water Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Apple Valley Plumbing Company

The Importance of Soft Water

Hard water typically tastes unpleasant, leaves skin red and itchy after showers, can stain porcelain, and even affect your bathroom plumbing. If you find yourself experiencing some of these hard water symptoms, consider the advantages of installing a water softener in your home.

Hard water contains Calcium and Magnesium, and trace amounts of other minerals. While hard water is technically safe to drink, as mentioned above, many undesirable results come from drinking and bathing in hard water. Hard water can be present in well water and even city water, so the only way to guarantee soft water is to install a water softener in your home.

This article will review the differences between hard and soft water and go over how water softeners work. Read on to learn from the experts why your home would benefit from installing a water softener.

How to Detect Hard Water

There are several signs to look out for to help determine if your home has hard water or not. If you notice any of these occurrences in your home, you most likely have hard water:

White, Chalky Residue on Your Dishes

Rough Clothes and Linens After Washing

Stains on White Porcelain

Dry and Irritated Skin After Showering

Low Water Pressure (Due to Clogged Pipes)

85% of Americans have hard water, particularly in the Northern part of the country. This is why water softener services are so important.

The Importance of Water Softener Salt

Water softeners work by passing hard water through sodium resin beads that work to soften the water through a process known as “ion exchange.” During this process, positively charged ions like Calcium and Magnesium stick to the beads, while negatively charged sodium ions take their place. While this process does increase the sodium levels in your water supply, the levels have been tested and are known to be safe for human consumption.

Water softener salt is necessary to periodically “recharge” the beads. If you choose to install a water softener in your home, you will need to be aware of water softener salt so you can keep your system working efficiently. Water softener salt is available at any home improvement store such as Home Depot or Lowes.

The Hidden Cost of Hard Water

While you may not mind the taste of hard water, you should consider the added cost of hard water damaging your plumbing system. The minerals present in hard water tend to clog pipes.

These clogged pipes can then cause significant issues in your plumbing system, leading to low water pressure and the failure of certain appliances such as your dishwasher.

Your water heater also has to work harder to heat hard water as “scale buildup” from Calcium and Magnesium impairs efficiency and leads to increased energy bills.

The cost of a water softener installation in your home is low compared to the energy savings you will experience down the road. If you and your family are experiencing the adverse effects of hard water, call a plumber today to learn about installing a water softener in your home.

Call the Experts

Apple Valley Plumbing Company prides itself on the personalized attention paid to every job and every client. They are committed to honesty, transparency, and serving the community with quality workmanship and a wide range of services. Call them today to learn more about your water quality solutions.

Why You Need a Water Filter

The world is focused on a few things right now and sickness prevention is one of them. In light of the virus that has spread around the world, it’s important to know how to keep you and your family safe and healthy.

When it comes to water, there are several ways to ensure your water is as clean as possible. It’s important to learn the differences between water filtration options so that you have clean water that is free of illness-causing microorganisms and viruses.

Why Ultrafiltration Is Great

When looking for water filtration systems, you will probably come across two terms: microfiltration and ultrafiltration. Here’s what you need to know. Microfiltration has pores the size of .1 micron, meaning it will keep out numerous microorganisms but not viruses.

Ultrafiltration, however, has prores the size of .01 micron, meaning it will remove microorganisms and can also remove some viruses from your drinking water. What can ultrafiltration filter out of the water in your home?

It can remove common viruses such as Enteric, Hepatitis A, Norovirus, and Rotavirus. Any of these can cause significant illnesses to people living in your home. To remove them and use the water in your home with peace of mind, an ultrafiltration system is what you need.

Understanding the Distillation Process

Distillation is another method for purifying water. This process is highly effective when it comes to removing bacteria from your water. What can distillation remove? Bacteria such as Campylobacter, Salmonella, Shigella, and E. coli.

Needless to say, removing these harmful bacteria from your water is crucial for the health of you and your family. Any of these bacteria can cause extreme illness and can even lead to death if not treated early enough.

To remove these common bacteria from your water and use your household water knowing your family is safe, a distillation process for purification might be the best for you.

UV Water Treatments Offer Modern Solutions

For a final water treatment option, consider UV water treatments. UV stands for ultraviolet and is the most effective method for disinfecting bacteria from water. Keep in mind that this is for bacteria, not viruses.

How does it work? Ultraviolet rays penetrate the illness-causing bacteria in your home’s water. When it does, the UV light eliminates the bacteria’s ability to reproduce. This is a simple process, incredibly effective, and environmentally safe. It destroys up to 99.99% of harmful bacteria and microorganisms without adding chemicals or changing the way your water tastes.

UV systems are often used with reverse osmosis systems to get the water in your home as clean and pure as possible. With UV filtration, you won’t need any chemicals like chlorine. Your water will taste pure and clean. Your water will also be odor-free.

Another benefit to UV water treatments is that it requires very little energy to run the system. These systems typically require as much energy as a 60 watt light bulb. Finally, UV systems are very low maintenance. Once you set it up, you leave it and only need to annually change the UV bulb to ensure it stays working at peak performance.

Award-Winning Plumbing Professionals

Apple Valley Plumbing Company proudly serves Apple Valley, MN for all their plumbing needs. They offer all of their customers same-day plumbing services, upfront pricing, quality customer service, free estimates, and a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Tag: water

Everything You Need to Know About Water Softeners