Water softeners needed?
 

I know we are all bombarded with ads recommending water softeners. As I was reading my new refrigerator manual the other day I noticed they weren't recommended for ice makers as the salt can damage the ice maker. Mentioned it to a group people and a chiropractor said we should drink hard water, not water softened water.

Up North I had a softener for years. I like the feel and the impact on clothes & dishes.


However, when I came to TV I installed a whole house filter. I think this is key for drinking and faucets.


I'm still on the fence if I'm going to add a softener. IT'S NOT NEEDED, just a personal preference.


I think filtering water in TV is a must.

I don't feel a softener is needed here, but I did install a whole house filter and it does a great job.

:agree:
Completely!

Same here

I've seen the garages packed with systems (and the garages aren't large) and for this reason I have drinking water delivered. and consume anything water related to delivered water.

Town/City water is OK* for showers and clothes/dishes.

*unless you're in Flint Michigan

Water Filter System
 

If you can, can you please tell me what water filter system you use or one that you recommend?

Thanks!
Future Villagers

This has been discussed many times here. We installed both a water softener and whole house filter and love them. NOTE: we have water softeners for decades back up North, so the regular water here was somewhat of a shock between the hardness and the chlorine.
So back to your question, NO this equipment is NOT required, it is person preference.
If you decide to install this equipment, be sure to shop around and get advice. There are units at the big box stores (combination) that will do what you want for around $500, and there are companies in the area that will use various tactics to sell you a system for $5000 or more, that do the same thing. Be aware of any company that offers to test your water and then shows you reports of how bad the villages water is. The water meets or is better than all government limits, but it is hard and can smell of chlorine.

I disagree with the person who said the water is fine for clothes/dishes washing and showering. We use a whole-house filter system coupled with potassium chloride water softener (no salt). With nothing, clothes are dingey and glasses get filmy. I can tell the second we need to refill the potassium chloride, because after showering my skin itches.

But like VT, we've had a softener since the late '80s, so we're used to the softer water.

The taste of the water in TV is probably the worst of any place we've lived save one huge old apartment building. The whole house filter took care of it, and the TV water now tastes great.

I purchased Pelican.

Did a lot of research.


Nova is very popular in TV.

Villagetinker is absolutely right. You can pick one up at HD for 400-500 and either install it yourself or get a professional, it’s simple plumbing. A whole house filter before it for $50 is also a decent idea.

Now, what’s the value ? Coffee tastes incredibly better, and I do mean incrediblybetter. Also better performance from dishwasher and laundry soaps and soft water coming down on you in the shower feels like liquid pearls, not liquid rocks.

I installed one a few months ago because the hard water left my skin itching madly and no amount of lotion would make it stop. After installation...problem solved.

Potassium chloride is a salt just of potassium instead of sodium.

The salts replace calcium and magnesium in the water at the same concentration. The salt is in parts per million and you can not tasted it. It will not damage the ice maker.

The Villages water is hard and as others said it is a preference as to whether you prefer soft water.

I own a Puronics softener and it uses only about 1.5 lbs of salt per 1000 gals of water.

I went with the Nova Filter system. Lots of silt caught. No chlorine smell.

We went with the Nova whole house filter system 2 years ago. Have been very happy. Also did not need a filter in our refrigerator because of the whole house filtering. Got rid of the smell and taste. Recommended changing filters (3) of them yearly, but since we are still snowbirding, we change every 18 months.

we use water filtered thru the fridge
 

Living on a budget here. So yes, drinking unfiltered water is... YUCK. I tried one time making coffee from unfiltered. Again... YUCK. So now I make coffee using water filtered through the fridge. Problem solved. We only drink water filtered through the fridge. We are happy with this solution.

Water quality depends on where in the Villages you live. North is much better than South. Fenney is City of Wildwood water, tastes terrible. I've lived here 19 years, our water is tasteless and only a slight chlorine odor. I do not have a softener or filter, we are getting water from the well that they bottle water to sell from. You have to decide if it is worth it or not.

Thx for sharing

do you, by any chance, know how to change the filter in the refrigerator water? nothing in our owner's manual addresses it

I had water softener in NJ. We only used it for hot water. This covered showers, dishwasher, and washing clothes without drinking excess salt.

I bought the Nova system as well. It was about 650 installed. I wasn't about to try to buy one at HD and install it myself. That is a nother world. Very happy with the difference put a bypass in the refrigerator - don't need it anymore - tap water is great. Drinking tap water here or for coffee is a bad decision you will pay for it with frequent bowel issues.

Ohiobuckeye
 

Chiropractor is right, don't drink it!

I have a 3 stage whole home water filter by Express coupled with a ScaleBlaster (an electronic water conditioner). The filter is identical to the one sold by Nova, other than it has 3 separate pressure gauges (one for each filter) as opposed to one for the Nova. They use the same replacement filters. You can buy it online for $399, and it takes an afternoon to plumb it in.

The ScaleBlaster is not a water softener... but our water is not really hard, it just has a lot of calcium in it, and many folks think of this as hard water. In our area, it's only around 150ppm.

A water softener will remove the calcium. However, calcium is not bad for you - in fact it's a good mineral. The real issue is that all that calcium will leave stains on your fixtures and will build up in appliances (refrigerators, coffee makers, etc) over time. The ScaleBlaster uses current to ionize the calcium particles in the water and this causes the small particles to bond into larger particles. You still get the benefit of drinking calcium, but it reduces the waters ability to stain and cause build up tremendously.

The best part is - no salt or chemicals. Just install the ScaleBlaster, plug it in and let it run! I've been using it for 2 years now, and I love it!.

Check it out on Youtube

shut the water off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Most refrigerators have a filter located at the bottom near the floor. Open the small hinged door there, rotate the filter about a quarter turn counterclockwise and pull it out. Take it to Home Depot and buy a new one, which will come with instructions for installing it. Some refrigerators have the filter located inside the box near the top. If so, rotate it a quarter turn and remove it the same way. There is no need to turn off the water to replace the filter. If there is a red light lit inside the refrigerator door indicating the need to replace the filter, you can reset it by holding down the button for several seconds until the light changes to green, or pressing it several times within 10 seconds.

Hard water will eventually calcify the inside of your pipes. We used Nova Filtration. Very reasonable and. ITT does a great job. Good luck.

Don't buy a System from Glazir Water.
 

We had a glazer water system they claim that it's the top of the line and use in the Space Station by NASA.

It never work that great and use a lot of salt. We now have a Kinetico Whole House System that works excellent. you always have clean condition water.

Don't be fool by Pelican or Nova buy a Kinetico Whole House system! ::doggie:

Filtration, by itself (including whole home like Nova) will not reduce the hardness of the water nor will it remove calcium. You need a conditioner of some type for that. A water softener will remove the calcium, and an electronic conditioner will cause the calcium to not adhere to the pipe surfaces.

Nova is filter not a softener, we install softeners also.

Now I don't think you should miss lead people here by saying calcium adheres to pipes, it does not.

Nova is in the biz over 40 years a name you can trust

Similar but the same in many ways


that is factually false


You can buy a Nova for $475 if you want to install it yourself but it will have the correct filters for TV

Moreover you will be supporting a local biz and resident
We are a full service company and can respond quickly to your needs

to service your filters



see Nova Water Filters The Villages Fl

there's reason we are trusted by 5,000 home owners in TV


.Bob Ceo Nova Filters since 1974

Sorry :) Didn't mean to mislead anyone. I was responding to a previous post where someone mentioned they were using a filter to prevent calcification in their pipes, and I didn't think my response through completely.

I was just trying to say that a filter alone will not soften water.

Nova Water Systems
 

Nova installed a whole house water filter system in my house for a little over $600. My water tastes great and I can drink from the tap. The Nova water system is the best. Nova 352 566 2649.
They have installed thousands here in the villages fl.

Use reverse osmosis system for drinking, cooking and ice the rest of the home and your skin, hair and clothes will benefit greatly from a water softener. You can split it and keep it from your fridge.

Have to agree
 

We are the same, we had a Nova Whole house system fitted several years ago and it is great, before we had it, the water tasted so bad we just drank bottled water.
Now, we don’t even need the one in the fridge.
We haven’t had a water softener fitted yet, but may do down the road.
Could fully recommend the product, the price and the company 👍👍

I have a water softener system available.
Just purchased a home that has a fairly new one PURONICS

I live by Nancy Lopez. All our water comes from the tap without our intervention. My wife boils water for tea in an electric kettle, does it multiple times a day and the inside of that kettle looks brand new. Our water tastes fine. When I shower, the soap lathers up nicely and rinses right off. I have great hair. My lab tests show no signs of high levels of calcium or magnesium. My lawn looks happy.

Hey Joe,
Nova don't fool anyone, I take exception to that remark.

4900 customers in TV

Nova info