April 2014 - Watertech

Monthly Archives: April 2014

Is Soft Water Safe to Drink?

April 30, 2014 Bryce Linton, CWS I

Occasionally the question comes up, “Is it OK to drink softened water?” and “How much salt does a softener add to my water?”

Let us tackle this question head on: It is true –salt is involved in the water softening process. Through an ion exchange process, water softening systems replace calcium and magnesium ions with sodium ions.

What most people do not realize, is how little sodium is in softened water.

The amount of sodium in your drinking water from a water softener system can vary depending on the hardness of your water, but you are certainly not drinking “salt water”. In fact, on average, less than three percent of your daily sodium intake comes from drinking softened water.

So while some may worry that drinking softened water will increase their salt intake, in reality nearly all sodium in our diets comes from the food we eat. Did you know that eight glasses of softened water contains about as much sodium as would be found in a typical piece of white bread?
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Water Softening

Keep Produce Fresh Longer with Filtered Water & Vinegar

April 22, 2014 Colette McCullough

Can filtered water and a little vinegar really keep produce fresher, longer?

Summer will soon be here and I’m looking forward to fresh berries from my local farmer’s market. Early last summer, I came home with 10 pounds of strawberries with grandiose plans to make fresh strawberry jam. When I finally started my jam project (only 36 hours later), I was sick to find that many of the berries were already covered with a fuzzy mold.

A great tip that really works!

I’ve since learned a great tip for keeping fresh produce longer–and it really works! Each time I come home from the market with fresh fruits and vegetables, I rinse the produce in a vinegar and filtered water solution.

This idea seemed counterintutive at first, because in the past, once I had rinsed fruit in water, the fruit seemed to go bad more quickly.

I learned that the water and vinegar solution has the opposite effect and the fruit actually lasts longer because the acid in the vinegar kills mold spores and bacteria on the food. With the bacteria eliminated, produce does not decompose as quickly.

Why Not Buy a Water Softener from a Big Box Home Improvement Store?

April 14, 2014 Bryce Linton, CWS I

It’s true. The Big Box home improvement stores sell water softeners for a fantastic price. We get it.

So why would anyone choose to purchase a water softener from a local independent water treatment professional and pay more money?

Let us give you FIVE reasons why you’ll come out ahead when you choose to call a professional:

Quality: How do big box stores get the price so low? By using lower-quality components and parts, they can get the price of the softening equipment down quite low. At WaterTech, we use only high-quality components, state-of-the art valve, and premium water softening resins. We’ve seen a lot of companies in the water business come and go over the years. But our dedication to only produce top-quality equipment has kept us in business. Thousands of happy customers have partnered with us to buy a water softener. WaterTech products also carry the Water Quality Association Gold Seal to show our components and/or systems have been Third-Party Tested for quality and performance.

Product Resources

What type of salt should I use in my water softener

April 8, 2014 Isaac Linton, CWS I

As a water softener owner, you can see the salt in your brine tank is running low and it’s time to pick up some more. Like many people, you may be baffled by all of the water softener salt choices you see at the store: crystals, block, table, rock, and pellets. What is better: solar or evaporated salt pellets? What about salt pellets vs. potassium chloride pellets? What should you buy? What is best?

First of all, only salt or potassium chloride specifically designed for water softeners should be used. Do not use dicing or table salt.

Softener Salt vs. Softener Potassium Chloride

How Hard Is My Water?

April 3, 2014 Bryce Linton, CWS I

So how hard is the water in my home?

Did you know that hard water affects more than 85% of homes in the United States? Odds are your family’s home is affected by hard water. With the varying levels of hardness, how do you know if your part of the country or your state–all the way down to your local municipal water source is being affected?

Learn more about the causes of Hard Water in our Hard Water Guide

Water Softening