Unfortunately nothing lasts forever so if your water softener is getting on in years it may be time for an upgrade. If you are noticing water marks and limescale building up even though your water softener is regenerating and using salt it’s definitely a sign that it has come to the end of its effective service life. Not all water softeners are made equal however so it may be a wise move to upgrade certain makes and models sooner rather than later…
Why are some water softeners not as effective as others?
Many water softeners use valves which are cheap copies or values such as the millennium valve which is no longer in production. Some of these valves are also not always WRAS (Water Regulations Approval Scheme) approved. You will also find that the quality of the soft water produced is not as good due to cheap resin and vessel design. Although these machines will produce soft water, they will only soften water to 50-60ppm. At the other end of the scale, although there are also many water softeners using valves out there which are well made and reliable, will regenerate and use salt, the resulting soft water can still only be around the 50-60ppm mark. With a result of over 40ppm you will continue to see some scale buildup and water marks on surfaces.
When should I consider an upgrade?
Never wait for your water softener to die! As anyone who is used to softened water will tell you, going back to a life of hard water problems whilst you wait for your new water softener to be installed is not fun! We find that a lot of the issues we see on our call outs to older water softeners are often pretty common. These can include drain/shuttle valve failure, the symptom of which is that the water softener will be constantly running to the drain. One of the big problems with this is that you could end up with a huge water bill. We’ve had a couple of call outs this year where this has been the case. In fact, one customer’s machine was running to drain for around 6 months, used over 1 million litres of water and left them with an eye watering £2k water bill! Not just this, older softeners often do not have a correctly fitted overflow which can result in flooding, ruined kitchen units, insurance claims and delays in having a new kitchen fitted.
Are there any other reasons why I should upgrade?
Like everything, there have been many key improvements to the technology and design of water softeners over the past 10-15 years. Pressure vessels are now made in a tall and thin shape to give an even distribution through the resin, meter accuracy is better and there is a more accurate brine rinse (in particular in Ecowater designs). There have also been advances in smart, wifi technology which you can find on Ecowater models as well as the Minimax Innova. Our range of water softeners are manufactured by the top 3 brands, Kinetico, Ecowater and Harvey (Minimax). All of these are designed and manufactured to a high quality with long warranties and life spans. Upgrading to one of these models will ensure you will continue to enjoy quality softened water for many years to come.
What makes of water softeners should be considered for an upgrade?
There are lots of makes and models of water softener out there, many of which have issues which may make them ripe for an upgrade. Here is a selection of a few of these…
- AQUADIAL – these softeners use the millenium valve which no longer exists. They have an effective service life of around 8-10 years.
- AUTOTROL – the original 155/255 machines are not very efficient and use a lot of water for regeneration. The later Logix valve is not found to be reliable.
- BWT WATER GENIE – these softeners also use the millenium valve and have an effective service life of 8-10 years. We often get callouts to leaking units as they cannot handle high pressure.
- CALMAG CALSOFT – the newer units are not always reliable. They are competitively priced but all parts come from China.
- CROWN – these are the entry level water softeners manufactured by Harveys. They have an effective service life of 7-12 years but we often see the common issues of low flow rate, resin contamination and getting stuck running to drain.
- CULLIGAN – another that use the discontinued millenium valve and have an effective service life of 8-10 years.
- ECOLIFF – and another that use the discontinued millenium valve and have an effective service life of 8-10 years.
- EWATECH – these water softeners are no longer in production. They come with a bad reputation within the industry for longevity with an effective service life of less than 6 years!
- EWT – common issues with these softeners is that they are often very cheap installations which have not always been done correctly. We often see no overflow, air gap or proper bypass when called out to take a look. They also use a Chinese valve which is only timer controlled and not metered.
- FOUR WINDS – these water softeners were sold on the trade market at a competive price but are not of good quality. The valves are only timer controlled or have a very basic meter, the resin is only of basic quality and they only have an effective service life of 5-10 years.
- KITE – these water softeners are no longer in active production. The product was in fact only on sale for 4-5 years before being withdrawn due to reliabilty issues.
- MONARCH – this British brand have used a variety of valves over the year but the latest versions now use cheap, Chinese valves.
- NUWAVE – these water softeners have used a variety of valves over the years. The early models used the orginal American Fleck valve which, although gave good service life, had a high salt consumption. The later Cappers battery powered valve has proved to be problematic.
- PERMUTIT – one of the original water softener manufacturers in the UK, we can come across units which are 35/40 years old. No longer in active production, you can find cheap versions using the Permutit name in online DIY stores and Chinese copies which use the millenium valve.
- SCALEMASTER SOFTLINE – these are often sold competively priced on ebay/online retailers. Some models use an Autotrol based peanut valve which is reliable but not efficient. There are often issues with soft water quality due to the shape of the pressure vessell. This is short and fat instead of tall and thin. Twin cylinder and non-electric machines use a delta valve which has a bad reputation in the industry as the parts and manuals are not readily available. Their effective service life is 6-10 years.
- SILVERLINE – a tool supplier, their water softeners are very basic and have no backup warranty or spares.
- TAPWORKS – these are popular with online merchants. One advantage is that they use a valve made in the USA using some Ecowater components but they also have a very basic computer chip as well as low grade resin. We often see them live beyond 10 years but the quality of soft water is always below 40ppm and they are not salt efficient.
- ULTRA 9 – these are the original Tapworks water softeners and will be at least 20 years old.
- WATERSIDE – another water softener using the millenium valve and with an effective service life of 8-10 years.
If your water softener falls under one of the makes or models mentioned above, it may be time for an upgrade. The great news is that in most cases, when you upgrade there are no additional installation costs as the pipework is normally already in place. Contact us today and we can talk you through your options.