Be Safe and Soften Your Water

Water softeners work by removing hard minerals, such as magnesium and calcium from a homeowner's water supply. Hard water can cause pipes to clog, dishwashers and other appliances to wear out prematurely, and it can also dry out hair and skin. During the water conditioning or softening process, the hard minerals are replaced by soft minerals, which do not plug up your pipes. Water softeners also eliminate spots on dishes, dingy clothing, and a number of other problems caused by hard water. If you are experiencing any of these problems, it is important to contact a dependable Guelph plumber at Lodder Brothers Limited. One of our expert technicians can have your water tested for destructive minerals and install a proper water softener that will fit your home and budget.

There are two components to a water softening system; a tall slender tank called the media tank, and a short wide tank called the brine tank, because it contains a salt solution known as brine. Inside the media tank are negatively charged plastic beads called resin. The resin beads consist of either sodium or potassium ions. As the hard water material comes in contact with the resin beads, it is caught and then the exchanged for sodium or potassium, which cleans and softens the water. This process is called ion exchange.

When all the beads are saturated with hard water material, they are washed or regenerated with the brine solution. In this process, the brine is pumped from the brine tank into the media tank, where it thoroughly saturates the resin beads to clean them of the hard water material. Afterwards, the brine is then back washed, which simply means all the salt is flushed out of the media tank leaving it fresh and ready for the next round of water softening. There is a meter inside the valve of the media tank that tells the homeowner how much water is being used, this is called the regeneration process, and notifies you when the water needs to be cleaned. The regeneration process usually takes place at a time when very little water is being used.

If you are in the Guelph area and are looking to have a water softener system installed, contact Lodder Brothers Limited at (519) 836-6370.