I have water softener system...a big one as we have lots of iron in our water. Ended up being much happier after a berm filter was put in and we still have to add potassium every so often. (Mind you I know nothing of what these things are, just that they are.)

Sorry can't help you with a comparison though as I'm unfamiliar with water conditioner systems.

Water treatment business is a little bit tricky, and confusing. We just spent many hours researching what we needed in the new house. First couple of solutions offered to use were, 'put in a whole house water conditioning system'. We didnt need that and we do not have space for that in our utility room so when I explained that they left. That was all they wanted to sell, I assume that is where they make money. My water 'problem' was ferrous iron, not hardness and that is all I wanted removed. Eventually I found a water specialized who sold me what I wanted and it is now running smoothly.

What is wrong with your water that you want to treat and why does your DH want a salt-less conditioner as opposed to a softener?

Conditioner is optimal in some situations. They are smaller, they dont backwash, so they dont need a drain. You dont need to keep adding salt. Conditioner will make your water feel soft, and will reduce damage from hard water to appliances. Disadvantage is that when water sits, it loses the conditioning, so if it is sitting in your hot water heater for a long time it will become hard again. Water heater tank can still get scale damage. If this is a vacation home where you will be away for long periods and water will sit, softener could be better. If you have a toilet on the other side of the house water in bowl and tank will be hard after a while.

That said if you dont have a space for a traditional backwashing softener a conditioner is good.

We have something at our lake cabin (on a well) that someone comes by and adds salt to. We do not drink the water there, but do use it for bathing, washing dishes, etc.

What I know is that I like the water at our primary home (city water, no system) much better. At the lake, it’s hard to rinse the soap off while showering.

Long discussion here:

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5937025/recommendation-on-whole-house-water-softener

This is odd. Received Notification on my email that 3katz4me had posted This:

” 3katz4me said:We who are regulars here don’t mind discussing this topic in this forum with one of our fellow regulars - no need to search elsewhere. The topic may h... ”

I wanted to read the rest and sincerely thank her, but it’s not here??? Was it ever, or was it deleted?

I also posted on plumbing and found Jake the Wonderdog, who seems to know his stuff.

Thanks everyone for your help!

Martinca - I sent you a message

😊 3katz

So martinca - what did you decide to do?

Hi, @martinca_gw sunset zone 24,

A "water conditioner" is anything. It can do anything or nothing at all.

If you want to soften the water, you must use a water softener.

What is it that you are trying to do? What is in your water that you object to? What is the problem you are trying to solve?

Two issues: (but first, thanks so very much for your help) My husband‘s concern is with the corrosion on shower heads and a few other faucets. We are in So. Ca. which has hard Water, though not horribly so. I’ve wished for softer water for laundry, dishwasher, skin and hair. We‘ve not gotten it because he dislikes the feeling of taking forever to get all the soap off. Oh, and ,....is the the slippery feel that, or simply the soft water? Uh oh, here’s a third issue: surely it only goes into hot water, correct? I’m not keen on drinking softened water.

Sorry... That was too long, but I would appreciate your knowledge on this.

To localeater, this is for our main/ only residence, so by your description a ‘conditioner” would be best for us ....whatever a conditioner actually is?

To solve the problem you are describing (hard water, including scaling) for the whole house requires a water softener.

A water softener works by removing calcium and magnesium ions from the water and replacing them with sodium ions. There isn't a "water conditioner" that will do this.

Something you should know: Many of the issues that you mention (slippery feeling, taste, etc), I believe, have more to do with much older systems. I remember those issues from 50 years ago when a neighbor had soft water. I don't see them at all with new systems. Even so, it's still common to plumb the cold water in the kitchen so it doesn't go through the softener OR to have a separate drinking water faucet in the kitchen.

Hardness is something that is measurable (typically in grains of hardness per gallon). You can buy a simple test kit that will accurately tell you how hard your water is (Hach Total Hardness Test Kit 145300). It's really helpful to know - with a number - what the scope of the problem is.

You can also use the test kit to prove that the softer is working as intended after it's installed. You can measure the results of a water softener. You can't measure the results of a water "conditioner".

My water (municipal water) is 21 grains per gallon hardness. Typically 15+ grains per gallon is considered "extremely hard water". With a water softener my water is now less than 1 grain per gallon. It's a huge difference with laundry, dishes, skin etc. It's also amazing how much cleaner the shower, sinks, toilets, etc are. (I'm a guy, I need all the help I can get keeping the place clean).

Hard water, in addition to leaving hard water deposits, also mixes with soap to leave a nasty film on things. Hard water deposits on normally smooth surfaces (such as tile, toilet bowls, tubs, sinks, faucets, shower doors, dishes) cause those surfaces to be rough and retain dirt that otherwise would have rinsed away.

Heat will cause hardness in water to precipitate. That's why you get lime deposits in tea kettles, coffee makers, etc. That's also why hard water will cause problems with a water heater. I've seen water heaters (both gas and electric) that have inches of lime built up and ruined the heater.

None of these problems are solved by a water "conditioner".

Typically all of the water in the house is softened except for outside hose connections and the cold in the kitchen. If you only treat the hot water then you miss many of the benefits. Most newer homes are often plumbed with a "softener loop" that is set up so that a softener may be installed and the above mentioned faucets are excluded. If you have an older home, it may require some additional plumbing.

The "slippery" feel of soft water is actually the result of your body's natural oils replenishing themselves. Hard water can often suppress your oil production by clogging pores with un-rinsed soaps and such. Softened water allows you to fully rinse off the soap when you are bathing/showering. It takes a bit of getting used to, but in the end your skin, hair, laundry, dishes, etc, are all rinsed cleaner by way of scale removal.

If a softener is plumbed on the main line, then it is present in both the hot and cold water. Your hot water heater, washer, and dishwasher all benefit from the scale removal properties of a softener. As far as drinking it goes, it's only marginally better than the raw water, I would consider an undersink drinking water filter/system of some sort. And again, the soap is rinsing off better, your body is just producing natural oils again which make the water feel "slippery".

Where we are it’s not uncommon to have the softener bypass the kitchen cold water - for drinking purposes I guess. Our last house softened all the water which had to be done because of the iron. Our current house bypasses kitchen cold. Our lake cabin softens all. I prefer to have it all softened and avoid all the mineral deposits around the sink. We use the softened water for drinking - coffee, etc. - and have for years. It tastes great though I’m not much of a plain water drinker. I prefer something carbonated.

Thank you so much, everyone. I have learned a lot! Jake, you seem very knowledgeable. I have forwarded all your info to my DH. So nice of you to take the time!

I haven't used a water conditioner system, but it can provide similar benefits to a water softener system for skin, hair, and laundry. Both systems can reduce hard water minerals, but only the conditioner uses salt and electricity.