Water softeners

kopkidda

Live in north county dublin and water is very hard.

Got a price off a crowd called ewtechnologies to install softener for circa €600.

Anybody got any feedback on this crowd and any general pros and cons of these softeners?

Pimp Ninja

Really depends on what type of system they have installed -

Im also in North co. Dublin, and got one installed a few years ago by a company called Waterteck in Carrick on Shannon.

We have an Ion Exchange unit outside which needs to be topped up with salt every 2 months or so and a Reverse Osmosis unit inside which removes the salt from the water for cooking/drinking etc...

As I recall this cost around €1600 to get installed approx 3 years ago.

Their website is still there - http://www.waterteck.com but doesn't seem to have changed much, and their blog section is empty, so I don't know if they are still about.

Servicing wise, the salt has to be topped up every 2 months or so, and the Reverse Osmosis filters should be changed about once a year.
These changes will of course depend on use. The salt top up is just a matter of looking in and seeing how much is left. To check the RO Filters, you can pick up a TDS Meter from an aquarium shop for about €30 to tell you exactly when the filters need changing.

kopkidda

Thats great thanks for reply.

The system is the same as the one you have, they include a reverse osmosis drinking system for drinking etc also.

I think I would like to keep the hard water supply in the kitchen also for the babies bottles if possible.

Im sick of buying them britax filters.

sky6

The most important thing is to have the Water tested, especially where there is a baby or young children in the home. Many private wells suffer from Ecol i Bacteria and nitrates in the Water. The problem is made worse by farmers spreading silage over the land and also fertilizers being added to help improve grass growth. Which eventually make there way down into the Water Table.

mona.lisa

Did you go ahead with EWT?
I'm thining about going ahead with them now for softener and drinking water filter for€649.

aah yes

Many water softeners that are pitched around the €649 price nowadays may not be US made such as the top end Clack water softeners with high capacity, quality, long life branded resins such as Lanxess / Dowex / Purolite, and instead are possibly the Canature brand which although a large company are fairly new to the water game and based in Shang Hai - http://www.canature-global.com/?p=8 also http://www.canature-global.com/?p=32

Many Canature all-in-one softeners are often rebranded maybe with different colours but are identical to many of the pictures in the link, and so are classed as entry level or low end softeners compared to the long established US brands from firms typically established for 40 to 70 years and at the top of their game.

As a result, Canature if lower capacity 10 or 20 litre resin capacity units are going to have a short life on both washing too frequently, using a lot more water and salt, and wearing out in under half the time, also with much lower spec. electronics than their more superior US counterparts.

So Canature systems, eager as they are to get a foothold of the market, can go on sale as low as €199 + vat and often €299+vat for larger models, but are sold by many operators, not all, but many that buy the smallest and cheapest and horse them under sinks like drop kicking a rugby ball in record times of 60 minutes when a good professional installation should take half a day or even more depending on the job.

And yet firms are taking €600 or €700 for these systems when really they are more of a hobbyist, DIY hardware store box system. I expect they are produced for about €50 dollars in the factory and step up in huge mark ups, through distributor chains, up to the time they are often thrown in houses.

Nearly every one I have seen taken out over the last few years, having had a short life, were so badly installed like some maniac berserk butcher had been let out of Ballinasloe for the day, I have taken an album of photo shots of these half crazed attempts slowly building up in my file, so bad and careless were the attempts.

There a decent range of serious operators working at the highest levels for installing water softeners, and there are many good ones around the country doing even the best high capacity, top level specification Clack systems at close to the €600 and €700 of the cheap fly by Chinese horsed in units. Clack systems used to sell for up to €1800 to €2,000 installed but can be gotten for under half these prices now, below €950 and €850 for some.

There are many top operators doing some of the small 8x17 Clack units even from €600 to €700 equal in size to many mid size Canature models and selling supply only or DIY from €450 / €500 for systems that are going to be good for 25 to 35 years on the smaller sizes.

Whatever you decide, don't pay up front over the phone by a credit card, get a free survey first and fully check out the firm you are dealing with, and look for the best of the local firms if you can, there are some good national ones too. Make sure you ask for Clack, there is nothing on the market that touches it in any way. If you are getting Canature DIY in the box, don't spend more than €200 or €300 and expect a short life ready for another before long.

Do some googling for "water softeners" on other Boards.ie posts and on the net in general and earmark 3 or 4 good firms, don't go just on bottom dollar either, but go for the firm that are going to offer a first class installation over 3 or more hours usually, with solid back up at a reasonable price, you don't have to spend over a €1000 nowadays to get the best.

aah yes

Some of the more elite super level experts around the country offering top end clack at excellent low end prices if you are lucky enough to live near them are chaps such as the likes of ...

Hugh Ryan water treatment in Kinvara covering Galway / Clare - 087 997 4019 (20 year expert, Clack specialist factory trained, you'll not meet a nicer man, probably the best in ireland - and top of the county grant list as a seasoned pro for the best specialist well jobs)

Zen Water Filters in Clonmel covering the mid south - 052 614 6305 / 087 711 9514 (seriously professional, extremely low priced, Clack specialist, again as good a fellow as you are going to meet)

Donal O'Brien in Coppeen in Cork - 023 884 7859 / 086 246 6726 (another absolute gent, Clack factory trained specialist, serious quality installations at low prices, also a pump expert and well treatment aficionado) Also equally Donal's colleague John Curtin in Kerry another water wizard.


These are some of the first I can mention, genuine, cast iron, bullet proof, top end water softener specialists you won't go wrong with on professionalism, price and back up, that I can mention working down the West Coast to the South Coast.

If what I am saying is exactly true, and you are lucky enough to deal with them, then I will list another range of top end dealers I can vouch for soon, known over 5 or more years, without the slightest whistle of a doubt or annoyed customer between them, maybe more to come from Tip up to Dublin, Galway, Mayo to Donegal.

mona.lisa

Thanks for your reccomendations GWS.
I can get the clack 10x35 + R/O system supplied and fitted for €800 what do you think?
This is the system EW technologies is offering for €649 incl s2000 filter .http://www.ewtechnologies.ie/ewt-model-609-gold-metered
supplied and fitted..

aah yes

mona.lisa wrote: »

Thanks for your reccomendations GWS.
I can get the clack 10x35 + R/O system supplied and fitted for €800 what do you think?
This is the system EW technologies is offering for €649 incl s2000 filter .http://www.ewtechnologies.ie/ewt-model-609-gold-metered
supplied and fitted..

Good price alright for the Clack with an RO, and the right equipment, just a question of installation and service which can be the other half of the equation so you almost have the thumbs up.

Checking the link on the other softener, sure enough it is a basic Canature with a wrap around plastic jacket made to look flashy, but absolutely not a patch on Clack, and the Canature is bought at under half the buying price.

The drinking filter kit off the web link is a filter kit most dealers can rustle up from €10, with a cheap tap and basic inline single filter, very likely not NSF.

denor2013

gws wrote: »

Some of the more elite super level experts around the country offering top end clack at excellent low end prices if you are lucky enough to live near them are chaps such as the likes of ...

Hugh Ryan water treatment in Kinvara covering Galway / Clare - 087 997 4019 (20 year expert, Clack specialist factory trained, you'll not meet a nicer man, probably the best in ireland - and top of the county grant list as a seasoned pro for the best specialist well jobs)

Zen Water Filters in Clonmel covering the mid south - 052 614 6305 / 087 711 9514 (seriously professional, extremely low priced, Clack specialist, again as good a fellow as you are going to meet)

Donal O'Brien in Coppeen in Cork - 023 884 7859 / 086 246 6726 (another absolute gent, Clack factory trained specialist, serious quality installations at low prices, also a pump expert and well treatment aficionado) Also equally Donal's colleague John Curtin in Kerry another water wizard.


These are some of the first I can mention, genuine, cast iron, bullet proof, top end water softener specialists you won't go wrong with on professionalism, price and back up, that I can mention working down the West Coast to the South Coast.

If what I am saying is exactly true, and you are lucky enough to deal with them, then I will list another range of top end dealers I can vouch for soon, known over 5 or more years, without the slightest whistle of a doubt or annoyed customer between them, maybe more to come from Tip up to Dublin, Galway, Mayo to Donegal.

Do you have any recommendations for the Meath area please GWS?

aah yes

Two up that way based in Kilbeggan are Springsoft also The Water Treatment Centre, both established for a long time, both Clack resellers, all with service premises with staff and salt deliveries, all convivial folk, nice to get on with.

denor2013

Thanks GWS, I'll look them up

ballinloughan

anyone know how to best set the level of softening? the installers set mine for 500ppm .. just wondering if there is a chart for the country or other method to decide on the softening level.

aah yes

Four or so ways ...


Get a wee €10 hardness test kit

Send a sample in to a HSE testing lab (about €10)

Check your council website - water services section - reports for your scheme - get the conductivity figure and translate to hardness

Get - "The Hardness of Irish Drinking Waters" - a publication from the EPA, about €4 ? covers most schemes big and small

GubMan

GWS, you seem to be the person with the knowledge. Hope you can help me with this.

I've an 8 year old water softener installed, RO + standard salt softener. I paid about €2200 for it originally. (yeah I paid the old 'hyper prices'!) Company that installed it disappeared 3 years ago. Local supply company advised me to get a water tester (that you already mentioned in posts) to see when I needed to change filters - did that, no problem so far.

Went on holidays in July, softener ran out of salt during and now is not 'backwashing' at night. Is on but just doesn't seem to be working. Restarted it to no avail. RO system is still working as its readings are still grand. The ppm reading for the main system is up tho, It's an American system, I can PM you a pic if that's any help. Rang a plumber buddy, he only services what he fits and mine is not one. How do I restart? Or who can I contact in Kildare/Laois? Any help greatly received.

aah yes

send or post a pic and we will see what you have

is it this aul yoke ? ...








if it is, that is an Autotrol 255 440

Mo60

gws wrote: »

send or post a pic and we will see what you have

is it this aul yoke ? ...








if it is, that is an Autotrol 255 440

We have this water softener and had the timer replaced approx. 2 years ago. The timer appears to have failed again. Is it worth replacing again or would it be better to replace the water softener altogether with a more modern unit?

aah yes

sure, it is worth upgrading either to a Clack WS1CI valve or a full system with Clack, depending on capacity and resin condition of the old unit.

Mo60

The resin was changed 2 years ago and the ouside measurement of the tank is 10"x17"x17".
Could this be upgraded or would a new system be required?

aah yes

could be upgraded