How Can a Water Softener Impact Your Clothing? Insights from a Pentair Water Softening Company in Bloomingdale, Illinois
Here in the Bloomingdale area, hard water is extremely prominent. This essentially means that water in this area naturally contains high percentages of calcium and magnesium. This doesn’t make Bloomingdale water dangerous — however, it does come with a few undesirable effects.
One of these undesirable effects is the effect it has on clothing. Fortunately, installing a water softener can help you avoid issues. Are you interested in learning how? This Pentair water softening company in Bloomingdale, Illinois is going to discuss below.
What Effect Does Hard Water Have on Clothing?
As was noted above, hard water is water that contains excess amounts of calcium and magnesium. These two minerals are essentially microscopic rocks. Therefore, when they contact things consistently, they can have a harsh effect over time.
When hard water is used to wash clothing, calcium and magnesium particles work their way into the clothing’s fibers. Then, over time, they rip and tear at those fibers, causing them to become severed much quicker than they would otherwise. In essence, they cause clothing to deteriorate prematurely.
However, that’s not all they do. They also serve to stiffen up the clothing, causing it to become frail and rigid. This can make the clothing extremely uncomfortable to wear, and it might even result in chafing and itchiness. Unfortunately, even a few washes in hard water can make this effect irreversible.
Therefore, it’s best to wash your clothing in soft water. Soft water contains no excess minerals, and therefore, it won’t have the effects mentioned above. All you’ll have to do to make this a reality is have a system installed by your local Pentair water softening company in Bloomingdale, Illinois.
How the Water Softener Eradicates Hard Water
We’ve discussed the effect that hard water can have on clothing. We’ve also mentioned that soft water is better for clothing in the long run. Now, let’s discuss the machine that produces soft water: the water softener.
A water softener is a machine that removes calcium and magnesium particles from a given water supply. When water passes through it, it utilizes a process known as ‘ion exchange’ as a means of removing calcium and magnesium particles from said water.
How exactly does it facilitate this? The first key is the resin beads. The second is the softener salt. Resin beads sit within the water softener’s storage tank and serve as holders for sodium ions. Sodium ions come from the softener salt that is added to the water softener periodically.
When calcium and magnesium come passing through, the ion exchange process takes place, resulting in the sodium ions leaving the resin beads and the calcium and magnesium ions latching onto them.
By the time the water leaves the water softener, it’s completely free of calcium and magnesium and contains only trace amounts of sodium. The amount of sodium remaining has no noticeable effect on the water. In essence, the water is soft, and therefore has no negative effect on clothes.
Your responsibility, as the owner of the water softener, is to fill it with softener salt every month or two. This will replenish the sodium ions on the resin beads, ensuring that the ion exchange process can be carried out continually. Assuming you do this — as well as have your system serviced annually by your Pentair water softening company in Bloomingdale, Illinois — you’ll have nothing but soft and long-lasting clothes to enjoy.
Looking for a Pentair Water Softening Company in Bloomingdale, Illinois?
Are you interested in protecting your linens and clothing? Ready to have a water softener installed by the best Pentair water softening company in Bloomingdale, Illinois? If so, look no further than the team at Johnson Water Conditioning.
Contact us today to discuss your options.