How Florida Water Softeners Solve the Hard Water Problem.

Posted by Bryan on December 18, 2009

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For many residents of Florida, water softeners are a way of life. The hard water problem in Florida covers most of the state. There are water softeners installed in thousands of homes but a lot of those homeowners don’t really understand how they work or even what they really do. The following short article explains the basics.

First…remember that in many parts of the country, especially Florida, water softener demand is caused by dissolved minerals in the water. This creates what is known as hard water. A water softener removes these dissolved minerals making the water “soft”. So, how does a water softener do this?

Water softeners work because the dissolved minerals in the water are present as positively charged ions. As water passes through the water softener, it goes through a resin tank. The resin tank is filled with special negatively charged resin beads. The positive mineral ions are attracted to the negative resin beads. The minerals “stick to” the resin beads.

When the mineral ions are drawn to the resin beads, they knock off sodium ions, which have less of a positive charge. This process is called “ion exchange”. Billions of ions are exchanged while the water is being softened. Eventually the resin beads get full, or “exhausted”, and will hold no more mineral ions. When this happens, the water softener can’t do it’s job. It needs to be regenerated before it can start softening again.

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Regeneration is accomplished by reversing the water flow through the resin tank, while adding a salt solution or brine. The brine basically knocks all the hardness ions off the resin beads, replacing them with sodium. This brine solution, containing all the hardness ions, is rinsed down the drain. When the regeneration is finished the direction of water flow is revered again back to normal. Now the water softener is ready to start solving the hard water problem again.

The key to this whole process is the controller, or “head”. This is the part of the water softener that controls the regeneration process, especially when it regenerates. This is the most important part of the system. If the water softener doesn’t regenerate when the resin beads are exhausted, hard water will be allowed into your home. On the other hand, if it regenerates when it doesn’t need to, you will waste water and salt.

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In Florida, water softener dealers offer mostly two basic types of controllers- “timer” models and “demand” models. Timer models regenerate based on a pre-set schedule. Demand models measure the amount of water that flows through the water softener and regenerate based on usage. In general, demand models are potentially more efficient. The very best of these even “learn” your family’s water usage patterns and adjust the regeneration schedule accordingly.

With the hard water problem in Florida, water softener consumers are choosing mostly demand type water softeners. This helps ensure that they will always have soft water with as little maintenance as possible.

Florida Water Softeners vary widely in cost and efficiency. For your best value on a professionally installed, super-efficient water softener, call Northwest Plumbing. We have been serving homeowners just like you for over 50 years.