one of our descalers a try and have a good experience with it!
Water softener maintenance isn’t all that hard, but it can be very, very tedious. Hopefully, you have learned a thing or two from our small tutorial and have managed to troubleshoot any issue you were having.
Although your water softener might have been useful for some time, we believe that you should try the newer salt-free alternatives that we are offering. Regardless of what you choose, we hope you’ll have a good experience.
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Feel free to take notes from this article for future reference in case you plan on moving to a new home. And don’t forget to share it with other friends that might find the following information useful.
Often times, you’ll find that water filters come with indicative sizing references such as “1 – 3 bathrooms”. Be sure to follow these indicators because they will give you an estimate on which you can rely.
Another important factor that plays a role in choosing the correct size of a water filtration system is the number of people in your household. Let’s say you only have two bathrooms, but there are about seven people who constantly use them. That complicates things a little because the average consumption of water inevitably increases.
Moreover, the more you use appliances that require water, such as dishwashers and washing machines, your consumption will also increase, and the filter’s capacity also needs to be bigger.
When looking for a reverse osmosis system type of filter, you’ll often find that the measurement is taken in GPD (gallons per day), and when looking for a whole house filtration unit, the measurement is taken in GPM (gallons per minute).
In short, the water needs to flow at a certain level for the filtration media to be able to capture all the possible pollutants. If your water filtration system isn’t big enough for the volume of water you use, your system won’t be able to effectively clean your water.
To help you out in measuring how many gallons your household regularly consumes, we will present a list of how much water the major appliances and fixtures you might have take up. Get your calculator ready and sum up how many total gallons you’ll be using in a single minute or in a single day.
We also encourage you to sift through these products’ user manuals because you will usually find information regarding their water intake there.
Again, we urge you to look over the technical specifications of each of these products that you have. These estimates are only to help you out in figuring out the approximate size of the filter you’ll need.
Another way to determine what size water filtration system you need, that requires less math, is to check the size of your line pipe, which is the pipe at the entrance to your home.
Because the size of the line pipe determines the volume of water, it can be a good tool to estimate what size filtration system you would need. For example, a 1” line pipe typically has a flow rate of minimum 16 to a peak of 30 GPM.
Check the pipe size at the entrance to your home or facility. The size of the plumbing limits the flow of water, so this can be used as a guideline for the maximum flow rate coming into your home in extremely peak usage.
Pipe size |
Minimum GPM |
Maximum GPM |
½-inch pipe |
4 GPM |
7 GPM |
¾-inch pipe |
6 GPM |
16 GPM |
1-inch pipe |
16 GPM |
30 GPM |
1.25-inch pipe |
30 GPM |
35 GPM |
1.5-inch pipe |
40 GPM |
70 GPM |
2-inch pipe |
65 GPM |
120 GPM |
2.5-inch pipe |
80 GPM |
170 GPM |
3-inch pipe |
120 GPM |
270 GPM |
The flow rate of an individual tap or plumbing fixture can be determined by measuring the amount of time it takes to fill a container with water.
To do so, you will need a container, preferably a one-gallon water bottle, or a five-gallon bucket. And, obviously, a method to measure the time it takes to fill the container, such as a stopwatch or a stopwatch app on your smartphone.
Place the empty container beneath the faucet. Open the faucet completely while starting the stopwatch. When the container is full of water, stop the watch and see the results. You can repeat the test multiple times to get a more accurate reading.
Use the following formula to calculate the average GPM:
60 ÷ seconds to fill x measured gallons = GPM
The same principles apply even when choosing a UV water filter. However, the UV filter’s capacity to kill viruses, bacteria, and other pathogens depends on the exposure time of the water to the UV-C rays.
Traditional UV water filters use a quartz tube that houses a UV lamp which kills bacteria by disabling its DNA. The problem is that the tube and lamp are straight and don’t expose the water to the intended amount of UV-C rays for long periods.
This is where the Yarna UV Filter comes in. It’s made with SpiralLight technology that uses a - you guessed it - spiral water flow tube to get the water exposed to the UV-C rays for longer. We have two models available: 13 GPM or 18 GPM.
If it sounds too good to be true, we’re offering you a complete one-year money-back guarantee in case you’re not satisfied with our product. And if you choose to register it on our website, we’ll also give you an extended 10-year warranty.
Sizing a water filtration system may be a tedious process, but it’s not impossible by far once you learn all the techniques presented in this article.
In fact, it becomes quite easy once you start applying some basic math and taking into consideration how much water you consume on a daily basis. With all that said, we wish you good luck in sizing your next water filtration system!
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While we are all aware about the pros and cons of hard and soft water, we cannot ignore this live-giving element’s most important role: keeping us hydrated. So, with that in mind, how can we remove the sodium from softened water and even replace some of the beneficial minerals? Let’s find out:
Sodium plays a major role in softening water. A water softener removes the mineral content of hard water and replaces it with a small number of sodium ions. While this solves the hardness issue, it complicates things when it comes to drinking.
You see, sodium is directly responsible for increased blood pressure. As you can imagine, this takes a huge toll on your heart in the long run. And excess sodium can cause a whole load of other issues. No wonder doctors emphasize on regulating your sodium intake.
The most common and effective way to remove salt from water is through physical filtration. Like any dissolved solid, sodium needs an actual barrier between it and the water that you’re about to drink.
Most people either get a whole house water filter or a reverse osmosis system to solve this issue. And we can’t deny the fact that doing so works wonders. However, the cost of replacing filter cartridges and the level of wasted water from RO systems say a lot about their effectiveness.
Fortunately, other methods work just as well with very few downsides. You might’ve heard the term “saltless water softener” get tossed around from time to time. Thing is, that term is too broad to cover the entire spectrum of devices available. We’ll try to go through most of these methods in as little time as possible so you can fully understand what they’re about.
So now we’ve got out of the way how to remove sodium in case you already have a water softener. But what if you could soften your water without needing a salt-based water softener?
This is where the following salt-free water softeners come into play. Each of them has their own set of quirks and features, and they’re worth taking a look at. Without further ado, here are the alternatives:
The core principle of a water descaler relies on cathodic protection. Without going into too many technical details, what this device does is reshape calcium and magnesium crystals to make them less sticky.
It does so by sending capacitive electronic impulses throughout the pipe. These signals directly influence how minerals behave, and thus eliminate the buildup of limescale without any chemicals and without altering the water itself.
TAC is one of the newest water softening methods that don’t involve salt. One thing we like about this type of system is that you don’t need to connect it to a drain. Instead, it works by pushing the water through a granular medium much like a RO system.
We’ve talked about it earlier and most people already probably know what this type of system does. In short, it filters a vast part of water contaminants through a membrane that rejects particles based on size and ionic charge.
The higher the ionic charge of a particular contaminant, the harder it is for it to pass through the reverse osmosis system’s membrane.
At a base level, electronic water conditioners work similarly to water descalers. However, instead of capacitive electronic signals, they output inaudible sonar signals directly into the main water pipe.
Although not perfect, they at least get rid of the sodium problem. In short, these will keep the minerals intact, but instead of reshaping the crystals to become smaller and flatter, they reshape the crystals in such a way that they become bigger. Let’s look at what that means for the average user:
Finally, one of the best non-salt water softeners is, ironically, the liquid version. These units have mostly the same properties as traditional water softeners but without the need to add salt.
Instead, they use liquid polyphosphate, a non-toxic food grade solution that can prevent limescale buildup and eliminate minerals in the water. If you’re concerned about polyphosphate’s toxicity, note that this same ingredient has been used in drinks and foods for years and years without any report of intoxicated people.
As you can see, you have quite a few options if you want to enjoy the benefits of soft water without its sodium-induced downsides.
Which one you’ll pick depends on your preferences. You’ll need to balance out the good and the bad of each method to find the right pick that fits you.
However, if you were to ask us, one of these methods is superior in many ways when compared to all the others. With the only real downside being that it requires electricity, a water descaler is, in most cases, the best option.
As stated earlier, a water descaler works by reshaping mineral crystals in such a way that they become less sticky.
When compared to TAC, for example, the descaler solves the lathering issue and prevents scalp calcification or eczema caused directly by the hard minerals.
Unlike a reverse osmosis system or a traditional softener, the descaler doesn’t waste any water, nor does it require you to know about plumbing or try to figure out long-winded instruction manuals.
You can install a descaler in about 15 minutes using only the tools provided inside the box. It’s as simple as that and once you get it running, you’ll be able to enjoy softer water without any of the downsides. As for the existing limescale deposits, the descaler will also eliminate those in due time.
When purchasing the Yarna Electronic Water descaler, you get a full one-year money-back guarantee and warranty.
You can choose from the CWD24 (for 1-inch pipes), the CWD30 (for 2-inch pipes), CWD48 (for 4-inch pipes). And if that’s not enough for you, we will also extend your warranty to 10 years once you register your product on our website.
You can also purchase our descaler models from our Amazon store page and get the same extended 10-year warranty when you register them on our website. And if that wasn't enough, know that you can save up to $1000 on yearly bills with the help of the Yarna water descaler. How so? Because eliminating existing limescale and preventing future buildup will make your water heater function much better. Not to mention that water flow will be higher and you'll be able to take a shower using less water.
Furthermore, your dishwasher, washing machine, and just about any other appliance that uses water will also be able to do their thing without any hindrance. That, again, means less water consumption for basic tasks, and less energy consumption because their heating elements and other components won't be affected by limescale deposits. With all that said and done, don't forget you can try our descaler for a full year risk-free with our money-back gurantee.
Since more than 80% of US households suffer from the effects of hard water, getting a water descaler makes a lot more sense than leaving it be.
While classic water softeners have worked well for many people, the underlying effects of sodium in your drinking water can’t be ignored. No wonder several states have banned water softeners throughout the years.
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Today, we will be showing you how to install one as fast as possible without skipping through important details. Follow this relatively short guide and any troubles you might’ve had beforehand will be gone.
Pay very careful attention when installing your UV water filter. Precision is key. Incorrect installation can lead to numerous problems down the line, plus that your unit won’t be nearly as effective.
Of course, every filter has a slightly different installation process, and we recommend reading the user manual carefully. However, we will try to point out the most common installation tips and tricks here, so you’ll have an easier time when sifting through the guide.
In most cases, it’s ideal to install the UV water filtration system almost at the beginning of the main pipe, but after a pre-filtering system that can handle VOCs, metals, and other inorganic elements that UV light can’t eliminate.
However, depending on your specific model, there might be another place in your home where the filter should go. Make sure to check the manual and contact the company from which you’ve bought it to ensure that you’re installing it exactly where it should be.
As mentioned earlier, it’s important to position the filter correctly so that it won’t be misaligned and the water gets treated to its maximum potential.
For this, use a wall-mounting kit to ease the installation process and make sure that all the connection are secured as they should be. If positioned correctly on a vertical surface, your purifier will have a neat, professional appearance. These kits include a pre-drilled set of brackets and all the hardware necessary to secure the purifier.
Not only that, but the positioning will allow the ballast to get the perfect cooling it needs so that your filter won’t overheat, and you won’t have to change the light bulb earlier than expected.
Another thing to take into consideration is the installation of shut-off valves before and after the unit.
Why is this necessary? Because once per year you will need to change the bulb and replace the quartz sleeve respectively. These two parts are essential if you want the filter to function correctly and eliminate all the potential pathogens.
This is just an optional step, but it’s one that could come in handy down the line. In case the pipe loses its efficiency down the line, the water filter might get a little displaced and leks may start occurring.
The drain pan must be plumbed to an adequate, free flowing drain to prevent water damage in event of a leak. This way you’ll ensure that whatever water start flowing from the pipe gets drained and doesn’t overflow into your home.
It’s a good idea to always have spare bulbs and sleeves in case the ones you have right now crack or stop working properly.
Also, you should note that the bulbs and sleeves, even if working correctly, need to be replaced once per year.
A UV water filter works by using the UV-C light spectrum to deactivate pathogens at their core. As long as you’ve also got a reliable pre-filtering system, and a water descaler to soften the minerals, you won’t be likely to have any trouble with it.
The UV-C rays target each microorganism’s DNA to deactivate it and kill it. It won’t evaporate it, but it will disable it from infecting you and spreading to others. As you can probably tell, this makes it about 99.9% safe. And it does so without altering the water or adding any chemicals to it.
UV filters are even safer and more environmentally friendly than chlorination. It also doesn’t waste any water, doesn’t consume much electricity, and doesn’t affect your septic system. This type of filter has also been tested extensively by the FDA (the Food and Drug Administration), which concluded that it’s a reliable and effective method to combat pathogens and microorganisms in water.
Apart from microorganisms, AKA living things, the UV filter can’t remove anything else. Don’t rely on it to filter sediment, VOCs, heavy metals, salts, chlorine, or any other contaminants.
In case of a power outage, the UV filter will stop functioning unless you have a backup generator that kicks in. It doesn’t work at all without electricity. In a survival situation, your only other option to get rid of bacteria would be to boil the water.
If you have hard water, you’ll also have no choice but to install a water descaler. Make sure to place it before the UV filter and after the pre-filtering system. Otherwise, you can also get another type of water filter to work in tandem with the UV one and the descaler.
You can try out our very own 13 GPM filter or 18 GPM model from our website. Otherwise, if you want to do more of your shopping in one go and in one place, you can order them from Amazon here (13 GPM) or here (18 GPM).
Regardless of where you get it from, you’ll benefit from our 10-year warranty when you choose to register your product on our website. In any case, if you’re not happy with it and you want your money back, you can return it in 100 days if you’ve bought it on Amazon, or in a year if you’ve purchased it through our website. Either way, we’ll give you back every penny, no questions asked.
Almost any UV water filtering system will do the job properly without requiring complex installation. However, the Yarna UV Water Filter takes it a step further and makes this process as seamless as it can get.
One more thing. if you choose to purchase our filter, pleased consider also getting a replacement 13 GPM Lamp, or an extra 18 GPM Lamp depending on the model you’ve bought.
]]>UV water filters use ultraviolet light to deactivate microorganisms’ cells. They are highly effective against Giardia, Cryptosporidium, Dysentery, Salmonella, Hepatitis B, and E. Coli.
The UV light destroys bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens’ ability to multiply and cause disease. It does so by damaging their nucleic acid by forming covalent bonds between adjacent bases inside their DNA. But enough scientific talk. Let’s see how a UV filter works, what its uses are, and how efficient it is in the long run.
The filter works by exposing the water to UV-C rays, which are efficient at destroying 99.9% of microorganisms. It’s similar to the ultraviolet rays emitted by the sun during hot summers. Just like we humans are not meant to stay exposed to these rays for long, the same goes for bacteria. It’s just that bacteria don’t know how to use sunscreen.
And since the rays are so close, their effect is instant. It takes less than a second for them to destroy the pathogens. These rays are very effective against chlorine-resistant bacteria. And the best part is they don’t require much electricity to work. And unlike chlorine, a UV filter leaves no byproducts. It leaves no pollution traces at all.
UV water filters are one of the only four disinfection methods approved by the FDA. Yes, even the US Food & Drug Administration has given its approval to UV filtration. And we all know how hard they give their approval to new things. And since there are no chemicals to handle, you can rest assured it’s safe to use.
Ultraviolet filters are also relatively easy to maintain. They only require you to change the light bulb and quartz sleeve once a year. The quartz sleeve that surrounds the lamp is essential for transmitting the light efficiently. You need to make sure that it is cleaned properly before installing it. But the cleaning process is seamless, so it won’t cause any headaches.
It is important to note that UV filters work best in tandem with other filtration systems, such as pre-filters. The UV light will only work if the water is clear. If your water is murky or contains “floaties,” UV light won’t be useful at all. It only works on microorganisms, not heavy metals, salts, chlorine, pharmaceuticals, or other man-made substances.
UV filters are even more recommended if your water source is a private well. Or if you store your water in a storage tank. Bacteria and organic organisms like giardia, e-Coli, and others are naturally occurring in wells. And these organisms cause thousands of documented health cases each year.
Of course, like with all things in life, UV water filters come with their own set of strengths and drawbacks. By glancing over these facts, it will be easier to decide if a UV filter is the right choice for you.
Yes, because bacteria and viruses can appear when you least expect them. Local and state-wide authorities put in great efforts to make sure water pollution is considerably reduced. But they are still human, and they can make mistakes.
For example, the E. Coli outbreak in Walkerton, Canada, went unnoticed until many people started going to the doctor. The subsequent lab tests revealed that the local water plant had been infected with the bacteria, and people had been drinking the diseased water without realizing it.
If the residents had installed UV water filters, they wouldn’t have gotten infected. The main takeaway from this incident is that you can’t trust your local authorities to provide clean water constantly. You need to take matters into your own hands. If you combine a whole house water filter with a UV filter, you’ll be safe from both man-made pollutants as well as bacteria and viruses.
You can check out our Whole House UV Water Filter here. Unlike typical UV water filters, this model offers Spiralight technology. When water flows, it goes through a spiral, giving the bulb more coverage and even higher chances of neutralizing bacteria.
Instead of traditional O-rings and end caps that can crack the quartz tube if not tighten carefully, we use two sealing gaskets that are more effective. Our filter is encased in a carbon-fiber body with more powerful lamps. Instead of the traditional 15 mm tubes, we use a 19mm tube, which increases the energy that mends the water. This means you’ll get better output with the same energy consumption as other UV filters.
Best of all, it’s easy to install. Even first-timers can do it without any trouble. You need zero plumbing skills to do it. It comes with two well-built metal clips that are strong enough to keep the unit in place. Plus that with our filter you’ll only need to change the bulb once per year.
Other manufacturers have bulbs that are rated at fewer working hours, so you’ll probably need to change them once every six or eight months if you’re lucky. With the Yarna UV Water Filter, you get maximum efficiency for minimum effort.
Now that we’ve got all of that out of the way, here are some of the most frequent questions people have asked us:
Yes, the two go well together. The water descaler turns calcium and magnesium crystals into ions, meaning that light has no trouble passing through or around them. So not only is the descaler compatible with the UV water filter, it is actually recommended.
Regular water filters can usually handle only metals, dirt, debris, or man-made pollutants. Regular bacteria and viruses can easily pass through the filter’s membrane. Cartridge filters, carbon filters, pitcher style filters do not remove E coli. The bacteria are too small and simply pass through these filters. Filters containing activated carbon are a great place for bacteria to grow and multiply. This is why you need a UV filter.
Yes, private wells are the perfect place for bacterial growth. Private wells have no governmental oversight. The Environmental Protection Agency considers them to be the owner’s sole responsibility. You should test the water in your well at least once in two years. Regular testing, of course, is recommended. And because well water is so susceptible to bacteria, a UV filter isn’t just recommended. It’s a must-have.
This depends on what your specific needs are. If you have a variety of other pollutants that the reverse osmosis filter can remove, it might be worth looking into it. However, don’t forget that reverse osmosis filters need frequent membrane replacements. And they consume a lot of water. They’re incredible water wasters, actually. Plus that you’ll also get reduced water pressure as a result. A UV water filter, on the other hand, doesn’t present these problems. As long as you’ve got a reliable pre-filtration system for dissolved solids, chemicals, and sediment, it can handle any bacteria, virus, or parasite that you can imagine.
On the Yarna 13 GPM and 18 GPM UV water filters, you won’t need to go through any hassle to see if the unit is doing its job properly. All you need to do is look on the side of the filter where there is a UV light indicator. It reflects the light directly from the UV bulb itself, so it’s not just an LED power indicator like on other units. That way, you’ll know exactly if the bulb is on and if it’s working. No need to go through the hassle of disassembling the unit if you don’t have to. It presents a major advantage in the unlikely event that the bulb goes bad before its one-year lifespan.
If you plan on using a UV water filter for an aquarium, algae is one of the main concerns that you’ll want removed. Being an organic material, the UV sterilizer works wonders for it as well. In addition to destroying bacteria, ultra-violet sterilizers can help reduce the spread of free-floating algae, however, whilst it will kill algal blooms, it will not actually eradicate them. A UV sterilizer is not a replacement for good biological and mechanical filter, which is still necessary to physically remove algae from the water. However, once you remove the large clumps of algae, you’ll have no more problem with it building up again once you start using the UV sterilizer.
Exposure to UV light can burn skin and is dangerous for the eyes. Don’t touch the bulb with your bare hands. After you unplug the filter, leave it rest for at least 15 minutes so that it has time to cool down. Follow the instructions in the user manual carefully and replace the bulb as necessary, typically after one year of use.
The UV water filter works best with clear water. It won’t catch rust or dirt, but it will stop dangerous bacteria. It ensures that you won’t catch any disease from drinking water that was filtered with UV. Make sure also to install a pre-filter if your water has dirt or metals in it. If you have hard water, you can pair the UV filter with a water descaler.
There’s a good reason why UV water filters are one of the four FDA-approved methods of disinfecting water. They have been thoroughly tested and have proved that they work. And unlike chlorine or other disinfectants, they don’t use chemicals or leave pollutants behind. And they don’t waste any water whatsoever.
If you live on a farm, having a UV water filter is essential. Your livestock is susceptible to disease, and they can transmit it further. So you are in far more danger. Especially if your private well is near animals. Or if you use pesticides, fertilizers, and other pollutants near it. Or even if your well gets cracked, corroded, or damaged. You have no idea how easy it is for bacteria to form in such a place.
And you’re not entirely safe in cities either. Remember, local authorities can also mess up from time to time. Earlier in the article, we gave a relatively recent example from Walkerton, Canada. Something similar can happen in any US town or city any day.
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