Water Softener or Con?

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AlGriefer

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 24, 2005
Posts
300
Location
Las Vegas, NV (when not traveling)
In the, "If it's too good to be true, it probably is" department....

At the FMCA show last week, a vendor was selling what looked to be a small fishing tackle box  with hose fittings and a power supply cord sticking out of it.  It was advertised as a water softener that required no salt and seperated out the calcium and magnesium by ionic action! Its main purpose was to keep scale from forming on faucets, etc.

I asked the vendor what a hardness test strip measured and he said it wouldn't work with this box since the ions were still in the water.  He also mentioned that in about 14 days, the ions would combine again.

Is there any possibility this might actually work?  Inquiring minds want to know... :)

Al
 
Al,

Most water softeners use a specific formulation of resin to exchange sodium ions for the calcium ions in 'hard' water, so ionic exchange is nothing new. The resin does have to be regenerated, usually with salt, when it no longer contains enough sodium exchange ions. There are other ways of removing the calciums ions such as sequestering agents, but it's very unlikely that that is what's being sold. If it is, you must flush and replenish the sequestering agent. Did the box have 3 external hose/pipe connections? If so, most likely what was inside the box was an R.O. filter and a pump. R.O's will remove calcium ions, but are not as efficiently as regular water softeners. Also, you really should have a sediment filter preceeding it to prevent clogging and/or damage to the membrane, and possibly a carbon filter to remove odors and chlorine. Chlorine can permanently damage a thin film membrane.

I would be very sceptical of such a unit. 
 
Karl said:
Al,

[...]

I would be very sceptical of such a unit.?

Sceptical is an understatement.  There was only an inlet and an outlet plus the vendor stated that there needed to be no backflushing or chemicals added.  I was fairly certain that this was baloney, but thought I'd check.

Al
 
This device originally started life about 50 years ago as the "EVIS WATER CONDITIONER". It plain doesn't do a thing. About every 5 years it reapears in a new package with a new name and each time the claims seem to get a little better--ie--wilder.

Save your money, or buy  one of the "REAL" small package ion exchange softeners. Ion exchange or RO are still the most piratical ways to get soft water in your RV while traveling. We carry a water softener and use it everytime we fill our tank, or when hooked up to campground supplies. Once you get used to sof****er, it's hard<<GGG>> to be without it.

Chet18013
 
I saw another option at the Brooksville Rally, hover this one I also see at Camping World.  It is a regular water softener system, but in a smaller size.  Under $500 I think. 

 
Thanks!  That's sorta what I thought, but hope springs eternal.

I have one of the small water softeners (Travelsoft RV1200) from CW, but its downside is that it has to be recharged fairly often, especially if you have a washer.  This is a pit of a pain.

Al
 

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