What’s
the deal?: hard water vs. soft water.
“Hardness” in drinking water is caused by two harmless minerals--calcium and magnesium. It is called hardness b/c if calcium and magnesium are present in your water, making a lather or suds for washing is “hard” to do. Laundry washed in hard water may not seem as clean.
Water with little calcium and magnesium is “soft water.”
Information taken from "'Plain Talk
About Drinking Water
Should I install a water softener in my home?
First, find out how hard your water by calling the Upper Leon lab at (254) 879-BACT. If the hardness of your water is more than 125 million grams per litre, sometimes called 125 parts per million or 7.5 grains per gallon, you might consider a softener.
The higher the hardness number, the more a water softener should help.
Information taken from "'Plain Talk
About Drinking Water
Water softeners replace harmless hardness minerals with sodium. Because sodium is believed to cause high blood pressure in some people, you might want to connect the softener to the hot-water line only. This will prevent softener sodium from entering your drinking or cooking water.
Information taken from "'Plain Talk
About Drinking Water