The especially hard water throughout the Las Vegas Valley calls for softening to protect your plumbing and fixtures and to help ensure your family’s comfort. Your water softener is a key component of your home’s water treatment system, and choosing the right unit is important. Turn to our knowledgeable water treatment pro at Hanson’s Quality Water Works for the skilled guidance and professional installation you need.
The Problems Associated with Hard Water
The water in Vegas is rated very hard, which leads to plumbing problems like the following for homeowners:
- The minerals in hard water form scale buildup inside pipes, fittings, and fixtures. This restricts water’s flow and reduces overall efficiency.
- Scale caused by hard water is also hard on appliances like your washing machine and dishwasher, affecting their efficiency and shortening their lifespans.
- The mineral deposits left by hard water also result in cloudy glassware and shower doors, as well as dingy laundry with a stiff feel.
- Hard water interferes with soap’s ability to lather properly, so most people compensate by using more detergent, which can lead to soap scum on hair, skin, dishes, and laundry.
Addressing hard water with proper softening can significantly improve your home’s plumbing system. Doing so supports more efficient and effective residential plumbing systems, which come with numerous benefits.
How Water Softeners Work
To exchange hard minerals for softer ones, most water softeners use an ion-exchange process that employs several basic elements.
The Physical Process
The physical process of water softening involves passing hard water through a tank filled with resin beads that hold positively charged potassium or sodium ions.
The Exchange of Ions
As the hard water flows through the tank, the beads attract the hard ions or calcium and magnesium, and replace them with soft sodium ions, which are released into the water.
Regenerating the Beads
Once the resin beads are coated with calcium and magnesium, they are flushed with a salt solution that releases the hard minerals. From here, the hard minerals are flushed out of the system, and the resin beads are left recharged and ready to be used again.
Salt-Free Water Softeners
Salt-free water softeners, also known as water conditioners or water descalers, excel at preventing scale buildup in your home’s plumbing system. They are generally not recommended for very hard water. Nevertheless, these conditioners can work very well when used in unison with carbon pre-filters or reverse osmosis.
Protect Your Home Plumbing with Water Softeners
Our qualified Las Vegas plumbing pros at Hanson’s Quality Water Works are well acquainted with the challenges associated with the area’s hard water, and we can help you tackle them head-on. Water softening is an important concern throughout the Las Vegas Valley, so please do not wait to learn more by contacting us online or giving us a call at 702-795-4442 today.