Anyone uses water treatment system?

[zhuzhu]

Hi All,

We are thinking of buying a water treatment system for our house. As in SD the water hardness is crazily high at 11 grains per gallon! The three companies I found so far are ECOWater, Kinetico, and Culligan.

Would those of you who knows something about this service please share your experience with me?

Thank you so much!!

 

[arjunajane]

Date: 5/11/2008 2:50:50 AM
Author:zhuzhu
Hi All,

We are thinking of buying a water treatment system for our house. As in SD the water hardness is crazily high at 11 grains per gallon! The three companies I found so far are ECOWater, Kinetico, and Culligan.

Would those of you who knows something about this service please share your experience with me?

Thank you so much!!

I don''t have one, but I have heard and read Alot of good things about these new ones that Magnetize the water - there are agricultural industries in Australia that are embracing them fully - the properties of the water is that it flows quicker through the pipes, so it takes less pressure and less water to, say, grow fruit. And the crops have been increased yields..
As the water gets oxygenated by the magnets, theoretically it will also be better for our bodies, and is supposed to have great health benefits. I admit I''m a skeptic of magnet blankets etc, but this seems to make more sense, due to the scientific properties of water.
I would love to get one. Plus unlike filters, I think you should only need one in a lifetime..?

http://waterforlife.net.au/

 

[miraclesrule]

Date: 5/11/2008 2:50:50 AM
Author:zhuzhu
Hi All,

We are thinking of buying a water treatment system for our house. As in SD the water hardness is crazily high at 11 grains per gallon! The three companies I found so far are ECOWater, Kinetico, and Culligan.

Would those of you who knows something about this service please share your experience with me?

Thank you so much!!

It sounds like you are referring to main line water softening units. I don''t have one of the those installed, but I do have reverse osmosis for drinking water. I didn''t use it for a long time after I re-did the kitchen but once I realized that it''s the same procedure used in bottled water, I begain using it exclusively for drinking, cooking and in my coffee maker. I am a true convert now and feel it reduces my plastic bottled water footprint, even though I do recycle.

I agree that the water in San Diego is very hard water. You can tell just by the water deposits that accumulate on the underside of the faucets and the water deposits. I have always had to adjust when I am traveling and using softened water as you don''t require the same amount of soap or shampoo, so in the long run I think it is worth the investment. It''s just an adjustment at first because you seem to never get the shampoo out of your hair or the soap off as it never leaves a squeaky clean feeling, which is probably a good thing.

Let me know what you decide. If you do install one of these systems I would love to hear your feedback. Good luck!

 

[tevyk]

miraclesrule: you've gotta be careful if you're drinking straight reverse osmosis water -- it's SO devoid of minerals that it will actually leech minerals back OUT of your body when you drink it.

Typically, bottling companies that use RO add minerals back in to a) improve taste and b) make it so drinking water doesn't suck minerals out of your body and weaken your bones and stuff.

I've often seen it recommended for home RO systems that you do something like: Have a Brita filter and filter normal (NON-reverse-osmosised) tap water through that. Mix 3 parts of your RO system water with 1 part Brita filtered tap water, and use THAT for drinking. It'tal taste a lot better and be better for you.

 

[zhuzhu]

Thanks!
The whole-house water system is actually a water-refinement system. It uses filtering technology to get ~80% inpurities out of water before coming into the house. Does that help with problem of mineral depletion?

 

[tevyk]

Yeah that sounds different from 100% reverse osmosis. If it all went through RO, there would be *nothing* left in the water except water. And the sales guy probably would have told you not to drink it

 

[zhuzhu]

Actually that sales person WANTED me to buy RO for drinking system IN ADDITION to water refinement system! It is incredible what sales person will do to get their bonus commission!

 

[miraclesrule]

Date: 5/11/2008 11:30:39 PM
Author: tevyk
miraclesrule: you''ve gotta be careful if you''re drinking straight reverse osmosis water -- it''s SO devoid of minerals that it will actually leech minerals back OUT of your body when you drink it.

Typically, bottling companies that use RO add minerals back in to a) improve taste and b) make it so drinking water doesn''t suck minerals out of your body and weaken your bones and stuff.

I''ve often seen it recommended for home RO systems that you do something like: Have a Brita filter and filter normal (NON-reverse-osmosised) tap water through that. Mix 3 parts of your RO system water with 1 part Brita filtered tap water, and use THAT for drinking. It''tal taste a lot better and be better for you.

Wow, that''s interesting. I guess I need to read up on it. I don''t believe in flouride in my drinking water, so I never drink out of the tap if I can avoid it. I am big on supplements and good nutrition, so I hope I am not being leeched. I thought only carbonated sodas leeched from the human system.

What bothers me most about home RO systems is how much water is wasted in order to produce the RO water supply. But I know a guy who works at the water district and he refuses to drink tap water for a reason.

Thanks for the info. I need to google that.

Good Luck Zhuzhu, it''s hard to know exactly what necessary when you are dealing with salesman. I''ll be interested to learn what you decide.

 

[chiefneil]

I have both a water softener and an RO system. All of the brands you mention are fine, but the thing to realize is that there''s not much difference between a $4000 unit and a $1000 unit. They all use much the same parts - the valves are going to be either from Clack or Fleck. The thing to look for is a high quality valve (it''s been a few years since I got my unit, but I think the Clack WS-1 and Fleck 7000 were top of the line at the time). A unit made locally with the same parts as Culligan, Eco, etc, will be just fine. Be sure to get a two-tank unit, where one tank holds the salt. There''s really no need to spend more than $1000 on a unit, so be suspicious of any salesman that suggests a $2000+ unit.

For the RO unit, I absolutely love the taste and quality of the water. I would be interested in seeing a scientific study of RO water leaching minerals from the body, as that sounds like an urban legend. Mineral intake from water is pretty negligible. If it was significant, your water would taste pretty horrible and look ugly to boot. And I''m not sure what exactly can get leached out of the body anyway, other than calcium which everyone (especially women) should try to consume a lot of anyway.

What was a concern to me with RO water was fluoride removal when my DD was very young. I spoke to my dentist about it and he assured me that there was enough fluoride absorbed into fruits and vegetables that I didn''t need to worry about it. But he did give me a special fluoride toothpaste for DD to use once a week.

 

[zhuzhu]

I think the reason the whole house Eco water refinement system is costly ($3200)is because according to the sales person, it not only softens the water but also filters out 80% of minerals and inpurity from the water.

chiefneil, do you know if your softener system performs filtering as well as softening? or only softening?

Thanks!
zhuzhu

 

[chiefneil]

"Removes minerals and impurities"

My first reaction is puhleeeze! You need to ask what exactly it removes and how it does it. Water softeners will all remove calcium, and small amounts of iron. So that might be the "minerals and impurities" he''s talking about.

You can also add a carbon filter which will remove chlorine, and possibly act as a large-particle filter. But there''s some debate over whether or not you want to remove chlorine from the water. Remember that the water will be sitting in your pipes, post-filter, waiting to be used. I thought about it and decided that I wanted my water to retain whatever trace amount of chlorine is in it, in order to deter mold and bacteria growth in the pipes. I have the RO unit for my drinking water, which does take out the chlorine at the point-of-use. Maybe the eco unit incorporates a carbon filter?

Although I chose not to use a carbon filter, I believe they''re relatively inexpensive and you can always add it later if you want. My softener is made locally by a company called Ultima with top of the line parts (Fleck 7000 1.25" valve, demand-generation with adaptable reserve, etc), and ran about $1000-$1200 installed. Adding a carbon and particle filter, I''m guessing would run a few hundred more. If you''re worried about your drinking water (as opposed to your hand, dish, and shower water), then get something like a Brita filter or RO unit for the kitchen.

BTW, I did listen to the pitches from Eco, Pure, Culligan, etc. But in the end I had an Ultima unit at my previous house which worked perfectly fine and didn''t see any possible reason to spend triple the money on a "name brand" filter. Note that I''m not recommending Ultima necessarily, but rather the high-quality parts which you might find in a local manufacturer of your own.