Softening water...

[Poki]

Re: Softening water...

Water softeners using salt just sound like a bad idea to me. Just my opinion. Salt and Steel don't do well together. I'd rather not exchange water spots for rust.[/QUOTE]


If you will check the water softener site I posted, you'll see how minute amount of salt is emitting from a softener. I work in the Palm Springs Valley in So. Cal in the winter and there are numerous luxuary RV resorts there. Some of the high end rigs sell for 1.5-2 million dollars. There are half a dozen teams of professional RV detailers working these resorts and many of them use "softened water" from water softeners. They wash the RV and many don't even DRY them! NO water spots and this in the part of the country that has the second "hardest" water in the U.S.

[RogueGypsy]

Re: Softening water...

The family filter got me-

The above '*****' should say $ucks, I guess I could have said pulls, but $ucks is more fun.

[RogueGypsy]

Re: Softening water...

I think the filter you are looking for is an RV filter with KDF media. KDF is a mix of Copper and Zinc that reacts with Chlorine creating Zinc Chloride an easily tolerated compound, making the water taste better. The Zinc and Copper together reduce any dissolved solids in the water (dissolved solids= water spots) by electrolytic action (basically an electro-magnet that ***** charged particles out of the water). They usually have a carbon media of some sort as well in them. They screw right onto your faucet and the hose attaches right to the filter. KDF is also the only media I know of that can be used with hot water. Activated Carbon will release contaminants when flushed with hot water and most other media will just dissolve.

We used KDF RV filters at Lake Powell, it's high desert and the water has a mineral content you can see. They worked great. We washed boats daily for 2-3 months before changing the filter. The used ones, we would hook them up backwards and flush them for about 20 minutes and they'd be good for another couple of months.

Odd that this topic came up. I was in an Ace Hardware yesterday and saw the exact filter we used in there RV section for $27. The filter said it's rated for 600 gallons. That sounds like a couple of hundred washes to me.

For $27 it's worth a try.

Water softeners using salt just sound like a bad idea to me. Just my opinion. Salt and Steel don't do well together. I'd rather not exchange water spots for rust.

[Poki]

Re: Softening water...

I asked around about this some time back and was told the salts used in water softening would be harmful to lawn grass, etc.

I never got around to verifying this so I'm not sure if its true or not.

I've used the now discontinued Mr. Clean system which seemed to work okay. Lately I just wait and wash near sundown and I don't seem to have any problem with water spotting. If an inexpensive and effective solution or system becomes available I would be very interested.

Regards...

Check this site for just about everything you want to know about portable water softeners: http://www.portablewatersoftener.com/howmuchsodium.htm

See the FAQ section...how much sodium is added to the water. I have been selling these in the RV store I manage and without exception everyone that has purchased one loves it. Most are purchased to soften all the water used in their RV but these units are VERY portable and lend well to vehicle washing.

[PhotoRecon]

Re: Softening water...

for some reason their softener was not hooked up to discharge through the outside spigot.

I asked around about this some time back and was told the salts used in water softening would be harmful to lawn grass, etc.

I never got around to verifying this so I'm not sure if its true or not.

I've used the now discontinued Mr. Clean system which seemed to work okay. Lately I just wait and wash near sundown and I don't seem to have any problem with water spotting. If an inexpensive and effective solution or system becomes available I would be very interested.

Regards...

[Poki]

Re: Softening water...

Another way to look at it....water filters remove things "suspended" in the water like sediment. Softeners remove things "dissolved" in the water like the minerals that cause water spots.

[fredcandetail]

Re: Softening water...

So it sounds like the Wally world rv filter won't work... Orvsomeone else had reasonable documented success? Either wayim going to try it for a few washes, Wally W let's you return anything used or not!

[Poki]

Re: Softening water...

Blueline is right on. In order to have "soft" water you need to use a water softener that uses salt. The WM "filters" have nothing to do with softening the water ie. removing the minerals that cause the spots. There is a softener sold in the RV industry that is very portable and uses common table salt to rejuvinate hence no messing with a 50lb bag of rock salt. But it aint cheap either. Around $300. www.portablewatersoftener.com

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Softening water...

Hey everyone, I was just trying to relay some info. Trying to help out. Did not mean to start anything.

[Blueline]

Re: Softening water...

I was not saying it was. I was relaying what I had, although both are virtually the same, but different in color. It is the filter inside that counts.

You must have fairly soft water to start with. An RV filter is for taste and sediment. It will not filter out dissolved minerals in hard water which is the cause of water spots. Good that it works for you though.

[cnfowler]

Re: Softening water...

Here it is: http://www.pwgazette.com/gardenhosefilters.htm
Read about filter FC024

That's not the one Mr. Michaels was referring to. It is a blue RV water filter found in the RV section at Wal-Mart. It is less than $20. I have one and use it everytime I wash. It works extremely well for reducing waterspots considering the cost of the filter. I've had mine for a very long time and it is still going strong.

Colin

[Blueline]

Re: Softening water...

Here it is: http://www.pwgazette.com/gardenhosefilters.htm
Read about filter FC024

[Blueline]

Re: Softening water...

I seem to remember a while back the following. Another mol'er had a issue like yours. He went to Wally World and bought a in line rv filter for the hose line. He claims it worked like a charm. I think it was south of $25.00 for his solution.

Might have been me. I bought an inline filter and plumbed it into the garage. When I want soft water, I connect the hose to it and then another hose out. It has a water softening cartridge, (not just a filter) just like a home water softening system. It is good for about 100 gallons, and rather than buy another cartridge , you just soak the cartridge in a dishpan with water softening salt, so it will last indefinitely. With a black car, it is a godsend..no more spots. (less soap too!)
I think the cartridge is about $18 and the salt is $5 for a 50lbs bag. (It will last a long, long time.) When I get home I will find the URL if someone hasn't posted it by then.

[ajb39oh]

Re: Softening water...

ONR really works for this!

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Softening water...

I seem to remember a while back the following. Another mol'er had a issue like yours. He went to Wally World and bought a in line rv filter for the hose line. He claims it worked like a charm. I think it was south of $25.00 for his solution.