It has been known for approximately the last 20 years that chromium 6 poses a danger when inhaled, contributing to the development of several cancers. Only within the past few years has science discovered that the compound is carcinogenic when ingested as well. The National Toxicology Program has released a statement concluding that after a 2 year animal study it is clear that chromium 6 is carcinogenic in drinking water.

A legally allowed limit of chromium 6 in tap water has yet to make its way onto the books, and there is no regulation concerning limits of the compound allowed in bottled drinking water. There are no guarantees that the bottled water customers are buying to avoid dangerous compounds in their tap water is any safer to drink. Also, traditional home water filters do not remove chromium 6.

A reliable way to remove chromium 6 from drinking water at home is through the use of a reverse osmosis filtering system. These systems are a long lasting and cost effective way to provide water-drinkers with water free of many unwanted contaminates, including chromium 6.

The reverse osmosis process works by forcing drinking water through a semipermeable membrane, allowing only pure, clean water through. The membrane separates water on a molecular level, acting as a filter to remove undesirable and harmful contaminates. Reverse osmosis drinking water systems leave water more pure, delivering the water intended for us by nature.

First, if your water has a high iron concentration, you could start to notice that your hair is turning a slightly more orange hue than it’s natural state. Especially for blondes, excessive iron in water can tint that shiny hue to a duller, more reddish blond. This is due to the way iron reacts with water. When those two things come together, the iron oxidizes, causing rust. And that’s what gives your hair that color.

You might also notice that water high in iron makes it harder to remove soap from your body. If the iron in the water is already taking up the space that soap would dissolve into, there’s simply less room in between the water molecules to take soap with them. And that means your skin doesn’t wash completely clean, resulting in itchiness, dryness, and sometimes even a rash.

You’ll also prevent dry skin by using a water softener to remove things like calcium, magnesium, and other elements that dry out skin. Removing these elements keeps things clean, too. You’ll notice that there’s less time spent scrubbing the walls of your shower or tub because there’s simply less pollutants to muck up the works.

Bypass Specific Faucets

During water softener installation, plan to bypass specific faucets, such as the kitchen faucet because it is mainly used for drinking water. This also allows you the option of bypassing your outdoor faucets as the sodium in soft water can be detrimental to your plants.

Soften only Hot Water

This is easily accomplished by installing the water softener “downstream” in relation to the hot water heater. The cold water, which is used for drinking and food preparation, will have no sodium from the water softener. The hot water, more commonly used for showering and laundry, still offers all the advantages of soft water.

Install a Third Kitchen Tap

If you still desire softened cold water in the kitchen, plan to put in a third kitchen tap during your water softener installation. In addition to your hot and cold water tap, a third tap can be installed for untreated water.

During water softener installation, there are many options to alleviate concerns over sodium in drinking water. This allows you to keep the benefits of soft water and eliminate any worry over health issues.

Although there are no health risks associated with hard water, the drawbacks are plenty. The minerals will eventually clog your appliances and pipes, requiring costly repairs and purchases. Because of the lather factor, you end up using more soap, laundry and dish detergent. Sometimes two times as much! Hard water combined with soap scum leads to rashes and dry, irritated skin. Just as important is the taste; many people do not like the taste of hard water straight from the tap.

So what to do? The good news is that hard water issues are easy to resolve. Water softener installation or a whole house water filter will do the trick! A water softener removes mineral sediment from your water through an ionic process that replaces the present minerals with sodium ions, which do not have ill-effects. A filter will soften the water by distillation, or reverse osmosis, which removes the calcium and magnesium. Either solution will turn your hard water soft.

Addressing your hard water problems means that you will save money by using less soap product and electricity and by paying for fewer repairs; scummy buildup on your faucets, dishware, pipes, and your body will be a thing of the past; and your whole family will have unlimited good-tasting drinking water.

Hard Water

• Inhibits the formation of soap lather
• Soap reacts with minerals and leaves behind a residue

Soft Water

• Soap lather forms well
• Soap rinses clean

Because lather does not form as well in hard water, it is often necessary to use more soap. The use of excess soap and the soap left behind during the cleaning process leads to potential problems, such as:

• Soap scum on surfaces (tub, sink, etc)
• Soap spots on item being cleaned (dishes, etc)
• Increased wear on clothing from excess soap in wash water
• Increased cost of cleaning products, as it is necessary to use more product
• Harm to the environment from the increased use of soap
• Damage to appliances and plumbing from deposits of extra soap
• Dry skin from prolonged hand washing

We see a fundamental difference in soap performance when comparing its use in hard and soft water. Removing the minerals found in hard water with a water softener or a whole house water filter will rectify these problems and allow the homemaker to enjoy the benefits of their cleaning products more fully!

What Makes a Whole House Water Filter Better?

When you install the Iron Curtain whole house water filter, you won’t ever have to deal with location specific water problems again. No more rusty water in the laundry room, no more sulfur smell when you take a shower, no more metallic taste in the drinking water. Instead, all you have is clear, fresh water in every tap in the house.

The Iron Curtain whole house water filter system is simply the best available – and is superior to either a birm sand filter or a carbon filter. Carbon filters are high in replacement cost- and they might not get rid of all the iron problems in your home. Birm sand filters can clog up easily and reduce your water pressure far sooner than necessary.

The Iron Curtain whole house water filter system is different. It uses two tanks- one for oxidizing and one that uses minerals to remove rust, iron, unwanted odors and colors from your water without using chemicals. The special patented design of the Iron Curtain system uses a gradient process, with larger minerals on the top of the tank and gradually smaller minerals on the bottom, eliminating the problem or premature clogging and waste.

Why deal with the hassles and expense of smelly, rusty water that can ruin your clothes, make your shower unpleasant and tastes bad? Eliminate all your water filtration problems at once with the installation of an Iron Curtain whole house water filter system today and start enjoying clean, fresh water throughout your home.

Your Water Softener Service Should Have Emergency Hours of Service

Does your water softener service has convenient hours in case of emergency? The last thing you need with the holiday season upon us is to have a house full of company trying to get ready for a gathering and the water softener stops working. Make sure you choose a water softener service that will be available 24/7 so you never have to worry about not having the clean, softened water you need for all of your daily living.

Your Water Softener Service Should Have Convenient Locations

You don’t have the time to have to travel out of your way to reach your water softener service. Look for company that has convenient locations so you can stop by when it fits your schedule and not the other way around. Look for a company that has several locations.

Your Water Softener Service Should Have Expert Staff

When you have a question, need an answer or are dealing with a problem, you need reliable, expert answers on the spot. Look for a water softener service company with knowledgeable, dependable staff with the experience to solve your problem. From helping you choose the right equipment to installation and service, having an experienced staff is one of the best ways your water softener service can meet your every need.

Which water softener service you choose does make a difference. If you look for one with 24-hour emergency service, convenient locations and an experienced, knowledgeable staff, you’ll know you made the right decision for all of your water treatment needs.

Installing a water softener on your own is not an easy thing to accomplish. Most installations will require at the very minimum some basic plumbing skills and you can expect that pipes will need to be cut into and new fittings and pipes will need to be added. This is why it is usually best to hire someone who is skilled at installing them.

If you are still thinking you can do it on your own, purchase your water softener and pull out the directions. Make sure you read them very thoroughly until you understand each step completely. If you cannot get to this point, it is time to ask for help. If you still decide to go for it on your own, make sure you have a backup person in mind who can help if necessary.

A few important tips to get you on your way include, finding a good location to install the unit. You will want to make sure you choose a location that is always above freezing. Also, make sure you use proper piping and don’t forget to add the salt. Once your water softener is installed be sure to keep it cleaned and well maintained so that it will last.

What to Look For

Water softeners gradually loose their softening ability so homeowners may not see a sudden change in the water hardness but it will more of a slow steady decline in the water quality. The common hints that water softener repair is in required are:

Spots

The classic tell tale sign is hard water spots on the dishes as they come out of the dish washer or after hand washing. Hard water spots are round spots of calcium that are deposited on the dishes and flatware as the dishes dry. The white chalky appearance can be easily rubbed off and doesn’t cause any harmful damage it just doesn’t look nice. Water softeners are usually employed to prevent the build up of spots and deposits so if spots are noticeable water softener repair may be in order.

No Suds

Soft water makes better, long lasting lather than hard water. When bathing with hard water it is more difficult to create a rich lather and may indicate that the water softener needs to be repaired.

Clogged Shower Head

When water softener repair is required mineral deposits may block the holes in the shower head.

Rust Stains

Softeners reduce the minerals in the water and if the water softener is not functioning properly rust stains may begin to appear around the drains, faucets and taps.

Dry Skin

Some of the minerals in hard water can leave your skin feeling dry and tight.

If you notice any of these symptoms it is likely that a water softener repair is in order.

]]> http://www.hansonsoftwater.com/blog/2010/11/water-softener-repair-%e2%80%93-is-it-working-properly/feed/ 0 http://www.hansonsoftwater.com/blog/2010/11/soft-water-how-a-water-softener-works/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=soft-water-how-a-water-softener-works http://www.hansonsoftwater.com/blog/2010/11/soft-water-how-a-water-softener-works/#comments Wed, 03 Nov 2010 00:43:39 +0000 editor http://www.hansonsoftwater.com/blog/?p=81 Continue reading →]]> To get soft water, you need a water softener. And water softeners are pretty ingenious devices. If you want soft water in Waukesha, it might help to learn how one works before you install a water softener.If you install a water softener, you might want to learn the chemistry behind the device. in general, the process of softening water is one of replacing one mineral in water with another. Water straight from the pipe is usually fairly hard water. That means it contains a lot of calcium or magnesium. These minerals are usually present in a high enough concentration to make water taste just a little bit off (unless you’re used to hard water).

While they don’t provide any health risks, hard water can clog your pipes. Having soft water ensures that minerals like magnesium or calcium can’t stick to your plumbing. Hard water can also leave scale on your shower, tea pots, coffee pots, and any other appliance that runs water. Soft water has none of these issues, and leaves your appliances scale free.

When you install a water softener, you’re installing a device that replaces calcium and magnesium with sodium, a mineral that doesn’t bond to metal surfaces. Sodium stays suspended in soft water, is easily digested by humans, and is no more dangerous than common table salt.

If you decide you do want soft water, and you do install a water softener, you may want to be wary of the amount of sodium you consume daily. Many common foods contain high amounts of sodium, and if you begin to take in higher levels of sodium through your water, your blood pressure could go through the roof.

Soft water provides many benefits for a household, and with some adjustments in your diet, it may make sense for your household.