How much should I be paying for having a water softener supplied and fitted?

JadeHighland

I saved thousands getting advice from here when it came to getting windows. Went local instead of one of the national chains. When it comes to water softeners. I'm seeing units online for £500 to £800 but when I called up a couple people, prices ranged from £2,000 to £5,000! For context, I live in a 2 bedroom house with 1 bathroom. 

silvercar

JadeHighland said:

I saved thousands getting advice from here when it came to getting windows. Went local instead of one of the national chains. When it comes to water softeners. I'm seeing units online for £500 to £800 but when I called up a couple people, prices ranged from £2,000 to £5,000! For context, I live in a 2 bedroom house with 1 bathroom. 

for the first time of having one there will be some plumbing needed to and from the softener and for a divert, but those prices are outrageous. 

Beeblebr0x

I got rid of my Screwfix supplied water softener when I realised it was using 65 litres of water every week or so to regenerate itself.

Mark_d

Our water softener cost around £2000.  That includes installation.  It's a two bedroom flat with two bathrooms.

The water softener makes a huge difference to the health of washing machine, dishwasher...but also makes a noticeable difference when you're having a shower.

The £2000 investment is possibly the best decision we ever made.

silvercar

Beeblebr0x said:

I got rid of my Screwfix supplied water softener when I realised it was using 65 litres of water every week or so to regenerate itself.

If you’re worried by the cost of the water this will be counterbalanced by needing less toiletries eg Shampoo and soaps, less detergents, no need for salt for dishwasher or water softening tabs in the washing machine. Your machines should also last longer. It’s also beneficial for your skin, reducing dry skin conditions including excema 

Albermarle

silvercar said:

Beeblebr0x said:

I got rid of my Screwfix supplied water softener when I realised it was using 65 litres of water every week or so to regenerate itself.

If you’re worried by the cost of the water this will be counterbalanced by needing less toiletries eg Shampoo and soaps, less detergents, no need for salt for dishwasher or water softening tabs in the washing machine. Your machines should also last longer. It’s also beneficial for your skin, reducing dry skin conditions including excema 

However hard water is supposed to be more healthy to drink due to the minerals in it.

By the way, I had never heard of water softening tabs for a washing machine before, and we live in a hard water area.
Never had a problem , but like most people we probably add more detergent than necessary/recommended.

ComicGeek

We 'rent' a water softener from a local company, who did the initial installation and ongoing maintenance/replacement for free. Originally it was £10/month, but now is £20/month 15 years later. Over the 15 years I would estimate that we have spent £2,500, with bags of salt an additional cost of around £10/month. 

During that 15 years we have had 3 replacement water softeners, as they typically have lasted only 3-4 years before needing replacing. There is a significant issue with chlorine (which is used to clean water mains) attacking the resin within water softeners, which reduces the flow rate through the unit. Just something to bear in mind if you have high chlorine levels, as replacing the resin is sometimes possible but not cheap, and in some cases means a brand new softener is required. For us the rental option has worked out much cheaper.

silvercar

ComicGeek said:

We 'rent' a water softener from a local company, who did the initial installation and ongoing maintenance/replacement for free. Originally it was £10/month, but now is £20/month 15 years later. Over the 15 years I would estimate that we have spent £2,500, with bags of salt an additional cost of around £10/month. 

During that 15 years we have had 3 replacement water softeners, as they typically have lasted only 3-4 years before needing replacing. There is a significant issue with chlorine (which is used to clean water mains) attacking the resin within water softeners, which reduces the flow rate through the unit. Just something to bear in mind if you have high chlorine levels, as replacing the resin is sometimes possible but not cheap, and in some cases means a brand new softener is required. For us the rental option has worked out much cheaper.

That’s poor. Our previous one lasted 12 years and I suspect only failed because it was manhandled and got  dusty when we had work done.

nofoollikeold

I've had the same one for 38 years.  It has been repaired once and serviced once.  Things to consider:
1. Where to store the salt.  We buy 10 x 25kg bags at a time.  Stored in a shed.  
2. Make sure that the kitchen cold tap and any outside taps are not on the softened water output.  Slightly raised salt levels are not good for people (specially the very young and the elderly) and not good for plants.
3. Some boiler manufacturers will void the warranty if the primary circuit is filled with softened water.  

WIAWSNB

JadeHighland said:

I saved thousands getting advice from here when it came to getting windows. Went local instead of one of the national chains. When it comes to water softeners. I'm seeing units online for £500 to £800 but when I called up a couple people, prices ranged from £2,000 to £5,000! For context, I live in a 2 bedroom house with 1 bathroom. 

Do you know where it would be installed? A kitchen cupboard, perhaps, or ideally in a ute or garage?
If there is an obvious location, one that has easy access to the incoming mains water, power, and a drain, then an option could be to buy the unit yourself - after carrying out the required research - and getting a local plumber to install it for you. An 'ordinary' plumber would do.
As long as there is a suitable location, then I'd imagine a total price of around £1500 or less should be doable? This should be an easy one-day job.

ComicGeek

silvercar said:

ComicGeek said:

We 'rent' a water softener from a local company, who did the initial installation and ongoing maintenance/replacement for free. Originally it was £10/month, but now is £20/month 15 years later. Over the 15 years I would estimate that we have spent £2,500, with bags of salt an additional cost of around £10/month. 

During that 15 years we have had 3 replacement water softeners, as they typically have lasted only 3-4 years before needing replacing. There is a significant issue with chlorine (which is used to clean water mains) attacking the resin within water softeners, which reduces the flow rate through the unit. Just something to bear in mind if you have high chlorine levels, as replacing the resin is sometimes possible but not cheap, and in some cases means a brand new softener is required. For us the rental option has worked out much cheaper.

That’s poor. Our previous one lasted 12 years and I suspect only failed because it was manhandled and got  dusty when we had work done.

It's the interaction between the chlorine and the resin in the water softener - not poor quality of the softener, but poor management from the water companies that allows high levels of chlorine to be injected in the water system without adequate controls, rather than spending money replacing old mains. We were having spikes in chlorine overnight, which cooincided with the regen cycle and made it worse.

There are some newer models that use resin that doesn't react so much with chlorine, and it is possible in some cases to replace the resin if caught early enough - it costs about £100 for the resin, so is another ongoing cost in high chlorine areas.

If I had bought a water softener myself, then I would have been paying a lot more over the years replacing the resin or replacing the whole unit. Paying the monthly amount has saved me a lot of money in comparison - the rental company can refurbish and maintain the units, so nothing gets thrown away either.