subject: Water Softeners That Use Block Salt In The Uk [print this page] Pure rainwater is normally soft but, in some UK areas, it passes through limestone and chalk and becomes hard, having minerals such as lime and chalk dissolved in it.
This kind of water makes it more difficult to lather soap, leading to a greater use of detergent and shampoo, and clothes and crockery might not wash properly. When hard water is left to stand and evaporate, or when it is heated, the hardening minerals leave the water in the form of scale that can clog showers and block pipes, or stain baths and sinks. Scale deposits can prevent appliances such as water heaters from working properly and build-ups in heating systems lower their efficiency. Water softeners can provide an answer to hard water problems and they typically need no more than regular top-ups with tablet or block salt. As UK water softeners are usually easily installed, and UK stockists of block salt are not hard to find, they can be a convenient solution.
What to expect after installing a water softener
With soft water there should be no stains, scum or scale on basins and baths. Softening water means that pieces of equipment, such as dishwashers, work better and last longer, while easier lathering means less money is spent on detergents and shampoos. Soft water is believed to be better for eczema and other conditions where the skin is dry, and it makes cleaning clothes, dishes or even cars more efficient and quick.
How water softeners work
Water softeners used in the home work by extracting the minerals, typically magnesium and calcium, that cause water hardness. Salt is required for many softeners to work and this can be bought in the form of block salt in the UK. Inside the softener, water passes through a cylinder full of special resin containing sodium. Sodium moves out of the resin and the hardening minerals move in to take its place, leaving the water soft. After a certain amount of water has been softened, or after a certain time has passed, the cylinder needs recharging. It is rinsed with salty water and sodium enters the resin, changing places with the hard water minerals. These minerals, and the used salty water, then leave the system through a drain and the resin in the cylinder is ready to soften water again.
Is it better to use block salt in a UK water softener?
Water softeners either use tablet salt, which comes in pebble-sized lumps, or block salt, which consists of larger pieces roughly the size and shape of a house brick. Blocks are increasing in popularity because they are more convenient to use and store, with the result that more retailers are now selling block salt in the UK.
A water softener has to be regularly topped up with fresh salt to create a continuous supply of salty water to refresh the resin. Some softeners have two cylinders, so that one continues to soften the household water while the other is recharging. This means that the supply of soft water is constant.
