How water softeners work…
The Minimax M3 Water Softener is a revolutionary water softener. Compact enough to fit under your kitchen sink and supply soft water to your whole house. Simply, it works through an ion exchange process which filters out the minerals in the hard water – leaving you with pure, softened water that benefits you, your health and your home.
The science behind it…
When you book a demonstration with us, we’ll come to your home and test your water before showing you the effect softening the water will have. All of our water softeners also come with a water filter tap, which provides you with pure drinking water.
The ion exchange
The ion exchange is integral to the effectiveness of the water softener. The process involves the resin in your water softener’s twin cylinders which is made of tiny polymeric beads that are specially formulated so that they can be charged with certain ions.
Calcium and magnesium are the causes of scale and scum in hard water, they are referred to as ions. The resin acts as a filter so when water passes through it the calcium and magnesium swap places with the sodium.
Sodium salts are highly soluble, unlike calcium and magnesium, so does not cause scale or scum. When all the sodium ions have been exchanged for calcium or magnesium, the resin must be regenerated by recharging it with sodium ions. This is done by flushing the resin with salt solution (brine).
Our Machines
Our twin cylinder softeners are created so that you always have a constant supply of soft water. The water is softened as it passes through the tank which contains a resin, and then when required, salt is dissolved for the regenerating brine and one cylinder is regenerated while the other continues to serve softened water.
This duplex parallel system is unique to Harvey Water Softeners, the manufacturer of Minimax products. It makes regeneration even more efficient in terms of water usage since softened water is more ideal for the regeneration process (it does not contain calcium and magnesium ions that regeneration removes). There are various ways in which the softener determines when to regenerate – some are fitted with a timer and some regenerate after a pre-set volume of water has been treated.
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Soft water myth busting
There are quite a few myths swimming around about softened water regarding what you can and can’t do with it. We’ve taken some of these and have the real answers for you.
“You can’t drink softened water”
Softened water is safe to drink, there are only a couple of exceptions. People who are on a low sodium diet, prescribed by a doctor, are not advised to drink it and it is also not advised to mix it with baby feeds. Otherwise, it is perfectly safe.
“Softened water tastes salty”
Contrary to popular belief, softened water doesn’t taste salty, the salt is used to soften the resin inside the water softener and doesn’t enter your mains water supply. It is your incoming water supply that will determine the taste.
“You can’t cook with softened water”
Yes, you can cook with softened water. It is actually thought to improve the taste of some foods. The softened water is free from minerals, which helps ingredients keep their flavour.
“You can’t use softened water in hot drinks”
Softened water will actually significantly improve the taste of your hot water drink. When you use hard water in your tea or coffee it mixes with the calcium present in the water and creates a horrible film that floats on the top. With softened water you won’t get any scum!