Which type of water softener salt should you use in your water softening model?
Before we look at how to select that salt, let’s look at some how water softeners work to improve the quality of your home’s water supply.
Hard water is a problem in many homes. In these cases, the water contains excessive amounts of calcium and magnesium.
The good news is that water softener salt can be conveniently obtained online from Amazon. Order over $25 for FREE shipping!
Many
people prefer Morton because the name is so familiar to them. It has
been around for years and practically everyone has heard of Morton salt.
Diamond
Crystal supplies different types of water softener salt, including
evaporated salt, and their products are very well-regarded.
While
they all basically do the same thing, choosing the softener salt you
want to use is simply a matter of reading the ingredients and choosing
the one you think will do the best job.
The
problem is that excessive amounts of calcium and magnesium can end up
making it difficult for water to flow smoothly through the pipes,
because they tend to build up inside the pipes.
Hard water also
makes it difficult for your soap, shampoo, and detergent to dissolve
appropriately. Heating hard water can also be more challenging and can
end up costing you more on your heating bills.
When you use a
water softener, those minerals are replaced by other minerals,
specifically sodium. That’s why choosing the right water softener salt
is so important in determining the effectiveness of your unit.
There
are three types of salt that are most frequently used in water
softeners: rock, solar, and evaporated. All three types are obtained in
different ways and contain different levels of sodium chloride.
Rock
salt comes from the ground and occurs naturally. Solar salt is
harvested from the evaporation of sea water. Evaporated salt is obtained
by mining underground salt deposits and removing the moisture until
only the salt remains.
One of the important factors in
determining the right water softener salt is how much salt you are going
to use. That is determined by the hardness of your water. The more
excess minerals your water contains the more salt it’s going to take to
remove them.
The reason this factor is important is that
different salt types have different levels of water solubility. When the
salt contains higher levels of insoluble elements, these can’t be
dissolved in the water and end up building up inside the water softener.
That means you’ll have to clean out the softener more frequently.
In
most cases, rock salt should probably be your last choice. This type of
salt contains more insoluble elements than do the other types and,
therefore, is more likely to require more softener maintenance.
Evaporated
salt is usually the best choice because it is the most soluble. Solar
salt isn’t a bad choice either if your water hardness isn’t too severe.
If
your water isn’t too hard, you can probably use any of the three.
However, you may want to change up and alternate the different types of
salt each time you add some to the softener.
You should also
consider the requirements for your particular water softener. If you’ve
purchased one of the smaller, less expensive models, you probably must
use salt that is more water soluble. Otherwise, you can damage the unit
or end up with bridging – the formation of a mush of salt in the
reservoir that can prevent the unit from working effectively.
Always read the instructions for your water softener to determine which types of salt are recommended for your unit.
Remember
that even though rock salt is cheaper and may be more easily accessible
than the other two types of salt you have to weigh those benefits
against the increased rate of cleaning – up to 3 times per year – and
the potential damage to your unit.
Generally, the cost of adding
the salt isn’t going to be very high anyway. You usually only have to
check the salt supply once a month and you want to make sure to keep it
supplied to at least half-full. The frequency with which you’ll have to
add the salt and, therefore, the cost of maintaining your water softener
is determined by the hardness of your water.
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