How To Choose Between Water Softener Equipment

A water softener is a device that is used to remove the impurities that can be found in hard water. Hard water contains plenty of calcium and magnesium deposits. These elements can cause water pipes to be clogged. These elements also react with soap, and this results in lessening the effectiveness of soap to lather and clean. The solution to this is to use water softener equipment at home so that you can be sure that your water is element-free.

Here is how water softener equipment works:

1. Typical Water Softener. There are different types of water softener equipment for home water filtration systems, but they all have the same principle. Instead of calcium and magnesium, the water filters substitute it with another element. The element substitute is usually sodium. This process is known as ion exchange.
2. Mineral Tank. Water softener systems have a mineral tank. The mineral tank of the soft water system has polystyrene beads inside. These beads are called zeolite. Zeolite beads have a negative charge. Both calcium and magnesium have a positive charge. When the hard water passes through the mineral tank, the calcium and magnesium minerals will stick to the zeolite and be separated from the water.
3. Brine Solution. Another part of a whole house water filtration system is the brine solution. The brine solution will flush out the calcium and magnesium deposits that are stuck to the zeolite beads.
4. 3-Phase Cycle. The hard water goes through a 3-phase cycle to be softened. The zeolite beads are full of sodium ions. When the hard water enters the filtration system, the calcium and magnesium replace the sodium on the zeolite beads. The sodium ions then go into the water. The first phase is the backwash. The backwash turns around the water flow to be able to remove the dirt from the tank. The second is the recharge phase. In the recharge phase, the salt is transferred from the brine tank to the mineral tank. The sodium ions will then replace the calcium and magnesium and they are flushed out of the tanks. The third phase is when the mineral tank removes the excess salt. The mineral tank is then salt free or left with no salt until it is refilled.
5. Alternatives. There are also whole house water filters that use potassium chloride instead of the salt or brine solution. This type of home filtration system is said to be better than systems that make use of brine. The downside is, filtration systems that use potassium chloride tend to be much more expensive than filtrations that make use of a brine solution.

This is how water softener equipment works. It is better to spend money on a good water filtration system rather than using hard water at home. You will be able to notice the difference when you use hard water and water that is softened. You also need to know that using hard water at home can lead to different sicknesses because of the exposure of your skin to different elements. It would be better for you to spend money on a filtration system rather than spending money for the hospital.