Water Softeners & Water Conditioners
Water Softener Systems St Augustine, FL Residents Love
How can you soften the water coming into your house? Hard water can destroy your health, water pipes, and water-driven appliances. As more and more households in the United States rely on hard water, installing water softener systems at your home is crucial. Let’s take a few minutes to understand how water softener systems in St Augustine, FL work and how they help save time, energy, and money!
What are water softeners?
Are you troubled by the hardness-causing minerals in the water you consume? Well, it’s time you put water softeners to use. A water softener is a whole-house filtration system that works on the principle of ion exchange. The water softener addresses one of the most common water problems; water softeners will effectively reduce water hardness — preventing the water pipes from clogging and appliances like dishwashers and coffee makers from malfunctioning.
The scale made from calcium and magnesium often builds up in the pipes and dramatically shortens the lifespan of water appliances, especially hot water heaters. Not just that, the calcified rock deposits make it hard to clean clothes properly. Your laundry will require extra detergent; otherwise, the washed clothes will have a film of scum. This happens when the soap or detergent used does not lather well due to the hard water.
Moreover, consuming hard water will leave your skin and hair lifeless. Therefore, hard water can have detrimental health effects. Remember, the cost and time of overcoming the health repercussions of hard water consumption are mind-boggling. Consequently, it would help if you made the right decision while still having time. Therefore, we suggest you use a whole-house water softener to reduce water hardness significantly.
What are water conditioners?
A water conditioner is an alternative to a water softener. The conditioners are known for their use of template-assisted crystallization or TAC media. In this, the minerals (calcium and magnesium) are made to crystallize, thus reducing the water’s hardness. Indeed, water conditioners can effectively prevent these minerals from building up in pipes. But first, you must find a way to render the conditioned water suitable for drinking or other household purposes.
This is because the conditioned water is not usually softened, i.e., the water doesn’t undergo ion exchange which helps remove the minerals from water. In other words, water conditioners will only help prevent the scaling in water and are not the ideal alternative to water softeners. As a professional water solution provider, we recommend using water softeners, which come in different types and forms to meet your specific water cleaning needs.
How do water softener systems in St Augustine, FL work?
Now that you are well acquainted with water softeners, we will discuss how water softeners work in detail. Using the ion exchange method, a water softener is designed to remove calcium and magnesium from the water. In this process, the hard water will first enter the mineral tank. After that, the magic happens in the mineral tank as it contains resin beads. Then, the water in the tank flows through a bed of spherical resin beads made from polystyrene.
The most important thing to note about these beads is that they are charged with a sodium ion. Therefore, the resin beads in the tank have a negative charge or are anions. On the other hand, the minerals in the water (calcium and magnesium) contain a positive charge, thus making it easier for the bed of spherical resin beads to capture the minerals. This happens because the negative charge is attracted to the positive charge. Since opposite charges attract, the resin beads will start collecting mineral ions and effectively remove them from water.
What happens when the resin beads collect the minerals? Well, upon seizing the mineral ion, the bead will quickly release the sodium ion and successfully strip all the hardness out of the water you are about to use. This is one of the most effective ways to soften the water flowing into your home.
What are the components of a water softener?
You need to know what makes water softener systems in St Augustine, FL so effective. We have already discussed how water softeners work. But, there are other components in the system besides the mineral tank. So, let’s learn about them, shall we?
The mineral tank
It is the system’s main component as it softens the hard water. It is connected with the hard water supply, and as the water flows through the bed of resin beads inside, it catches the water-hardening calcium and magnesium ions. In other words, the mineral tank is responsible for softening hard water.
The control valve
But, you need to control the amount of water that passes through the mineral tank and into your house. This is crucial as you don’t want the resin beads to get too burdened with hard mineral content and not function efficiently. The control valve helps measure the water flowing through the mineral tank.
The brine tank
Another crucial component in the system is the brine tank, as it facilitates ion regeneration. Placed next to the mineral tank, the brine tank will effectively restore the resin beads’ positive charge. The brine tank contains a highly concentrated solution of salt used to restore the beads’ charge. As the control valve registers a decrease in the charge level in the resin beads, the brine tank releases a heavy salt solution into the mineral tank to restore the positive charge.
How does water softener regeneration work?
Can you control the water softener regeneration process? Yes, you can use several water softener controls to control the frequency at which the resin beads in the mineral tank are recharged. Here are the three most important types of water softener controls you should know:
Computerized regeneration
The computerized systems we install have the Clack high-flow dot-matrix control head, which functions even in the harshest of environments, especially in Northeast Florida. In addition, these computerized systems will regenerate according to your waste usage. Programmed with the grain capacity of the softener, the system will regenerate only when necessary, resulting in an efficient regeneration.
Timer regeneration
You may even use a timer-controlled regeneration system that regenerates at a set time. The controller doesn’t register the amount of water running through the water softener installation in Saint Augustine, Fl. Indeed, these systems are inexpensive. But, you always run a risk of using hard water if the water consumption suddenly increases than the usual demand.
Manual regeneration
Lastly, you can go for manual regeneration systems. These come with a level control valve that can be used to regenerate the mineral tank. In this case, we suggest you use an oversize tank so that you don’t have to regenerate frequently manually.
Schedule a Water Softener Installation in Saint Augustine, FL Today!
With a water softener system installed, you can instantly feel a difference in your bathroom, laundry, kitchen, and general health. There will be no mineral deposits, you will require less water and detergent to do laundry, dishes will clean more effortlessly, and your water-driven appliances will run for years. So, what are you waiting for? Contact us to set an appointment and install a water softener system in St Augustine, FL today!
