Kitchen Renovations: Don't Try to Do It All Yourself

A water softener can be an essential upgrade to make to your home if it suffers from excessively hard water. Hard water can dry out your skin and cause pipe block mineral accumulations to form. While water softeners are common, they are sophisticated devices, and it is common for homeowners to have a limited understanding of these devices. After you consider the following couple of questions and answers concerning water softeners, you will be in a better position to understand these devices. 

Does It Matter Where Your Water Softener Drains?

Your water softener needs to have a drain to discharge some of the brine that it will produce. Unfortunately, many homeowners fail to properly plan for where to drain this liquid, which can cause problems for the yard. This solution is extremely salty and acidic, which can prove lethal to any plants that are in the vicinity.

As a result, you should ensure this drain empties in an area that is far from any of your favorite plants. If this is not practical, you may be able to minimize this threat by having the drain empty into a sand and lime bed because these substances can help filter the brine before it reaches the soil. 

What Causes A Water Softener To Become Blocked?

One day, your water softener may develop a substantial blockage that causes the water pressure throughout your home to drop. There can be many different reasons for these blockages to develop, but algae is a common source of this issue. These algae thrive in the salty water in the water softener, and it can eventually clog either the intake pipe or drain.

Sadly, there is no simple way for you to repair this type of problem without professional help from a company like Johnson Water Conditioning. You will need to have the water softener disassembled and sanitized to eliminate the algae growth. The best way to avoid this type of problem is to have the water softener serviced by an experienced professional at least once a year. This will allow them to remove any algae growth before it can lead to this issue.

Adding a water softener to your home's plumbing system may be the only way to eliminate the problems caused by hard water. Having an appreciation of properly placing the drainage pipe and how to minimize the risk of a blockage developing in the water softener will enable you to be a much better-informed homeowner when it concerns water softeners.