Here is the site of the system that you presently have. http://www.lifesourcewater.com/about-lifesource/ For a point of reference, you used the words 'purifier' and 'purfied'. Let's take a look at that: "PURE" used in water treatment is a marketing tool not a technical description. It is used to catch the eyes and ears of the consumer to incite purchase and a false sense of accomplishment. Pure H20 is practically impossible, even in laboratory conditions, to exist on this planet. If it is ever acheived, it will last that way but for the briefest moment only. Don't be misled by marketing tools. Secondly you made the statement:...it is not an RO but rather a water purifier." Well, an RO can far better 'purify' the water than the Lifesource ever can. Hands down, no comparison. The membrane technology removes dissolved solids to slightly larger than the molecule of H20. This is an incredible, albeit, common water treatment. Your statement that you are seeing stains, calcium build up and other evendence of water damage, is testimony that the Lifesource, is no way making your water 'pure'. Would adding a softener to the already installed Lifesource work? Well, that depends. Are you on city or well water? The Lifesource will act as a prefilter to the softener and can be recommended for city water applications but on most well water sources, it may be unnecessary. I would seriously considering learning more about ROs and other factors in water treatment. Just go ahead and ask and someone will get bak with you. Please excuse my wanting to make purifyingly clear a few terms as this is cause for many disappointed consumers. Andy Christensen, CWS-II

When I lived there a green sand filter was standard with all new houses and well water. The water was green and smelled of sulfur. So what they called a green sand filter was just a tank filled with a chemical called potassium permanganate. Permanganate coates over the green sand every time it backwashes. It filtered particulates, sulfur and Iron out of the water and made it clear and less smelly. There are 2 types one for Sulfur approx $550 and one if you don't need sulfur removal $400 It did nothing for the softness of the water. And the water WAS hard. I had it tested by 2 companies before I got wise and purchased my own testing kit. $20 The iron in the water clogs up the softener so we used Iron out which is a treatment system that hangs on the outside and when added to the brine mix dissolves the iron in the chamber. You could get a whole house RO for $4k or so or you could just get a small one for drinking $150. or Buy a 2 stage whole house filter with a charcoal filter for taste and smell and a particulate filter from HD or Wall-mart for approx $50 and a water softer from HD or Sears for $450 and DIY. for under $500. I am almost finished my kitchen remodel and here we have city water and even though its not very hard is is WAY better with a softer. I also installed a charcoal filter because coffee tasted terrible made with unfiltered water. Especially on the days they chlorinate the water. You can also use those faucet mounted filters which contain a charcoal filter for drinking, and ice. I also have a RO system but I don't think I will use it unless, the water gets worse. This just scratches the surface in filtration systems. You can add many different types of filters depending on whats in your water. However as said RO gets 99% of everything. http://www.qualitywatertreatment.com/iron_filters.htm http://home.howstuffworks.com/question99.htm http://www.ampac1.com/?gclid=CI-jj67kjZQCFQgWiQodwHo4XA just 1 of hundreds.

1. Salt-free water "softeners" do not soften water. They are pretty good at separating folks from their money, but that is all. That Clack system is too small. If you were only using the place for a few weeks total it would probably be fine, but since you are there half the year, you want one twice that size - 2 cubic ft or resin. Kinetico is different for a whole bunch of reasons, so the units will be smaller, if space is a premium. For a place that sits idle, they are a nice option. However, they will be way more expensive. An RO will remove the GenX toxin. Without knowing the specific chemistry of the chemical, it is difficult to say exactly what percentage will be removed. However, given its origin, removal efficiency should be quite high. There are certain things to look for when purchasing a softener (these don't apply to Kinetico): High quality American or German made resin. This will provide a tight size distribution for optimal flow within the resin, longer resin life, and more reliable, predicable water softening. If you have WELL WATER: 8% crosslinked resin. If you have CITY WATER: 10% crosslinked resin. The oxidizers that city water treatment plants use, such as chlorine or chloramine, are harmful to softener resins. Higher crosslinking will resist chemical attack longer. 3. Top basket (nice to have for well water, required for city water). This serves two purposes. It sets up a proper water distribution during normal operation and prevents resin loss during backwash. Gravel underbed. The gravel underbed is there to set up proper flow patterns, improve backwash, keep the bottom basket in place, prevent basket failure, and prevent channeling. Many softener sales companies like to leave this out or sell softeners with a vortex system instead. Vortex systems weigh less than gravel so they cost less to ship. In addition, they are a more expensive item that adds profit for the softener salesperson, but provides no additional benefit to the homeowner . It simply adds another piece of equipment that can break. Fleck or Clack valves. These set the industry standard. Be aware that you will not be able to purchase Clack valves online. This is not a problem if you purchase locally. The valve should regen based on water usage, not time. Install the softener with a three-valve bypass. This will make it much easier if you ever need to remove the softener for repairs or wish to take it with you when you move. Use full-port, quarter-turn valves. Noryl bypass. Most softeners are available with either Noryl or stainless bypass valves. Both are good valves, but the noryl tends to be more reliable when not used for long periods of time. This is a redundancy if you install with a proper three-valve bypass. I prefer a bit of redundancy but it is your call. Brine tank: Although either round or square will work, round brine tanks are more structurally sound and will not deform like a square tank will. Additionally, if you need a softener 1.5 cuft or larger, a square tank will most likely be too small. If you live in a cold climate, ensure equipment is stored in a climate-controlled environment. Frozen softener resin is damaged softener resin. Purchase a Hach 5-B test kit. You will want to periodically check to ensure your softener is working correctly and this kit is your best option. Additionally, you should purchase a Hach 5-B test kit. You will want to periodically check to ensure your softener is working correctly and this kit is your best option.

There are only two things that the OP said that are pertinent: 1.Hard water which 2.smells like chlorine. Those are typically treated with two different systems: 1. The ONLY practical way to treat residential hard water is with a water softener. You COULD do RO or distilling for small quantities (drinking water, for example), but that's not something you can do on a whole house. Note filters, "conditioning", "Descalers", electromagnets, etc. will not remove the hardness. There is no "salt free" water softener. A simple water softener will do exactly what you need and you can measure its effectiveness. No guessing. No BS. A good quality water softener is $700 + installation. You don't need a $2,000 water softener. It won't do a better job. 2. Chlorine is removed with a carbon filter. Carbon filtering is particularly cost effective when its limited to drinking water. Carbon filtering will also remove many taste/odor issues as well as generally cleaning up drinking water. Note: You need to know if your water is disinfected with Chlorine or Chloramine. Chloramine removal requires a different type of carbon filter. You can get a good quality carbon filter for your drinking water for $200-300. You will typically replace a carbon filter cartridge once a year. I think the whole " I'm sensitive to salt, and I don't want it in my drinking water " is learned from websites selling BS. Soft water has less salt than a slice of bread or a glass of milk. For the people who don't want to drink soft water, run an unsoftened drinking water line to the kitchen and put a carbon filter on it. Although I'm not going on about sodium in my drinking water, the cold water in my kitchen faucet is unsoftened and carbon filtered.