THIS * AND THIS

Nope, water softeners are a bad idea.

Health Concerns: Increased Sodium in Drinking Water: Water softeners work by exchanging beneficial calcium ions for sodium ions, introducing sodium into the drinking water. Although the water may not taste salty, this added sodium can have health implications. Removal of Healthy Minerals: Traditional water softeners remove beneficial minerals like calcium from the water. These minerals are crucial for cellular function and overall health. Water that is demineralized and non-conductive (often referred to as "dead water") is not ideal for the body, as cellular activities, including the creation of proteins and enzymes, are driven by electrochemical reactions. Drinking such water can disrupt the balance of intracellular and extracellular water, affecting energy production and waste removal from cells. Potential Link to Early Onset Dementia: A study in Arizona indicated a correlation between the use of water softeners and an increased risk of early onset dementia. This is attributed to the exchange of calcium, which is a major cell signaling ion, for sodium. Corrosiveness of Demineralized Water: Water with zero Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), often a result of processes that remove minerals, is described as corrosive. This can affect sensitive areas like the oral cavity and may even contribute to the dissolution of teeth over time.

Environmental Impact: Groundwater Contamination: Water softeners require large quantities of salt for their regeneration process. The salty backwash is then discharged into septic systems or sewage treatment plants, leading to the contamination of groundwater. Concentration of Contaminants in Aquifers: Over time, this discharge concentrates salts and other potential contaminants in aquifers, creating a more severe environmental problem. Impact on Agriculture and Water Resources: The high levels of salt introduced into aquifers from softeners have had significant consequences. For instance, in California's Central Valley, many wells have become unusable for agriculture due to excessive salt. Similarly, golf courses in Arizona can no longer use treated wastewater because it has become too saline, largely due to widespread softener use.

Environmentally Unfriendly and Potential Bans: Water softeners are considered "extremely environmentally unfriendly," and there is a prediction that they will eventually be banned in the United States due to their environmental impact. "Diverters," Not "Removal Systems": Water softeners are viewed as "diverters" rather than true "removal systems" because they merely exchange one element for another (calcium for sodium) and then discharge the concentrated waste, rather than eliminating it.

Alternative Approach to Water Softening:

An alternative approach developed by a water treatment expert focuses on conditioning water to prevent scaling while retaining healthy minerals, offering a healthier and more sustainable solution. This system typically involves a multi-stage filtration process:

Scale Prevention Without Mineral Removal: In the initial filtration stage, the system uses a silica phosphate bead. As water flows over this bead, calcium links to both phosphate and silica, forming calcium phosphinate or calcium silicate. Once calcium is in this form, it can no longer produce calcium carbonate, effectively preventing spots on silverware and lime scale buildup in pipes and appliances. This method allows the water to maintain its natural conductivity and retains the healthy minerals (calcium, phosphinate, and silicate), which are beneficial for the body.

That´s right, you absolutely need a softener and a filter

Carbon filtration and water softener

Water treatment pro here.

Let’s break this down simply so you know exactly how we size and recommend equipment (I’ve got nothing to hide under my right sleeve… and nothing to hide under my left sleeve). Water hardness is measured in grains per gallon (hence the g.p.g)

We size water softeners by doing some basic multiplication (it’s not rocket science).

We do have to make an assumption which is based on a ton of water usage studies: that assumption (backed by the data) is that most people use 60-75 gallons a day of water. I like using 65 gallons per day for the average person, and I’ve never gotten any complaints.

Ok so let’s crunch some numbers.

65 gallons per day X 5 people = 325 gallons per day of water usage for your household.

Next we would figure out how many grains per day of hardness would be going through the softener. So: 325 gallons per day X 10 grains of hardness per gallon = 3,250 grains per day.

Next we want to calculate a 7 day time frame between regeneration cycles. What this means is the time between when the softener draws in fresh brine, is primed for action, and all of the resin is coated with sodium ions… to the time the softener has to backwash the calcium and magnesium and regenerate the tank by drawing in fresh brine. 7 days also helps keep the resin bed nice and fluffed and helps prevent salt bridging in the brine tank.

I digress… so 3,250 grains per day X 7 days = 22,750 grains per week that need to be removed.

Next we will add a safety factor of 15%. So we will oversize the system by 15% for a buffer (incase the kids decide to turn the shower into a water park). 22,750 grains per week X 1.15 = 26,163 grains per week.

Next we pick out the softener that matches the closest size in grains. In your case I would go with a 32k grain softener.

Use solar salt made specifically for water softeners (found at any home improvement store). Fill up the brine tank to within ~4” from the top.

To remove chlorine you’ll get more bang for your buck using a 4.5”x20” GAC filter (granular activated carbon) with filter housing. The Chlorine molecule and the carbon molecule are shaped very similar in size and essentially the carbon filter has billions of tiny “pockets” that are perfectly shaped for the Chlorine molecule to sit in. I would install the carbon filter just before the water softener as chlorine can shorten the life of the resin inside the softener. Change the filter every 4 months and you’re good to go.

Usually you’ll get about 10 years out of the resin bed before the resin needs to be replaced (which is just more time consuming than anything).

A word on adding the extra salt to your diet. With a water softener you are adding ~32mg per 8oz glass of water. To put that into perspective a hot dog with a line of ketchup and a line of mustard is ~1200mg of sodium. So it’s minimal. Studies have shown that water softeners don’t harm septic systems and actually encourage the helpful bacteria colonies to grow.

If you’re really super sensitive to salt you could install an under the kitchen sink RO system with separate tap for drinking water at the sink. You could add a remineralizer on top of the unit so that you’re getting some nutrients from the drinking water.

As far as softening systems go, I would suggest a 32k grain water softener with the Clack WS1 valve. Clack valves are really easy to work on and repair, plus parts are readily available. There are a lot of brands that use this valve.

As far as an under the sink RO system, go with one that has a small stainless steel storage tank under the sink.

I hope this was educational and helpful.

Somebody please just tell me which one to buy and from where. There are a hundred of these posts and none of them have an actual recommendation. Just ‘go with a system with a clack controller’. What am I supposed to do with that, built the rest of the system myself? Would love just a direct link to a hybrid system with a charcoal filter that is ready to buy.

The Fleck 5600SXT is the most commonly sold control in the US made by US company Pentair. I have one in my own home (50 years in the industry and could have chosen whatever I wanted). A properly sized on-demand water softener is no more efficient than any other unless you look at the upflow brining systems such as the Fleck 5800SXT. The Fleck 9100SXT twin alternating duplex would be overkill but is also more efficient than a single column system.

100% depends upon how many people are in your house and your incoming hardness. For brand/type, I like Rheem high efficiency water softeners, use a hell of a lot less salt than traditional ones. . . .

Clack WS1 , Fleck 2510. The only one on that list that's any good is the Fleck unit.

36 Grains. SW Ontario. HD units are difficult to service. I install Canature Water Group softeners. Available through plumbing wholesalers.

Sentry makes a solid cheap unit. We use crusader here in Utah as it’s a utah based company and parts are easy to come by with great c/s

Any softener with a Clack head. Don’t buy home store softeners. They’re junk and won’t last long.

You should have a water treatment company test your raw water so you know what it is your trying to filter out, whether it’s iron, manganese, calcium etc.

Anyone you buy at-a BB store will work well. The heads used are made by 2 companies and one has 80% of the market. I have and have installed 3 GE models. You’ll need a high grain model, like $500. If you’re handy you can install it yourself.

Plan how the WS discharge gets into a drain. You may need plumbing changes so outside faucets are not softened water, which is not good for plants. You might want to run carbon filtered water to dispenser faucet(s) for drinking and cooking.

Flexk or Northstar are good brands that are not box store. Biggest difference is the quality of the media, efficiency, and pressure drop through the head. Have your water tested before hand so you know what to set your softener.

The only softener valves I’ll consider installing are Clack WS1 (1” valve for residential, light commercial) or Fleck 5800 series. There are lots of brands that slap their name on Clack valves so if you get familiar with what a clack valve looks like you’ll probably be good to go if it’s under another brand name. Most other valves are throwaway junk. If you’re gonna move within 10 years and don’t care about it, then go with something cheap I guess. If you’re gonna stay in the house or care about not sending dozens of kgs of junk plastic and fibreglass to the dump go with a good Clack or Fleck control valve. Stay away from cabinet units unless you have a space constraint issue.

My water is around 16 GPG, 2 baths, 1 person.

I ended up with the smallest AO smith unit that Lowe's had on the shelf and installed it myself. The unit was around $350 and misc fittings, valves, etc was another $100 or so. It's been great, no more dusting pans after boiling water! The controller is on par with most others when it comes to features. It tracks the gallons used then regenerates on a use basis instead of just a timer.

I originally ordered one from Amazon, but it came broken and missing pieces. It was a hassle, so I decided to just get one from Lowe's instead of risking the hassle again.

not an expert but it is my understanding that there are only two companies that make the regeneration valves for salt based softeners. All the "brands" do is make the plastic tubs etc and put their stickers on them.

Of the two brands it is "Fleck" that has the best rep [Clack ? is the other] Both make different units with different features

If you google "water softener forum" you can find other folks getting answers from plumbing forums etc

FWIW we recently had our plumber add a water softener to our system and he charged $1,800 total including labor. Have used this guy for many years and his pricing has always been reasonable to I didn’t bother getting additional bids. This is in NE PA.

I would highly recommend a Kinetico system. They use no electricity and for a family of four we go through about one bag of salt every other month.

They are slightly more expensive than other options, but the quality of the system seems to make up for it. Unfortunately, I don't know how much our system cost to install as it was installed by the previous owners.

ispring filters look good.

for water softener just get rheem or whirlpool.

You have to get a TDS measure device to detect your PPM. 250ppm+ is hard water. If your is lower. Just get a water filter.

Softening and filtering are two different things.

There is also UV which sanitizes. Kills germs and virus with blue uv light.

Those water softeners dealers just sell your fleck rebranded. Fleck is water softener. the dealers try to sell to you for 3500. it's 700 on amazon.

We actually had a water softener installed today!

If you have very hard water then the prices you're looking at are not going to change much. There are definitely cheaper options but they just won't be effective at removing the hardness from your water, for example they may only lower hardness by 10 when you have a 30-50 (or more!) rating... that's not going to change much for you. We paid pretty close to the number you listed, and worked with a local company to buy/install the softener - you prices may be better if you do everything through them.

Did you have a water test done to find out the water hardness? That may help determine how "heavy duty" you need to go for your softener.

A water softener is not a filter. These are two completely different things. Anything "reverse osmosis" is just a water filter.

I think after we paid our handyman for install (which - we totally could have done ourselves but we were overwhelmed with other projects), our's was about $2k for an aquasana system. we did a whole house purifier + salt free conditioner, and an RO system at the sink. I also live in Los Angeles and our water is so gross there was some extra filter we had to get, so you'll probably save some just by being elsewhere.

home depot/lowe's from what i found were all salt conditioners. like someone said, a softener won't purify. It does some sort of purifying, but that's not its main objective. it's definitely a personal preference, but i'm really glad we opted for a non-salt system. it displaces a TON of water and that's a huge daily cost in itself. our water isn't totally soft, but it's really nice to be able to drink from whatever faucet if wanted to. we regularly drink the RO, and i'm also really glad we have that. my sensitive houseplants love it too :)

I DIY installed one of the AO Smith softeners that Lowe's carries in store and it's worked great!

Seems like most manufacturers now have digital controls with similar features/ settings for how often it flushes. Like rigid schedule vs optimized salt consumption etc. You input your water hardness and it tracks the gallons used to determine when to regen.

Your municipal supply should provide a yearly report that calls out the total hardness or you can have it tested. Some cities/counties offer testing or send a sample independent lab like Ward Laboratories

Nothing wrong with the standard fleckenstein 5600 (it's nothing special, but virtually every plumbing supply store will stock parts for it.). You can also get the flavor of the month at home Depot or Lowe's (GE or Whirlpool). The ones at the big box store are proprietary, meaning you can't get replacement parts, but they're generally about $600 and they should last at least 5 or 6 years.

A Fleck 5600 softener and a simple 20" sediment filter off Amazon.

Clean water store. We get everything from them now and install ourselves. Hydrogen injection for smell and catalytic carbon filter to filter. Our water softener is next and it will be from them. I have been reaching out to them via email for some insight (email is convenient for me), and they were always responsive and very informative. Especially happy since we are dealing with FL well water for first time

Don't buy one at a box store. Look here - or similar for a decent unit, repairable and cheaper. They will UPS it all and very very thorough instructions. I am not connected - but will recommend them 100%. Link https://www.ohiopurewater.com/

I have expresswater 3 stage system

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Check out Culligan Water - we had them growing up in the Northeast with very hard water and they were great. I know they also have a ton of locations in Florida.