water softner help in chosing and is this true

Miaou

Sorry to insist but I am really at a loss. Perhaps someone has had this boiler issue. Can I install a water softener without softening the water that goes into the boiler?

Miaou wrote: »

Hi All,
Thanks for the great discussion. I recently discovered the forum and went through all the posts. I still have a question:
I have a new Keston boiler. Keston told me the warranty will be void if I install a water softener because it will damage the heat exchanger. Can I install the water softener for the cold water only, or after the boiler for the hot water too (I assume between boiler and hot water tank)? Is it something that is done regularly or should I forget about having a water softener?
Thanks

Doc_N

Miaou wrote: »

Sorry to insist but I am really at a loss. Perhaps someone has had this boiler issue. Can I install a water softener without softening the water that goes into the boiler?

Opinions differ, and I'm no expert at all on the subject. You might want to take a look at this, however, and the full report it links to:


http://ukwta.org/

andygee7

Block salt is a little more expensive than tablet or granular but most block salt softeners are more efficient so in terms of cost per year they are about the same. Also you don't need to lug around a 25kg sack when you need to refill.......I'll go for block salt softeners every time!

andygee7

£1700 for a Harveys HV3 is a bit on the pricey side. Mine cost me £1490.00 installed on a 22mm system with full bore valves and stainless steel braided hoses -all in. However if you do your research you will find that there is no better softener out there than the Harveys twin tank machines. Some are called HV3, S3 or MiniMax but they are all much the same really. They don't need any maintenance...at all and they are very efficient and reliable. So you can save money now on cheaper machines but pay for it in the long run! A friend is in the water softening business and has been for 10 years installing all sorts of machines. He lives miles away from me so could not install mine but told me in his experience Harveys machines are by far the best on the market. Mines nearly 7 years old and it works like clockwork.

Doc_N

I'm amazed at these Harveys prices! There's no way that can possibly be justified. The Tapworks softeners are much the same as the Ecowater equivalents, one of which I've been using for almost 20 reliable years without a single repair or service.

Why spend £1000 more than you need to?

Miaou

Doc_N wrote: »

Opinions differ, and I'm no expert at all on the subject. You might want to take a look at this, however, and the full report it links to:

Thanks but even if I believe that soft water won't damage the boiler, I don't want to lose the warranty. Hence my question: can I bypass the boiler? Is it possible or just absurd to consider softening the water after it goes into the boiler?

Doc_N

Miaou wrote: »

Thanks but even if I believe that soft water won't damage the boiler, I don't want to lose the warranty. Hence my question: can I bypass the boiler? Is it possible or just absurd to consider softening the water after it goes into the boiler?

Perfectly possible - with the right plumbing. That's the way mine's set up, with no particular complexity.

southcoastrgi

softnened water must not be connected to a boiler with an aluminum heat exchanger either the cold feed or the filling loop used to fill the heating, it will over a period of time damage the heat exchanger, most WB & ideal boilers fall into this cat although others do as well, you can use a water softner however a feed must be taken off before it goes through the softner so that the boiler is fed by hard water.

fluffymuffy

We had a water softener (a couple of houses back) and a mains pressure cylinder. We needed a sacrificial anode (soft metal rod) bolted into the cylinder which was eroded by the water and replaced every couple of years. It was about an inch in diameter, and 6+ inches long when it went in, and smaller than my little finger when the plumber took it out two years later. There's something about water that has had the lime removed that makes it corrosive to metals.

WendellG

I keep going around in circles reading this thread.

What I have decided is that I must get a non electric meter softener. I would need to change a single socket into a double one to power an electric softener and that would put me into Part P notification, testing and certification - a potentially very expensive electrical rework.

My requirements are:
Non electric, metered, size up to 500mm, must do all boilers, prefer it does both tablet and block salt. Price up to £800

I'm put off the Kinetico as although they look good and small enough, nobody seems to advertise a price. They want to "sell" i.e con you into overpaying for it, and I'd prefer a simpler single tank - fewer things to wrong.

Any suggestions?