GE Water Softener?

[LimeBiscuit]

We just moved here from Maryland.

On Monday, the Welcome Wagon lady mentioned getting a GE water softener. Then on Tues (today) we got a call and visit from the GE water softener sales rep.

He had a pretty interesting demo with lots of water tests and chemical reactions. Basically, his point was that you'd be lucky to stay alive here in The Villages if you drank, bathed, or cooked using the public water system.

What's the general opinion on the need for a water softener/purification system here? And does anyone have experience with GE?

We've lived places where we needed one and places where it wasn't necessary.

Thanks.

[Doodlegirl]

The Welcome Wagon lady is associated and without remorse will tell you that
this company represents the Welcome Wagon in TV! If that is the case, it's the first time in my long life that the Welcome Wagon lady did any more than
drop a basket or bag by the house. I believe this ploy needs to be stopped.
It started a few days after I moved in and continued for 2 months with weekly calls to test my water and get my 'gifts'. When I said I had fine water with a purifier, they continued to call. Never did get a Welcome
Wagon from the people responsible for this sales tactic. Silly beans.

[Bill32]

We recently had a water softener installed after living here full time for three years by Ecowater for $1500. The water is very hard and you will notice the effects on the plumbing eventually. I installed a charcoal filter on the refrigerator for the drinking water and that takes care of the chlorine taste. The water is safe to drink either way so don't think you have to run out and buy something. I personally don't think there is a need for a purifier system but they will try to sell you everything! If you do decide to use Ecowater let me know so I can get a $25 reward :)

[ladydoc]

You will get calls from lots from them. When they said $4000 for a system, I said....leave. LOL

The water here is terrible compared to our well water back home and very hard. We have been there 3 months and I can already see the results of the hard water. We purchased a new product from Sears, a water softener AND water filter in one unit. We have a little countertop filter right now and the difference in the taste of the water is incredible. I asked the Sears people about reverse osmosis because the water sales guy with the $4000 price tag said we really needed that. Sears told me that it takes 5 gallons of water to produce ONE gallon of reverse osmosis water.

We get a water report every year and it says that everything is within normal limits. Even the salesguy who came here kept saying the water will NOT make you sick, etc. So, it is a matter of taste. If you can tolerate the taste of the water and don't mind the hard water leaving spots on things and eroding your appliances, thats up to you.

BUT don't let them scare you that it is a health hazard....

[jojoin]

Don't know what a fair price is for a water purification system & water softner, or what the best brand is, but you can tell the difference in the water if you have ever had one... it even feels different in the shower, and doesn't leave all the residue. I guess cause it takes the chemicals out that make the water hard. I agree with other posters the water is not going to kill you if you don't get a treament system. It's just personal preference on what you want to spend your $$ on. Like, some people spend thousands of dollars to redo landscaping, or customizing a golf cart it's whatever is best for you.

[John_W]

As soon as we had our home phone connected we must of gotten six calls, my favorite one was they said this was "Home Depot and we have a $25 gift certificate for you."I said I was just in your store yesterday and bought a lawn mower, thanks you can just mail me the certificate. "Well, we would like to come out in person and present it to you", I said that' OK, were pretty busy and were in and out all the time. They said, "we would like to come by and do a free water test of your drinking water". I said, it's OK, I don't mind the drinking water and my neighbor just spent $3000 on a water purifier and he's had nothing but trouble with it. They said, "Who installed his water system? I said, "I didn't ask him, because I don't care, and you're not really Home Depot are you?" and they hung up.

The part about my neighbor is true, he paid $3100 and several times I had to go knock on his door because water was running out of a pipe on the side of his garage down my driveway, which I can see but he couldn't. Finally after several calls and about four days later, they came and hopefully fixed the problem.

[handyman]

You will get calls from lots from them. When they said $4000 for a system, I said....leave. LOL

The water here is terrible compared to our well water back home and very hard. We have been there 3 months and I can already see the results of the hard water. We purchased a new product from Sears, a water softener AND water filter in one unit. We have a little countertop filter right now and the difference in the taste of the water is incredible. I asked the Sears people about reverse osmosis because the water sales guy with the $4000 price tag said we really needed that. Sears told me that it takes 5 gallons of water to produce ONE gallon of reverse osmosis water.

We get a water report every year and it says that everything is within normal limits. Even the salesguy who came here kept saying the water will NOT make you sick, etc. So, it is a matter of taste. If you can tolerate the taste of the water and don't mind the hard water leaving spots on things and eroding your appliances, thats up to you.

BUT don't let them scare you that it is a health hazard....

I just remind them that I am on the DO NOT CALL list and I will pursue them if they hinder me any further,and I have the not been bothered too much

[asianthree]

We used an outside home inspector and asked what he recommended extra for the home and said we didn't need it

[billmar]

Probably don't need it, but water softners do provide some benefits. I guess it's like a lot of things we buy.... probably don't need half of it :)

[drdodge]

Do not buy from these door to door people. You can go to Home Dopot or Lowes and buy a good water softner for around 500 dollars. Home depot handles Water Boss. You can check them out on line at Water boss .com. I have one of them and they do an excellent job. THE DOOR TO DOOR ARE A RIPOFF.
DRD

[LimeBiscuit]

I checked the Sears prices online last night and as several posters pointed out, they were considerably less-by an order of magnitude.

We stopped at Sears today will probably get a softener from them.

Thanks for all the advice.

[Bill32]

One feature that was important to me was to get a unit with a demand meter not a timer. With the demand meter it only backwash's according to your water usage. The one's with a timer will cycle whether or not your using water.

[lvlwallach]

We are looking at the system from Sears also, the water softener and filter combination. Is this the one you have? If so do you like it and how long have you had it? Any info would be appreciated. Also did you get the 3 yr or 5 yr warranty? Please give us a call at 954-850-6913. Thanks, Lavelle & Harvey (We also live in Buttonwood.)

You will get calls from lots from them. When they said $4000 for a system, I said....leave. LOL

The water here is terrible compared to our well water back home and very hard. We have been there 3 months and I can already see the results of the hard water. We purchased a new product from Sears, a water softener AND water filter in one unit. We have a little countertop filter right now and the difference in the taste of the water is incredible. I asked the Sears people about reverse osmosis because the water sales guy with the $4000 price tag said we really needed that. Sears told me that it takes 5 gallons of water to produce ONE gallon of reverse osmosis water.

We get a water report every year and it says that everything is within normal limits. Even the salesguy who came here kept saying the water will NOT make you sick, etc. So, it is a matter of taste. If you can tolerate the taste of the water and don't mind the hard water leaving spots on things and eroding your appliances, thats up to you.

BUT don't let them scare you that it is a health hazard....

[lvlwallach]

We also looked at the Sears combination water softener and filter. Did you get it from Sears? If so are you happy with it and how long have you had it? Please call us at 954-850-6913. Thanks, Lavelle & Harvey (Buttonwood)

I checked the Sears prices online last night and as several posters pointed out, they were considerably less-by an order of magnitude.

We stopped at Sears today will probably get a softener from them.

Thanks for all the advice.

[Bogie Shooter]

We also looked at the Sears combination water softener and filter. Did you get it from Sears? If so are you happy with it and how long have you had it? Please call us at 954-850-6913. Thanks, Lavelle & Harvey (Buttonwood)

Have a look at the units at HD Lowes. They will give you another price point. I bought a Culligan a few years ago and it works fine but often wondered if the $500 unit at HD wouldn't have worked just as well, as some have reported here on TOTV.

[Happinow]

Check previous forums containing this subject...water purifiers, softeners. There is a wealth of information about theses. Be careful not to get suckered in by some expensive systems because less expensive ones will work just as well.....so they say.

[BnCinME]

Thanks to the kind folks here at TOTV we were well aware of the Welcome Wagon lady! When she showed up at our door with her big basket and big smile, I told her she was welcome to come in and visit but we were not interested in any shape or form of hearing a sales pitch for water softeners!

The first few weeks we were inundated with sales calls for all sorts of services. :cus: Again we took the sage advice from veteran posters and let all these calls go to voice mail. Nine times out of ten they didn't leave a message they just hang up!

[CarGuys]

My friend put in the 4k system. It is HUGE in the garage looks like a steam ship boiler room.

However when I tried the drinking water tap I was shocked. I don't think I have ever tasted water so good. Out of any store or system or bottle.

It is a potasium vs salt unit for softness, The fresh water is reverse Osmosis filtered.

I cannot afford this system. But I am envious of it.

IMHO If it was 1500 I would consider it.

We missed the welcome lady! Were only there long enough to write checks and go home

[Bill & Carolyn]

Run screaming from anyone telling you the water is dangerous or a health hazard! They are snake oil salesmen.

The water in TV is hard (14) and the chlorine content is higher than other areas (5ppm), but that alone is not dangerous to your health.

You might consider a water softener (to remove the hardness) and carbon filter (to remove the chlorine) as we are, but that is for cosmetic, taste purposes, not for health reasons.

I've seen the 'pitch' by EcoWater and Kinectico, neither of whom mentioned anything about 'health' or 'lucky to survive', but their systems (a combo of whole house water filter/softener) and under sink Reverse Osmosis systems run about $3500-4K. I'm still trying to figure out what the difference between their offerings and the $800 combo whole house unit the Sears offers is.

The Ecowater guy said the main difference is that the Sears unit is made in China and will not last as long as theirs, but, I tend not to listen to what Ford has to say about Chevy. I'm trying to verify it myself. The Sears unit appears to be on a timer regeneration system, although I'm not certain. But given the difference in price that makes for a lot of water usage before you reach parity.

[CarGuys]

Agree!

5 - $800.00 systems that last 8-10 years each vs 1- 4k system-

Hmmmmmmmmmm

I getting this fugured out. A Water Boss or Sears unit with potasium no salt. This for softness. And a sink water filtter system for drinking water and washing food.

1k and under vs 4-5K ?

[tpbsrct]

We hadthe same experince, but the rep got indigent and made us real uncomfortable because we wouldn't commit on the SPOT! Not very professional.

[karee919]

We just moved here from Maryland.

On Monday, the Welcome Wagon lady mentioned getting a GE water softener. Then on Tues (today) we got a call and visit from the GE water softener sales rep.

He had a pretty interesting demo with lots of water tests and chemical reactions. Basically, his point was that you'd be lucky to stay alive here in The Villages if you drank, bathed, or cooked using the public water system.

What's the general opinion on the need for a water softener/purification system here? And does anyone have experience with GE?

We've lived places where we needed one and places where it wasn't necessary.

Thanks.

There is no Welcome Wagon lady. It was either a lady named Marchelle or Liz, which NEITHER work for Welcome Wagon. Marchelle works for a company, TAS Environmental, who calls themselves GE and Liz is a private individual whos husband works in a Real Estate office. They drive around and watch for new people moving in & then sell the names/addresses to TAS Environmental so they can come in right behind them to sell a "GE" water system. The Villages has their own Welcoming Committee, also the Newcomer Magazine has a Newcomers social every 2nd & 4th Wednesday of the month. You can call 352-430-2950 for more information. Be careful if you do not have a landline phone yet, Liz & Marchelle will ask for cell numbers to sell to TAS also.

[tommy steam]

There is no Welcome Wagon lady. It was either a lady named Marchelle or Liz, which NEITHER work for Welcome Wagon. Marchelle works for a company, TAS Environmental, who calls themselves GE and Liz is a private individual whos husband works in a Real Estate office. They drive around and watch for new people moving in & then sell the names/addresses to TAS Environmental so they can come in right behind them to sell a "GE" water system. The Villages has their own Welcoming Committee, also the Newcomer Magazine has a Newcomers social every 2nd & 4th Wednesday of the month. You can call 352-430-2950 for more information. Be careful if you do not have a landline phone yet, Liz & Marchelle will ask for cell numbers to sell to TAS also.

I moved in five months ago. The phony welcome lady came to my home and told me she was from the villages . It took about one minute for me to figure out she was not telling the truth , I told her to leave now. I have never been contacted by a Welcoming Committee from the villages. One tip , when you get your new telephone number, get it unlisted otherwise you will get a ton of calls from people trying to sell you somthing. The telephone company I used advised me to get my number unlisted. Do not buy or use services from door knockers.

[Miles42]

I do not now have a home phone and when I get there the first of August I won't get one either. I am fairly rude to people who come knocking with any phony welcomes or sales pitches. Do any of you have no soliciting signs posted?