Around the world, many homes suffer from hard water. Typically, hard water is thought of as water that contains a lot of minerals. These minerals seep into a water supply when the water travels through limestone and/or chalk. Both of these minerals are composed mainly of magnesium carbonates and calcium. The minerals build up the water and cause a set of problems in residential as well as commercial settings.
For purely health reasons, hard water can actually have a few benefits as drinking water. However, the problems caused by it far outweigh any debatable health benefits. Water hardness tends to cause calcium and lime buildup on any surface that handles water. In industrial applications, this is particularly harmful to cooling towers and boilers. In a home, hard water forms limescale in surfaces that tend to contact heated water, such as bathtubs, shower heads, and water heaters. Certain water conditioner systems can reduce the harmful effects of hard water.
Salt
Salt is one of the most common ways to condition hard water. These systems work by exchanging calcium and magnesium ions for sodium ions. Municipal water passed through a resin tank that contains beads charged with sodium ions. The tank swaps the sodium for the magnesium, thus softening the water. That is why any tap water which is softened in this manner will have a higher-than-normal sodium content. Anyone on a very low sodium diet should be concerned about adding extra sodium to something as basic as the drinking water. Every time you drink from the tap or cook with water, you will be adding even more salt to your diet.
Also, these tanks need to be “recharged.” After a certain amount of time, the resin beads in these water conditioner systems will contain only magnesium and calcium ions. You will have to lift heavy bags of salt and pour them into a brine tank. There are many different kinds of salt, and some of them can be quite expensive.
Alternative
It makes little sense to replace the dangers of hard water with the expense and danger of added salt. A system that utilizes various frequencies can soften water without adding salt. These systems operate not by removing the calcium ions, but instead, use oscillating frequencies that restructure the calcium. This reshaped calcium is no longer adhesive. Since it is not adhesive, it will not build up on the water heater, shower head, and the kettle. Also, you can still reap those health benefits mentioned before.
Adding salt to water might be effective to soften it, but at what cost? An alternative technique can provide you with all the benefits of soft water plus the benefits of increased mineral content.
