Water softeners ... what are your views?

[hjscho]

We have a water softener already rigged up in the house we have moved to. In the time we have been here we haven't used it, but we are not sure if it is worth using or not. Do you have one and what do you think of them? What do you have to do to maintain them?

We have one, and I just put salt in once a month. Ours is set for a family of 4 and regenerates every 3rd day. Cheap and easy to run, and you know when the salt has run out as the water changes and you notice the difference, especially with hair washing.

It will need a service before you use it again, as the 'o' rings dry out. Apart from that, nothing else to do.

Good for your dishwasher, washing machine and bathwater!

Babies can't drink the water btw, so if you have any under 2's you will need a separate source of water for them.

Can you taste the salt in the water when you drink it? Surely it isn't good for you.

We have one, it's a rented house and in the lease that we have to keep the salt topped up! Usually, there is at least one tap in the house (usually the kitchen) that is direct from the mains for drinking/cooking. If you are in a very hard water area it does help keep your skin/hair soft and saves appliances from furring up. But I do think that the water feels a bit slimy and I always feel as if I can't get the suds out of my hair when I wash it!

In some areas of the country they are being given to familes of cchcildren with excema, as it does make a huge difference if you live in a hard water area.

They last for ever too, ours is at least 15 years old and when it stopped refcently I thought about buying a new one, but man mended it and guaranteed it for 2 years.