After all your research, you must have reached this conclusion: a
water softener is the permanent solution to address all hard water problems in your house. Assuming you’re still looking for more information, you may be left with a lot of questions about what equipment you need and where exactly to install your new equipment. Depending on the style of your house and where you live, finding the perfect place for your
water softener may be a breeze or it may require a little extra investigation. With these key elements in mind, you’ll be able to select the best spot and get your softener installed in no time.
1. Check the Hardness
Before you even think of installing a water softening system, you must know
how hard the water in your house is. This will
determine the physical size of the water softener and the amount of media needed to remove the hardness. The larger the system, the more resin it can hold, and the more hardness it can remove from the water. Larger systems are often installed outside the house under weatherproof covers.
2. Calculate Your Water Consumption
It’s easy to consume gallons of water without even realizing it. According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), an average Irish household uses 379 litres of water per day.
To size your water softener accurately, you’ll want to consider how much water you use daily. CWS Cabinet water softener is perfect for a family of 4-6 people providing soft water all day long.
3. Know the Flow Rate
If the flow rate isn’t considered when selecting a system, and your softener is too small, you may experience decreased water pressure and hardness coming through the system. You can get a close idea of your water flow rate by running water at a fully open position through your faucet. Simply turn the faucet to the fully open position and quickly put a gallon container under the full flow of water. Start timing how many seconds it takes to fill the container all the way up. If it fills up in 10 seconds, then divide 60 seconds (or 1 min) by 10 seconds (the time it took to fill the container). The answer is 6GPM. You need to
ensure you are getting a unit with adequate flow capacity without losing pressure.
4. Availability of Drain & Power Source
A
drain must be readily available to facilitate easy disposal of the brine solution after backwash. Backwash or regeneration is the process that washes the resin beads with a highly concentrated brine solution. Since the beads act as a sponge and absorb the hardness-causing minerals from your water, they eventually get “full” and need to be cleaned. After regeneration, the resin is able to soften water again.
Finding the Best Location
As a general rule of thumb, water softeners are installed at the point of entry to a household to feed the whole house. If your home uses well water, the entry point is generally next to the pressure tank. If your home uses public water supply, it’s usually next to the water meter. A drain and a power source should also be nearby, and there should be enough space to accommodate the size of the equipment. In some cases, a water treatment company might install the unit outside, however, it would need protection to prevent freezing, direct water spray and direct sunlight.
By far, a softener is most commonly installed under the kitchen sink, however, can be installed wherever best suits you and your home. This could be in a garage, shed, utility room, boiler room, hotpress, sink press or weather-proof cabinets on an external wall or garden wall, inline to the mains. Closets or utility rooms can be a good fit for a unit after some extra effort to create a drain for the system. We normally leave some hard water in the kitchen either by leaving the cold in the mixer tap as hard or installing a separate
drinking water filter.
Consult Water Treatment Experts for Installation
A water softener will certainly solve all your hard water woes and save you a ton of money for years to come. The right recommendation and proper installation could save you headaches and maintenance issues down the road. Always choose to get your water softener professionally installed by an expert. Celtic Water Solutions offers the highest level of professional expertise and adhere to a strict code of ethics and customer care. Our team of experts can suggest the right treatment system and get your equipment running in no time. Contact us to discuss your requirement.
