What is Water Hardness?

We hear a lot about water hardness, but what is it, where does it come from and what does it do?

Chemically, water hardness is made up mostly by Calcium and Magnesium. 

Water is called the universal solvent, dissolving some of almost anything it comes in contact with. And when it comes in contact with limestone or similar rock formations, it dissolves these hardness minerals. The more of these minerals it dissolves, the harder the water becomes. Hardness is most commonly measured in Grains per Gallon or Milligrams per Liter 

Water Hardness Scale
Grains Per Gallon	Milligrams Per Liter (mg/L)or Parts Per Million (ppm)	Classification
less than 1.0	less than 17.1	Soft
1.0 - 3.5	17.1 - 60	Slightly Hard
3.5 - 7.0	60 - 120	Moderately Hard
7.0 - 10.5	120 - 180	Hard
over 10.5	over 180	Very Hard

Most surface water supplies in Southern Alberta range from 9 - 15 grains per gallon hard. 

When water is just 7 grains hard, the amount of hardness in 1,000 gallons is 1 pound. That means a family of 4 in this area will bring the equivalent of a 150# boulder into their home each year.

When hard water is heated, it forms scale. This scale builds up in pipes, water heaters and appliances. You have probably noticed this scale formation in kettles. If you have every carried out your old water heater and carried in the new one, you will no just how much rock is in the old tank. Scale acts as an insulator in your water heater. You wouldn't want to put a brick between your stove and your pot! Just 1/8" of scale costs an extra 18% to heat.  Studies have shown that gas water heaters operating on hard water will cost an extra 29% over the life of the heater. 


Another problem of hard water is its reaction with soap. A soap curd forms. I'm sure we have all seen film on shower tiles and doors, and bathtub ring. This is soap curd. you will get this even if you don't step foot in the bath if you put soap in hard water. This soap curd gets on everything that is washed with soap and hard water - dishes, clothes, your skin - many people experience dry itchy skin after bathing in hard water.

Recently, the Water Quality Association completed a couple of studies showing The benefits of softened water - Energy Savings and Detergent Savings. Check it out here!

You owe it to yourself to try soft water. Contact us for more information on our FREE Trial!

How Much Does It Cost to Operate a Water Softener?

My favorite response to this question is "A water softener doesn't cost - it saves"

A typical family of 4 will save $40 to $70 per month just by installing a water softener. 

But I know that is never the answer that you are looking for. If you haven't had a water softener before, it is a natural question, and I'm going to try to give you a really good idea of what you can expect to spend to operate a water softener. As usual, I'm going to try to avoid as much technical detail as I can, so if you see any technical details that aren't quite right, you probably know how to adjust what I'm saying or already will know how to figure out the costs yourself.

There are 4 areas that could be considered operating costs - electricity, water, sewer and salt (or potassium for some users). Because of the nature of the costs, I will deal with electricity first, then water, sewer and salt together, then touch on potassium chloride.

Before I start, I need to let you know how I came up with the numbers. I used actual water softeners installed in my home. We had 4 - 5 people living in the home, water hardness averaged 13 grains per gallon. This is a pretty common number in our area, and if your hardness varies. you can make adjustment from there. Other factors I'm using are $0.20 per pound of salt, water at $1.12 per cubic meter, and sewer at $0.703 per cubic meter.

Electricity

While there is one brand that uses water flow past gears to operate instead of electricity, Almost all water softeners use electricity to run. Primarily to operate timers and drive motors. The amount used will be very small - not much more than a clock.

Normal operation of an electronic water softener will have the clock running continuously and the power draw is so small I consider it negligible. When the motor is moving the valve during recharge, it is still a small demand and at electrical rates of 8.9 cents per kwh a typical annual electrical cost will be under $1.00.

Salt, Water and Sewer
The cost of these items will vary depending on water hardness, how much water you use and the water softener control.

The first control factor is if the unit is demand or timeclock driven. A timeclock softener will recharge on a fixed schedule. This is the most wasteful way for a softener to work. Our softener had to recharge every 3 days, using 60 pounds of salt per month. These softeners are usually not very water efficient either - using over 50 gallons per recharge. So that means a total monthly operating cost of under $15.

Then we tried a demand softener. These softeners track the water that you use and recharge once a preset volume of water has been treated.They are advertised to use about 1/2 of the salt and water. Our experience was an actual savings of 20%. So this unit cost under $12 per month to run.

Then we used a Culligan Aqua-Sensor. These units rely on electronics to measure the condition of the unit to determine when they need to recharge. It makes a lot of sense since the water hardness varies throughout the year to measure the bed, and as long as the unit functions properly, it will save salt and water. Unfortunately, we had to set the softener for a higher salt dosage for it to work, but we did see a 40% savings. This unit cost us less than $9 per month.

Finally we tried and Ecowater Refiner. This is a demand water softener that tracks water use int he home but includes other factors to reduce costs:

• Upflow regeneration is far more efficient in salt and water use and makes softer water
• Proportional brining recharges only the portion of the capacity used
• A sophisticated algorithm better predicts when recharge is needed
• Average water usage per recharge is only 32 gallons 

Added all up, we saw a salt savings of 66% and a water/sewer savings of 80%. Total operating cost - less than $5 

Potassium Chloride
This can be used as a salt replacement for recharging your water softener. If you are drinking soft water it is a good choice, and the plumbing code recommends it for softeners draining into septic systems.

It is over 3 times the price of salt and your conditioner will use more than salt.

So as i said at the start, a water softener doesn't cost - it saves! 

Call us to see how:

At Holmes Ecowater, we make your home's water - Better! 

The Hard Cost of Hard Water

Do you realize how much hard water costs you?

We've been installing water softeners for 44 years, but today many people consider them a luxury. So we've put together some facts for you.

A recent article by Money Talks News lists these effects of Hard Water:

1. Calcium rings or deposits in tubs, sinks, or dishwashers
2. Spots on dishes or shower doors
3. Reduced foaming and cleaning abilities of soaps and detergents
4. Reduced hot water supply
5. Dingy and yellowed clothes with soapy residues
6. Clogged pipes, shower heads, or faucets
7. Leaky pipes

 Over 85% of homes in Canada have hard water, but you should get yours tested. Most water treatment companies offer water tests (ours is free), or you can contact a lab. If you have municipal water you can contact your water authority. Private water supply owners can contact their public health unit.


So what do the numbers mean?

Surface water in Southern Alberta runs from 7 - 18 grains per gallon hardness - pretty hard. 


If You Have Hard Water What Do You Do About It?
You are guessing I'm going to say get a water softener aren't you? Good guess. You can rent or own water softeners. The choice is yours. We generally feel that if you are going to have the softener for more than 4 years, it is probably cheaper to own it. However, many home owners choose to rent simply so they never have to worry about service or replacement. 

The Water Quality Association commissioned a study that found that water softeners are one of the best ways to save energy. They keep water heaters and appliances running efficiently, and they keep shower heads and faucets flowing freely.

This past year, another study funded by the WQA – and conducted by a different company – found that water softeners also allow you to wash your clothes in cooler temperatures and to use less laundry and dish detergent. In other words, they’re saying that if you have a water softener installed, your clothes will come out just as clean even though you reduced the temperature and detergent by 50 percent.