The chlorine taste and odor is not from too much Cl2 but not enough. Cl2 is very expensive so I doubt your water ulitity is wasting it. If you don't use a lot of water the water gets stale and can have that bleach like taste.

The most likely culprit is the plumbing in your kitchen. The plastic in the lines the refridgerators and ice makers use will leach chemical tastes into water if it sits too long. The filter on these should be changed frequently also.

For drinking water, I run tap water for a few minutes in the sink to allow for a fresh batch then fill a glass pitcher and keep in the refridgertor. Dump and refill every few days.

If your water is overly hard it will not make good soap suds. If it's too soft the soap will be slick feeling.

Since you have city water, you can skip the arsenic and copper tests (unless your waster pH is very low coming from the city). You are entitled to a copy of the city water report - some even post them online - which will give you a great deal of information about your water. You can also leave off sodium, but add sulfates and total alkalinity.

Once you have water analysis, in order to properly size a softener, you will need to provide the following information:

1. # of people in your home (or average and peak water usage if you know it)

2. Any high water-use fixtures, such as a jetted tub or multi-head shower?

As to water taste - it is subjective. Gather 100 people in a room and have them all taste the same water and you will get 100 differing opinions. For that reason, unfortunately, filtration for taste is either guess and check or just filter everything even though it may not be necessary.

The filtration unit you have chosen will likely give you what you want, but be aware that since it is a proprietary unit with proprietary filters cartridges, you will spend a lot more maintaining it. The unit itself is pricey, plus cartridge replacement will cost over $200 annually.

Thanks for the info! So I'll get the report from local water authority and leave off arsenic, copper and sodium, but add sulfates and total alkalinity.

We're really just trying to get great tasting water without dealing with the water cooler, plus not having crappy tasting ice cubes. Do you have any suggestions for a decent filtration system? aliceinwonderland_id, I kind of assumed you worked for (or own) a company that deals with water softeners and filtration. I've leaned away from the RO systems because of the amount of water thrown away. I probably don't need that level of filtration.

Last time I ran the test from our jetted tub I got 17gpm. There is just my wife and I. We also don't have a pressure regulator on our incoming water line, so we get 80psi.

I do not work for or own a water treatment company. I am a retired chemical engineer - my focus during my working years was as the one specifying water treatment equipment for industrial facilities.

While I am happy to evaluate any equipment you are considering, I try to avoid recommending specific brands - I wish to maintain neutrality and avoid even the appearance of working for any supplier.

Perhaps I could word it differently, are there any filtration systems with cartridges that are not proprietary?

The report you want to ask for is called a Consumer Confidence Report (CCR).

The report could also be title the "Water Quality Report," "Drinking Water Report," or "Chemical Analysis Report." If you ask for the water report you'll get the info you need.

Non-proprietary filter: I've posted a link below so I can avoid typing the same thing twice - just scroll to my last post.

Here is a link that might be useful: Non-proprietary filters.

Thanks for the info. I dropped off the water test and I'll post the I do when it comes back. In the mean time, I'll look for filtration systems without proprietary cartridges.

Just try to define what you need and don't get anything fancy that does everything in the world. These are usually very expensive and not needed.

Alice, is it possible to email you outside of gardenweb?

If you click on my name you can find a link to send me an email. Provided you have your account set to allow your email address to be seen, I will be able to respond.