Water Softeners - How They Work

Water with high mineral content is generally referred as hard water. Such water mainly contains a large amount of calcium and magnesium ions, while soft water is characterized by a low concentration of these minerals. Along with calcium and magnesium ions, hard water can also contain biocarbonates and sulfates. The hardness of water can be either temporary or permanent. Temporary hardness signifies a large amount of calcium and bicarbonate ions, which can be removed from water by simply boiling it. But, permanent hardness cannot be eliminated by boiling and it is caused by the presence of excess calcium and magnesium sulfates or chlorides.

Hard water does not have any major detrimental effect on our health, but it can decrease the efficiency of some household tools and appliances. It can clog water pipes and water heaters quite frequently. The minerals in hard water can also react with the contents of soaps and detergent to form a sticky scum, which makes washing and showering quite troublesome. The solution to this problem lies in water softeners. A brief discussion about 'water softeners: how they work' will help you to understand more about these appliances and how they work to remove the hardness of water.

What is Water Softener
Water softener can be termed as a type of water filter, that helps to remove excess calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate and sulfate ions from water. This helps to eliminate the hardness of water and to avoid the common problems associated with hard water. This is achieved by replacing the calcium and magnesium ions of hard water with sodium ions, which do not precipitate like calcium ions, to clog tubes and pipes. They also do not form the sticky scum with soaps and detergent and hence makes washing less troublesome. Now let's have a look at how do water softeners work?

How do Water Softeners Work?
The three main components of water softeners, are a mineral tank, a brine tank and a control valve. Water softeners generally contain some plastic beads, which are also known as zeolites. These beads or zeolites contain sodium ions, which they exchange with the calcium and magnesium ions when water passes through them. Now these plastic beads or zeolites are located in the mineral tank, which is the main site for removing the hardness of water. The zeolites are actually negatively charged, while the calcium and magnesium ions are positively charged. So the negatively charged zeolites easily attract the positively charged ions and soften the hard water. But over a period of time, these beads are required to be regenerated, when the sodium ions are completely exhausted and replaced by the calcium and magnesium ions. Regeneration is a simple procedure, where the beads are soaked in sodium ions.

The second component of a water softener is a brine tank and it contains brine, which is nothing but highly concentrated saline water. This brine solution contains sodium and it is pumped into the mineral tank, when the zeolites require regeneration. So, regeneration phase involves the pumping of the brine solution containing sodium ions into the mineral tank, which helps to replace the accumulated calcium and magnesium ions. The water with excess calcium and magnesium is then flushed out of the tank.

Now, the entire process of regeneration is regulated by the control valve, which is a computerized meter. It determines the timing of regeneration. When the zeolites or plastic beads exhaust the sodium ions completely, the control valve reverses the flow of water, to drain out the accumulated debris. It pumps the brine solution to regenerate the plastic beads, by coating them with salt or sodium, so that the process of water softening can be resumed once again. Nowadays, electromagnetic water softeners are also available, which do not remove the dissolved minerals, but uses electromagnetic fields to change them in a way that the hardness of water and its associated problems disappear.

Hope this article about 'water softeners: how they work' has answered your common queries about this appliance and its working mechanisms. So, water softeners are basically a special type of filter, meant for treating hard water by eliminating dissolved calcium and magnesium ions and bicarbonates. But the use of sodium or brine solution can give rise to some health related issues, especially for the individuals who are on a low sodium diet. Some of the sodium may pass into the drinking water and can adversely affect the health and wellbeing of such individuals. To avoid such problems, potassium can be used. It is a bit more expensive than sodium, but does not have any health hazards.