Author Topic: How to replace water softening company service  (Read 6284 times)

FabricStache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 34
  • Location: Sunny Southern California
How to replace water softening company service
« on: February 28, 2015, 02:45:22 PM »
Last year we moved into a house that has hard water.  We've kept the water softening service that they had.  Now that I'm questioning all of our costs.  Is this something we can do ourselves?  There is some a tank that they swap out weekly.  It's on the side of the house and softens all of the water than comes into the house and one garden spigot.  Thoughts?

MikeBear

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
  • Age: 65
  • Location: Michigan
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #1 on: February 28, 2015, 03:17:35 PM »
I've had a softener for 14 years. You dump a 40lb bag of rock salt into it about once per month. You might need to do so more often depending on the size of your family. I buy it at the grocery store for around $6.00. Some softeners use something other than rock salt, but it still consists of dumping that out of the bag, and into a bin.

That's pretty much it.

alberteh

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 22
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #2 on: February 28, 2015, 08:08:18 PM »
You can do it, yes you can!

FabricStache has it right. If the system is set up correctly then all you need to do is add salt every X amount of time.

Find out what in tarnation they are doing weekly and do it yourself. I've never heard of weekly service but i suppose it is possible if you have the world's hardest water.  Water treatment is a little more complicated than just hardness so they may also be treating things like tannins, iron, manganese, H2S etc. etc. but don't let that scare you once the system is set up it is pretty simple as long as you have a recipe to follow.

FabricStache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 34
  • Location: Sunny Southern California
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #3 on: February 28, 2015, 09:18:07 PM »
alberteh here's link to their service http://www.raynewater.com/ventura/softeners.php
It's the portable exchange tank service.  They take the used tank and do the regeneration at their facility.  They way it's set-up the tanks are outdoors on the side of the house.  The units you can get at the home improvement store look like they're for indoor installation.  Anyone have experience converting these over to a unit we can manage ourselves?  I'll try talking to a plumber to see what he thinks.  I'll report back if I get any good information.

PatStab

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 133
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #4 on: March 03, 2015, 09:02:04 AM »
We have one by Kenetico.  It is non electrical, put in a bag of salt and it has timers, backwashes and stuff.  I know the seller of the house said her husband researched it so they would have something that didn't cost a lot.  this one only requires salt, we have good soft water, now it doesn't treat impurities but we have city water.  I have a filter before it that takes out any debris and chlorine, then our filter on our fridge treats all kinds of stuff from bacteria to cysts,  but I also have a stand alone water dispenser and buy the big bottles of water for it for drinking though I do use the ice.  I wonder how much sodium I'm getting beyond what I need though.

ShoulderThingThatGoesUp

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3053
  • Location: Emmaus, PA
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #5 on: March 03, 2015, 09:22:56 AM »
You can set one up in line with your main water supply line that you just buy bags of salt for. If you have a basement, set it up next to the sump because it will eventually leak.

That said, are you sure you need a water softener at all?

I'm a red panda

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8186
  • Location: United States
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #6 on: March 03, 2015, 09:49:32 AM »
We installed our water softener ourself, you just connect it to the main line where it enters the house.
Dump a bag of salt in when the light blinks, usually less than once a month.

We have noticed a difference since installation.  The water was ruining the appliances without it, it would cost more in the long run.

PatStab

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 133
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #7 on: March 03, 2015, 10:56:43 AM »
Without it our water is really hard.  My skin feels so good, not dry and drawn and the bathroom fixtures stay so nice.

FabricStache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 34
  • Location: Sunny Southern California
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #8 on: March 03, 2015, 07:02:25 PM »
You can set one up in line with your main water supply line that you just buy bags of salt for. If you have a basement, set it up next to the sump because it will eventually leak.

That said, are you sure you need a water softener at all?
No basements around these parts.  We definitely need a water softener.  I washed the cars with the hose that has unsoftened water and it left horrible hard water spots everywhere.  I couldn't scrub the spots away.  It was a disaster.  The cars looked worst then when I started.

FabricStache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 34
  • Location: Sunny Southern California
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #9 on: March 03, 2015, 07:05:39 PM »
We have one by Kenetico.  It is non electrical, put in a bag of salt and it has timers, backwashes and stuff.  I know the seller of the house said her husband researched it so they would have something that didn't cost a lot.  this one only requires salt, we have good soft water, now it doesn't treat impurities but we have city water.  I have a filter before it that takes out any debris and chlorine, then our filter on our fridge treats all kinds of stuff from bacteria to cysts,  but I also have a stand alone water dispenser and buy the big bottles of water for it for drinking though I do use the ice.  I wonder how much sodium I'm getting beyond what I need though.
Thanks for the info on Kenetico.  I'll look into their units.  Do you know from the previous owner about how much the unit costs?

Daley

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4825
  • Location: Cow country. Moo.
  • Still kickin', I guess.
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #10 on: March 03, 2015, 08:46:43 PM »
There is some a tank that they swap out weekly.  It's on the side of the house and softens all of the water than comes into the house and one garden spigot.

here's link to their service http://www.raynewater.com/ventura/softeners.php
It's the portable exchange tank service.  They take the used tank and do the regeneration at their facility.  They way it's set-up the tanks are outdoors on the side of the house.

Keep in mind that salt-based water softeners in many California municipalities have been banned/restricted due to the water crisis and the environmental impact and costs of extracting the regeneration salt from the waste water, and I'm pretty sure Ventura is on that list. It sounds like your provider is doing off-site regeneration which is necessary due to this restriction, which probably means you can't legally run a cheaper salt-based softener yourself. This also means that if I'm right about you living in an area that's got a salt wastewater ban, your only other option besides paying Rayne for weekly off-site regeneration is a saltless softener filtration system.
« Last Edit: March 03, 2015, 09:01:47 PM by I.P. Daley »

FabricStache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 34
  • Location: Sunny Southern California
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #11 on: March 03, 2015, 09:30:32 PM »
Keep in mind that salt-based water softeners in many California municipalities have been banned/restricted due to the water crisis and the environmental impact and costs of extracting the regeneration salt from the waste water, and I'm pretty sure Ventura is on that list. It sounds like your provider is doing off-site regeneration which is necessary due to this restriction, which probably means you can't legally run a cheaper salt-based softener yourself. This also means that if I'm right about you living in an area that's got a salt wastewater ban, your only other option besides paying Rayne for weekly off-site regeneration is a saltless softener filtration system.
[/quote]

Thanks for the info.  The service we're using is salt free.  I guess I need to research only saltless systems to see if it'll pay off.  I'm assuming these are more expensive.

Daley

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4825
  • Location: Cow country. Moo.
  • Still kickin', I guess.
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #12 on: March 03, 2015, 09:58:38 PM »
Thanks for the info.  The service we're using is salt free.  I guess I need to research only saltless systems to see if it'll pay off.  I'm assuming these are more expensive.

Actually, given the phrasing of the Rayne ad copy, it probably is an actual saline based softener system, but they do the bead regeneration off-site where they can recover the saline from the wastewater during treatment.

There are also saltless treatment options that are cheaper than filtration, but they don't actually soften the water so much as prevent scale.

FabricStache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 34
  • Location: Sunny Southern California
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #13 on: March 03, 2015, 10:19:39 PM »
Thanks for the info.  The service we're using is salt free.  I guess I need to research only saltless systems to see if it'll pay off.  I'm assuming these are more expensive.

Actually, given the phrasing of the Rayne ad copy, it probably is an actual saline based softener system, but they do the bead regeneration off-site where they can recover the saline from the wastewater during treatment.

There are also saltless treatment options that are cheaper than filtration, but they don't actually soften the water so much as prevent scale.

Would potassium chloride aka "potassium salt" still be considered a salt system?  From what I'm reading it puts potassium into the water instead of sodium.  I think its sodium in the sewer system that is the concern.  We're on septic and not on city sewer but regardless we don't want the excess salt corroding our septic tank or possibly killing our grass and plants.

Daley

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4825
  • Location: Cow country. Moo.
  • Still kickin', I guess.
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #14 on: March 03, 2015, 11:01:26 PM »
Would potassium chloride aka "potassium salt" still be considered a salt system?  From what I'm reading it puts potassium into the water instead of sodium.  I think its sodium in the sewer system that is the concern.  We're on septic and not on city sewer but regardless we don't want the excess salt corroding our septic tank or possibly killing our grass and plants.

Not sure. These are getting into questions that would probably be best answered by a local municipal code expert and a septic specialist.

Ditchmonkey

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 54
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #15 on: March 10, 2015, 03:39:31 PM »

Would potassium chloride aka "potassium salt" still be considered a salt system?  From what I'm reading it puts potassium into the water instead of sodium.  I think its sodium in the sewer system that is the concern.  We're on septic and not on city sewer but regardless we don't want the excess salt corroding our septic tank or possibly killing our grass and plants.

We are on septic and use a softener. It doesn't kill the grass and I don't think it impacts the septic tank much at all. We use the potassium salt because I am concerned about adding even trace amounts of sodium to our drinking water, although I'm not sure these fears are founded. The downside to potassium chloride is it costs about 5 times as much (about $26 a bag).

PatStab

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 133
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #16 on: March 11, 2015, 06:49:48 AM »
Sorry I don't know the cost of the Kenetico.  I haven't seen it kill the grass.  But I have read that it
disturbs the bacteria in the septic system, we just decided to have ours pumped once a year.  It's
a thousand gallon tank, but we don't want to take a chance of it going bad as we have the geothermal
loop in that area too.

Ditchmonkey

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 54
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #17 on: March 20, 2015, 11:09:52 AM »
We are on septic and use a softener. It doesn't kill the grass and I don't think it impacts the septic tank much at all.

I need to correct this statement that I made. I learned new info today from the previous owners of the home. It seems they have the water from the softener flowing into a home-made gray water system underground, and in this spot, the grass is indeed dead.

ria1024

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 19
Re: How to replace water softening company service
« Reply #18 on: March 20, 2015, 01:30:37 PM »
We are on septic and use a softener. It doesn't kill the grass and I don't think it impacts the septic tank much at all.

I need to correct this statement that I made. I learned new info today from the previous owners of the home. It seems they have the water from the softener flowing into a home-made gray water system underground, and in this spot, the grass is indeed dead.

That's the recommended option; when we replaced our septic system they ran a pipe from the drainage ditch all the way into the house, so that the salt from a softener wouldn't be dumped into the septic tank anymore.  It can harm the bacteria in the tank, and potentially damage the concrete over the years.