Do I even need a water softener...

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I finally picked out a softener to be installed as a replcement for a dead Kenmore (Thanks to all for the advise from these forums); my wife then raised a good question, why do we need one at all. We have lived in this 20 year old home for 6 months and the Kenmore has either been off or been fiddled with (by me) in that time...in other words, it has not worked for 6 months - who knows the last time it even worked as the prior owner had it off when we moved in. We have an 8 year old water heater that sits next to it-it is working fine...no idea how long that should last but it had an 8 year warranty. We bought a new washer and dishwasher. My sole reason to buy the water softener is to protect these appliances.

The water company (ironically located across the street) says water is 10 - 11 GPG with very infestisimal amounts manganse and iron. Sure enough my test strip registers hard water...no VERY HARD, just hard. I spoke at length with a person at the water dept who sort of claimed it might make showering more enjoyable and assist in laundering clothes. Well, we have no complaints on either of these! I asked about pipes becomming corroded. She said that was unlikely but if it did happen over 20 - 30 years it could be from something other than water hardess....like note having the pipes ground correctly or something else in the water. I asked about all my new appliances getting caked up and/or corroded. She said if were a problem, thee appliances would likely die a normal death long before water hardness took a toll.

So.....I know folks sell these things for a living and their is an appropraite market for them but do I really need one. The ONLY reason I am buying one is the fear that my pipes are going to clog up and they will need to be replaced, or my dishwasher, washer or water heater will be affected...though the water heat says self cleaning.

So in reality, do really I need one....

(Maybe I should see if my neighbors use one)

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Take a look at this:
Edit [Moderator]: Link removed

Going from 10 or 11 gpg down to 0 gpg is defiantly a good thing.

BTW, the person at the water dept makes a living selling you hard water...

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Re: Do I even need a water softener...

andrelaplume wrote:

So in reality, do really I need one....

Reading the many threads you started and your posts in them you mentioned that you have a local Culligan dealer.

Since you already have a (Sears) softener installed you should consider renting a softener from Culligan. Culligan rents softeners at reasonable monthly rates with no term commitment (make sure what your agreement says BEFORE signing).

You'd have to give the softener at least a couple or three months for a fair test of the immediate benefits of soft water. You'll have to get used to using a lot less detergent and soap and a lot less shampoo and your clothes will feel softer.

Then you'd know if you need/want a softener or not rather than asking strangers with keyboards who don't live in your house whether you need/want a softener or not.

When you decide that you do, at least you'll know that, and then can make a decision as to what softener you think you need.

If you expect less then you'll surely get it.

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H2O_MAN wrote:

BTW, the person at the water dept makes a living selling you hard water...

And the people selling water softeners don't make a living doing that???

There may be valid resons to buy one but the fact that people in the water dept are piad to deliver water isn't one of them.

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fishin wrote:

H2O_MAN wrote:
BTW, the person at the water dept makes a living selling you hard water...

And the people selling water softeners don't make a living doing that???

There may be valid resons to buy one but the fact that people in the water dept are piad to deliver water isn't one of them.

My statement was in response to the following:

andrelaplume wrote:

I spoke at length with a person at the water dept who sort of claimed it might make showering more enjoyable and assist in laundering clothes. Well, we have no complaints on either of these! I asked about pipes becomming corroded. She said that was unlikely but if it did happen over 20 - 30 years it could be from something other than water hardess....like note having the pipes ground correctly or something else in the water. I asked about all my new appliances getting caked up and/or corroded. She said if were a problem, thee appliances would likely die a normal death long before water hardness took a toll.

So.....I know folks sell these things for a living and their is an appropraite market for them but do I really need one.

The woman at the water department is not willing to admit hard water is the cause of so many problems and that soft water virtually eliminates these problems.

Is there a valid reason for her to place the blame for household hard water problems on something other than the hard water she sells?

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I'd think t his should be cut and dry...
it either harms pipes and appliances in rather quick fashion (before the appliance would have normally died) or it does not.

As far as the sudy water and such, that sounds like an extravagance. My wife is VERY particular about her hair...and the girls is and is fine with the way the water is now. If I add softer water I get the feeling I am going to get greif from the other half. So if I do this, it better be to save pipes and appliance. If not let me know.

Renting is an option I am going to check out.

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Re: I'd think t his should be cut and dry...

andrelaplume wrote:

it either harms pipes and appliances in rather quick fashion (before the appliance would have normally died) or it does not.

As far as the sudy water and such, that sounds like an extravagance. My wife is VERY particular about her hair...and the girls is and is fine with the way the water is now. If I add softer water I get the feeling I am going to get greif from the other half. So if I do this, it better be to save pipes and appliance. If not let me know.

Renting is an option I am going to check out.

Right now, all you know is hard water so wondering what soft water is like is an interesting exercise but you'll never have the answer.

Soft water won't FIX your appliances in two months but over time will remove almost all the calcium and mineral deposits in your washer, dishwasher, plumbing, and fixtures. With 10g of hardness your water heater is probably too far gone if no one has been draining the sediment at least annually. What happens that you don't see is less wear and tear on all your plumbing fixture and appliances, not replacing faucet washers often and not buying a new coffee machine every year or so and maybe getting 15 years out of that water heater instead of 8 or 9 years.

Your wife and the girls may like the way their hair is now but I've spoken to and emailed many times where mama won't give up soft water once she has it.

If you're a coffee drinker, it's sorta like drinking instant all your life and liking it until you wrap your hands around a cup of fresh ground and brewed Kona or French Roast. You never knew what good coffee is... sort of an ignorance is bliss state of life. No one I've ever met that drinks coffee went back to instant after tasting real coffee and no one I've ever spoken to has had a softener removed after installation.

If you rent a softener and try it, then you'll know one way or the other. If you decide you don't want one based on anecdotal information then you'll never know if you were right or wrong and that's your family's loss.

To discuss the concept further is a waste of bandwidth.

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Re: No

H2O_MAN wrote:

The woman at the water department is not willing to admit hard water is the cause of so many problems and that soft water virtually eliminates these problems.

Nonsense. She told him that getting a softener "might make showering more enjoyable and assist in laundering clothes". If that isn't an acknowledgement that a water softener might be beneficial I don't know what else could be.

She didn't tell him that hard water wouldn't hurt his plumbing or appliances. He already knew going in that it was a possibilty (or he wouldn't have asked!) and she told him that there could be other reasons besides hard water (which is true). She is also correct in that many appliances will die of other causes long befiore hard water creates problems with them which is also true.

You, on the other hand, are assuming there are problems when none have been presented. Do you know whether or not his plumbing is corroded? Do you even know if his plumbing is metallic?

Is it your normal sales tactic to insist that people should part with their hard earned money to buy water softening systems without first finding out how their house is built and giving them all of the drawbacks that go with owning a system as well?

Quote:

Is there a valid reason for her to place the blame for household hard water problems on something other than the hard water she sells?

Where did the original poster say that they were experiencing any problems?

Is there a valid reason (other than your sale commission of course...) for you to push water softeners without even getting details about how the house is put together?

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Yeah I have a response.....uh what?

I neither assumed or insisted anything.

Are you offering the thread starter any advise?

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Re: Do I even need a water softener...

andrelaplume wrote:

So in reality, do really I need one....

What did Slusher tell you to do?

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Do I even need a water softener...

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