How to Choose Your Water Softener

A water softener is a device designed to reduce or eliminate water hardness. Composed mainly of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) and magnesium carbonate, limescale is responsible for white deposits on faucets or shower doors. Water described as hard contains a lot of limescale, unlike soft water, which contains little. Water hardness is measured in French degrees (°f). Water is hard when its hardness level (TH) is above 15°f. Conversely, water with a hardness level below 15°f is softened water.

Some regions are more exposed to limescale than others. For example, Nord-Pas-de-Calais and the Paris Basin are regions where water hardness is generally high (bedrock rich in limestone). By contrast, in Bretagne or Auvergne, the water is naturally soft because of the type of bedrock ( volcanic rock or granite).

There are several technologies or types of water softeners. Some chemically remove limescale from water, while others simply change the chemical structure of limescale. Each technology has its advantages and disadvantages.

At josmose, we have developed a tool to enable you to determine which model is right for you! :

 TAKE THE TEST

The CO2 water softener

CO2 water softeners are a new generation of devices. They make it possible to transform limescale, rather than remove it, to eliminate its harmful effects.

They offer many advantages:

• Convenience: No salt bags, no maintenance

• Health: Keep your water drinkable and tasteless (no added salt)

• Eco-friendly: No pollution or wasted water

• Economical: Only 5€ of Co2 per year per person

• Easy installation: in 1 to 2h

• No regeneration cycle: no service interruption

• No discharge: no waste
  
  

By injecting food-grade CO2 into the water, limescale is dissolved in the water and is therefore carried away with the water flow. Chemically speaking,  calcium carbonate (limescale) is transformed into calcium bicarbonate following CO2 injection.<
Here is the formula: CaCO3 + CO2 + H2O = Ca (HCO3)2

Why is this useful?

Because calcium bicarbonate has two advantages: - it is soluble: it therefore dissolves in water and is carried away with the water flow - it does not form scale: it can no longer cling to heating elements or pipes, even in hot water…

The result: water that feels soft ( hardness is unaffected) but no more limescale deposits on your skin, pipes, or appliances! And its undeniable advantage is that it does not release salt into the water. Salt is harmful to wildlife and plants at high concentrations.

learn more about the Solucalc salt-free water softener

The magnetic water softener

The magnetic water softener is a hard water treatment system that uses neither salt nor chemicals.

This system does not alter the chemical composition of water but changes the physical characteristics of limescale crystals so they lose their ability to cling to surfaces.

Hardness tests and conductivity tests are unnecessary because the results remain the same before and after treatment with the DesCal+.

In untreated water, calcium and magnesium crystals form and have a strong ability to adhere, creating stubborn, unsightly deposits. The DesCal+ naturally changes the crystallization of limescale. The device emits a dynamic electronic pulse that is transmitted to the water. After treatment with the DesCal+, calcium and magnesium crystals are grouped together into rods. In this form, the crystals can no longer create deposits.

When treated water leaves the pipe network, it still carries suspended limescale with it. However, the fine aragonite powder does not cling to surfaces and can therefore be easily wiped away with a cloth. There is no longer any need to use harsh cleaning products.

Resin water softener

Scale buildup reduces the efficiency of a water heater, kettle, or any other appliance that heats water, such as a washing machine or dishwasher.

Over the medium term, this can lead to appliance failure due to premature wear. It also causes excessive energy consumption right from the start, since hard water takes 30% longer to heat. Add to this the fact that a water heater supplied with hard water gradually fills with a layer of limescale that significantly reduces the amount of water available to heat, and your electricity bill soars!

The salt-free hardness reducer:

- Protects your appliances from limescale deposits
- Saves you up to 30% on electricity consumption, thanks to cleaner appliances
- Increases the efficiency and lifespan of any appliance that heats water (kettle, coffee maker…)

THE ADVANTAGES OF THIS DEVICE 

- It can filter up to 20,000 L of water before the filter needs replacing
- It contains no (poly)phosphates
- It protects you from limescale

The resin in this filter releases a specific volume of a substance sufficient to prevent scale buildup. These filters do not soften water, but they reduce water hardness to protect your household appliances through 3 mechanisms:

- It stops the growth of limescale crystals
- It breaks sediment crystals down into smaller parts.
- It prevents crystals from sticking to each other

Salt-based water softeners

A water softener works by exchanging calcium and magnesium ions for sodium ions. This process uses a special resin that must be regenerated regularly to maintain your system's softening capacity.

The more resin there is, the less often it needs to be regenerated, because it can soften a larger volume of water. It is therefore very important to choose the right resin volume for your water softener. Here are the criteria directly linked to this choice:

• Your water softener's production flow rate. The more resin it contains, the faster it can soften your hard water.

• Your water hardness. The harder your incoming water, the larger the volume of resin you need to soften it quickly.

• Resin regeneration frequency. The larger your water softener's resin volume, the longer the intervals between regenerations.

• The price of the water softener: It goes without saying that the more resin a water softener contains, the more it costs. Our goal is to enable you to optimize both your water softening and your budget!
  
  

Salt-based water softeners therefore use resin and salt to operate.
Let's review the first 3 parameters in detail together.

The water softener's flow rate

Depending on the size of your home and your daily water consumption, you need to choose the right water softener to make sure you do not experience a loss of pressure at certain times. For example, a shower has an average flow rate of 12 liters of water per minute. Given that, on average, 60% of this water is cold and therefore comes directly from the water softener (the hot water comes from the tank and has therefore already been softened), you need a flow rate of at least 500 liters per hour. This is why our smallest water softener model provides this flow rate.

If you have more than one bathroom and/or several household appliances such as a dishwasher and washing machine, we recommend choosing a larger water softener. To keep it simple, allow for a required flow rate of at least 500 liters per bathroom.

The water softener's hardness

Before considering the purchase of a water softener, you need to make sure you really need one. We therefore encourage you to check online or with your town hall to find out the hardness of your water supply. You can also measure it using test strips or a special liquid that you can easily find at a hardware store. Below a TH of 15F, a water softener is unnecessary because your water's potential for scale buildup is not significant.

If you live in a region where the water is particularly hard (TH > 35F), your water softener will need to work harder to remove limescale. The resin will exchange far more calcium and magnesium ions for sodium ions, so it will need to regenerate much more often. This brings us to the last parameter, which is the most important.

A water softener's regeneration frequency

First, we would like to remind you of the major advantage of OJA water softeners over other products on the market: our water softeners are metered! This means the resin does not regenerate blindly on a fixed schedule, but after a fixed volume. Let's take a concrete example... With a water softener using a timer, you regenerate your resin every week, even if you are away (unnecessary) or have friends staying over (not enough). With an OJA water softener using a volume meter, you regenerate the resin every 3,000 liters (for example). The intelligence of the system lies in the fact that the resin is always regenerated at the right time.

The volume between each resin regeneration is the most important parameter to set on your water softener. It is calculated using the following formula: resin volume x 6,000 / TH. For example, if you choose a water softener containing 14 liters of resin and your water hardness is 30F, you set the volume between regenerations to 2,800 liters (or 2.8 m3). Thus, every 2,800 liters of water consumed, your water softener regenerates its resin. To keep this regeneration from occurring at any time of day and interfering with your activities, we have added another adjustable parameter: the regeneration time. By default, this time is set to 2 a.m., but you can change it to suit your needs.

Make sure you understand your water consumption so you can choose a water softener suited to your needs. For example, if your castle consumes 8,000 liters per day, your 14-liter water softener will be effective for less than half the day. You would therefore be better off choosing a water softener with 40 liters of resin.

If you still have doubts about choosing your water softener, contact us and we will be happy to guide you.