With hard water making up about 85% of the nation’s drinking water supply, it’s no surprise that many Arizona homeowners have hard water. While this water is certainly still usable, it comes along with many negative benefits. One of the best ways to handle hard water is by installing a water softener system.
What Is Hard Water?
Hard water is water that has a high mineral content of calcium and magnesium. These minerals can wreak havoc on your plumbing system, causing issues like water heater inefficiency, low water pressure, and limescale buildup. Furthermore, hard water can cause your hair to frizz and your skin to dry out.
What Is a Water Softener System?
A water softener is a device that gets installed right at the main water supply line coming into your home. It works to actively remove excess minerals from your water before the water gets delivered to your plumbing fixtures, appliances, and water heater. More specifically, water softeners work by using the ion exchange process.
As water enters the main tank of the water softener, it flows through resin beads. These resin beads have a negative electric charge. Minerals like calcium and magnesium have a positive charge, which makes them naturally attracted to the negative charge. As the mineral ions stick to the resin beads, the remaining soft water leaves the tank and goes to your water supply line.
The resin beads will go through a regeneration process every few hours. This works to remove the minerals from the resin beads and returns the beads to have a negative charge. This whole regeneration process works by a specialized brine coming from the brine tank and flowing through the main system’s tank. The brine solution will end up being full of minerals and will exit your water softener via a drain. Maintaining the softener system is easy, and just requires a quick visit from a professional plumbing service to change filters, clean the brine tank, inspect lines, and other tasks.
No More Limescale Buildup
One of the most desirable benefits of getting a water softener is that it prevents limescale buildup on your fixtures. Limescale is a white film that remains on your fixtures after the water dries. It’s comprised of calcium and magnesium that get left behind. Limescale buildup is not only unsavory to look at but it creates a hard film that makes it much harder to clean your plumbing fixtures.
No More Hair and Skin Issues
One of the biggest complaints that homeowners have about hard water is that it dries out the body. Just as limescale buildup can end up on your plumbing fixtures, a similar film ends up on your hair and body. This leads to frizzing of the hair as it dries out. Furthermore, the skin will start to get dry and itchy. By upgrading to a water softener system in your home, you can enjoy softer and smoother hair and skin.
Longer Pipe Lifespan
Another key benefit of a household water softener system is that it goes a long way in extending the lifespan of your plumbing system and preventing low water pressure issues. The minerals in hard water will accumulate inside your piping, which will restrict waterflow over time. Furthermore, those excess minerals can cause premature deterioration of the inside of your pipes.
Enhanced Water Heater Efficiency
When it comes to heating up water, water that’s hard takes longer to get up to temperature than water that’s soft. When your water heater is working, it has to run longer to get the hard water inside its tank up to temperature. A water softener will do wonders for enhancing the overall operating efficiency of your water heater. Plus, it will go a long way in extending the overall lifespan of your water heater as it’s much less likely to rust out due to excess mineral buildup.
Easier Cleaning
When washing dishes, clothes, and plumbing surfaces, it’s much more difficult when doing so with hard water. This is because the minerals attach to the surface of the item and create a barrier that the cleaning product will struggle to break. A water softener system is perfect for removing that barrier and making it much easier to clean your items. You’ll notice that stains will come out of your clothes more effectively and you’ll be able to use fewer cleaning products to get the job done.
Longer Appliance Lifespan
Any appliances in your home that use water can severely be impacted by hard water. Just as the excess minerals build up inside your piping, they do the same thing inside your appliances. This can lead to premature deterioration and more repair issues with your appliances. A water softener is perfect for extending the longevity of your appliances so that you can get more for your money.
Better Tasting Water
It’s very common for homes that have hard water to invest in water filtration systems or bottled water. This is because hard water tends to have a sour-like taste to it as well as an unpleasant smell. A water softener system is a great way to remove that excess sentiment buildup so that your water will taste and even smell better.
Saves You Money
One of the most desirable benefits of using a water softener in your home is that it can save you money in multiple different ways. It will make your water heater operate more efficiently so you can enjoy lower utility costs throughout the year. It will allow your laundry detergent to better penetrate your clothes and clean them so that you have to purchase clothes less often. Furthermore, the cleaning products that you use will be more effective on things like counter surfaces, plumbing fixtures, and even your dishes. This means you can enjoy purchasing fewer cleaning products throughout the year while still enjoying the same cleaning results.
Boost Home Value
One lesser-known benefit of getting a water softener system is that it can boost the value of your home. Home buyers will see a water softener as an added advantage due to its overall ability to extend the longevity of your appliances and plumbing system. They’re going to be more likely to pay extra money for your home compared to another home that does not have a water softener system installed.
Fewer Plumbing Issues
When you have hard water, you’re more likely to experience plumbing issues due to its effect on your system. Some of these issues include leaky faucets, low water pressure, and corroded fixtures. Minerals are well known to not only accumulate inside piping but also accelerate the deterioration of the internal components of your plumbing fixtures. Investing in a water softener will help to remove the excess minerals from your water and extend the overall lifespan of all your plumbing fixtures. This will go a long way in reducing your risk of needing plumbing repairs.
Reliable Water Softener Service
Air Control Home Services offers reliable water softener services to the entire Lake Havasu City, AZ area. We can also help with all your heating, cooling, electrical, plumbing, and indoor air quality needs. Simply give our office a call today to book your next service consultation.
