Are water softeners really worth their salt?  Why can’t we condition water with a salt-free system instead?   Doesn’t a water softener make my water taste salty?  Isn’t salt bad for the environment?

Really good questions. 

EcoWater System’s water softeners and refiners are definitely worth the small amount of salt for many reasons.  First of all, let’s make it clear, our units are highly efficient and designed NOT to waste salt, water, or electricity.  Without having our water treatment installed in your home, you’ll find that your water heater, dishwasher, and washer machine will corrode, leak, and fail.  Hard water is very destructive to these appliances and soft, clean water is a great way to not only maintain their integrity, but their energy efficiencies as well.

We can provide soft, conditioned water without salt.  All About Water specializes in unique membrane technologies, such as whole house reverse osmosis or nanofiltration.  Ionic exchange (the way a traditional water softener functions) and membrane technologies are the only tried and true ways to soften and condition water.  No-salt systems that treat water via magnets, electricity, de-scaling, or filter have no testing or validation by NSF or WQA.  Third party certification is truly important.  Don’t be fooled by salt-free water systems that are anything other then ionic exchange or membrane treated.

Okay, so salt isn’t sounding so awful, but you are still worried that it will make your water taste terrible.  EcoWater Systems water softeners and refiners use such a minute amount of salt, that it cannot be measured inside the home.  In fact, our refiners are NSF certified as DRINKING WATER!  Of course there are systems on the market that will make your water taste funny, so it is important you research the company.  Not sure where to start, check out Rosie on the House.

Lastly, it is important to protect our environment.  Water softeners are not as menacing as they are made out to be.  In fact, the harsh chemicals we use to wash, laundry, and clean with are more menacing then the small amount of brine that is added to our water and soil.  Did you know that water softeners considerably cut down on the usage of these cleaning supplies?  Furthermore, clean pure detergents work wonderfully with soft, clean water.  Don’t believe the hype.  In the end, water softeners and refiners are one of the greenest appliances in our homes.

You can pull up many different systems online claiming to treat your water via no salt.  They’ll address their products as salt-free water softeners, salt-free conditioners, no chemicals needed,and the list goes on and on.  There are two true tested and validated ways to soften water:  ionic exchange and membrane technology.  Ionic exchange is the standard, most cost effective way to soften water.  Ionic exchange is pretty simple:  Water goes through a resin bed, the water’s hardness minerals (calcium, magnesium, limestone) attach to the resin and out comes soft water.  Eventually the resin can no longer attract the minerals, so salt and water (brine) is pushed through and exchanges the hard ions for the salt ions and then it is flushed down the drain.  Very easy concept and meets all NSF and WQA standards and certifications.  Membrane technology, such as whole house reverse osmosis or Nanofiltration, can also soften water.  They both utilize membranes to draw out the impurities and leave a very high quality water unmatched by ionic exchange.  No salt is needed and you can literally have bottled quality water at every tap.  Again, this is true tested and validated technology.  If they system you are looking at sounds too good to be true, probably is.  Electric current, magnets, filters, and so forth cannot soften water or keep the hardness from staying on fixtures. 

Nanofiltration is an ideal fit for severely troubled well water.  In situations where TDS (total dissolved solids) are above 1500 ppm, Nanofiltration can bring it down to well under a 100pm.  A water softener or conditioner will not provide the results they should.  In fact, in most cases they don’t provide the home owner any relief.  A filter isn’t the right application either.  To truly address the water in a situation as such, a selective membrane along with other custom materials, is the only way to go.  Time and time again, I have met with home owners that have spent thousands of dollars on fancy water softeners and filters that have left them with high maintenance costs and zero results.  Few companies even understand Nanofiltration and even less know how to work with it.  It is important to use a water treatment company that specializes in well water and isn’t going to sell you a unit that will provide little to no relief.  All About Water utilizes our engineers to create the perfect solution to your troubled well water issues. 

Do not be fooled by water conditioners that claim to soften your water without salt or potassium.  They claim to ‘condition’ the water, implying softened water. 

First off, they are conditioners.  They can make this statement because they are clearly changing the ‘condition’ of the water.  This is typically done by removing the chlorine or sending an electric current through the water. 

But carbon or these other type of devices cannot not remove scale, calcium, limestone, magnesium… To truly remove the hardness minerals that leave deposits on our fixtures and ruin our plumbing.  Ionic exchange, reverse osmosis, nanofiltration are tested and validated methods of removing hardness from the water. 

Nanofiltration has been around for over 30 years.  Until recently, nanofiltration was mostly utilized in commercial applications, such as pharmaceutical and biomedical industries.  Currently, point -of -use has become more available.  In fact, nanofiltration’s technology may be the wave of the future in the way we treat the water in our homes.

So what exactly is nanofiltration?  Sometimes it is described as a pressure-driven purification system.  It is designed with membrances that remove the particles, total dissolved solids (such as nitrates, arsenic, lead), hardness, and other contaminants.  Found in the same family as whole house reverse osmosis, their membranes have a very high rejection of various issues found in our water.  Commonly in Arizona, we select this application when dealing with high levels of nitrates, heavy metals, and water with incredably high total dissolved solids. 

There are many salt-free systems available to treat the water that enters the home.  Whole house filtration, Nanofiltration, or Whole house reverse osmosis are just to name a few.

Nanofiltration is an ideal way to conquer the type of water we have in Arizona.  It makes the water soft to the touch, tastes great, and removes the harmful contantimants from every faucet.  This unit is truly the best way to provide high quality water at every tap without the hassel of salt or potassium. 

Learn more by contacting us at 480-892-7556.

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Nanofiltration can be a alternative to softening water and remove all calcium and mangnesium from household water supply.  Nanofiltration is Ideal for well water applications where conventional water softeners do not work.