Stopping mineral buildup in humidifier, hot water tank etc

[Red Squirrel]

Over time, city water will cause mineral buildup in things like whole house humidifier, water heater etc, due to the various minerals in the water.

I'm getting a new water heater that is going to cost over 5k once I'm done as it's a hybrid one and I'm hiring out the install, so I want it to last a very long time. Thinking of setting up a filter for the water heater and may as well do the humidifier too.

What type of system would be best to prevent such buildup, would a simple RO system be enough? Or what about just carbon filter cartridges that fit into a housing like this?

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/ispring-ispring-hb28b-20-inch-whole-house-water-filter-housing-1-inch-outlet-inlet-heavy-duty/1001487641

Ideally I want a water deionizer, but I don't really find actual products that I can buy, when searching for that.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Water softener??

 

[Red Squirrel]

Was thinking that too. It may be a little overkill though, but I'm finding some for under 1k, and I would have room for it.

 

[WilliamM2]

Was thinking that too. It may be a little overkill though, but I'm finding some for under 1k, and I would have room for it.

I got my Whirlpool softener at a big box store (Lowes), for $350. 30,000 grain. I think they are around $400 now. It's been fine for 15 years. Being single, you could probably go even smaller.

As far as a 5K hybrid water heater. Are you nuts? It will NEVER pay for itself. What a waste.

 

[waffleironhead]

Definitly go for a softener. You should be able to source a waterboss up there. Super easy to install.

 

[iRONic]

That's an expensive upfront cost. A simple flush of vinegar and water solution once a year should be sufficient to prevent scale.

-Turn off power & water supply to the water heater
-Drain water heater through bottom hose attachment
-Hook up a hose & pump between the water inlet attachment
-Use a 5 gallon bucket to mix the vinegar and water in and put the pump inlet hose in that
-Direct the drain hose into a suitable container to dispose of
-Return the water heater to operational condition by filling it before turning the power back on

 

[deadlyapp]

Water softener is the only thing you need. An RO system capable of the flow rate you need would be an astronomical cost (and way overkill).

The best bang for your buck water treatment would be a whole home cartridge and sediment filter, a water softener on your hot line, and an RO on your primary drinking water. Softener on your drinking water strips out some good minerals and RO on hot water is overkill.

 

[WilliamM2]

Water softener is the only thing you need. An RO system capable of the flow rate you need would be an astronomical cost (and way overkill).

The best bang for your buck water treatment would be a whole home cartridge and sediment filter, a water softener on your hot line, and an RO on your primary drinking water. Softener on your drinking water strips out some good minerals and RO on hot water is overkill.

I've never seen a water softener on just the hot line. It's inline before everything but the outside faucets. Unless you like iron stains in your cold water laundry...and your shower, and sinks, etc.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Sounds like water softener is way to go then. Not finding that many options here for those but at least I have an idea what to look into. Was finding lot of RO systems though.

I suppose I could configure it so I can flush it, by adding a tee at the inlet with another valve and a hose connector but I do fear by doing that I may be causing problems more than solving them by possibly forcing sediment in areas that it shouldn't be. Best to avoid the sediment from building up in the first place if I can.

 

[deadlyapp]

I've never seen a water softener on just the hot line. It's inline before everything but the outside faucets. Unless you like iron stains in your cold water laundry...and your shower, and sinks, etc.

I've never been somewhere with heavy iron (is that more present in well water?). Most of the hard water I've dealt with is more from calcium/magnesium salts. You get the build up and hard calcium deposits but none of the rust.

Does a water softener even take out iron?

 

[WilliamM2]

I've never been somewhere with heavy iron (is that more present in well water?). Most of the hard water I've dealt with is more from calcium/magnesium salts. You get the build up and hard calcium deposits but none of the rust.

Does a water softener even take out iron?

Iron is mostly with well water, stains build up very slowly. It's not heavy here. Other miherals will stain as well. So like I said, the softener is usually before eveything, not just hot water.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Yeah in my case it's city water, so it's not necessarily hard, but it does have minerals in it that will build up inside water heater and humidifier. From quick research I think calcium is typically the main culprit.

I even wonder if just a carbon filter would filter that out?

 

[Micrornd]

The key to getting any water treatment system is to have the water analyzed by a lab to see what you need to treat and how bad it is.
The water must be sourced from as close as possible to the point of delivery/connection, and the analysis needs to be done by an independent lab, not someone selling water treatment systems or those grossly inadequate test strips.
The lab can take the sample for you or you can take it and deliver it to them (they will give you the necessary specific guidelines).
Once you have the results back from the lab, then you can determine what equipment you need or more importantly, don't need.
It may be as simple as a filter (specifically for a certain chemical or mineral) or as complex as a special treatment system.
I realize you are on "city" water, so "in theory" you shouldn't need much, but I also don't know how Canadian standards compare to US standards or even if they are nationwide.

 

[Red Squirrel]

That's a little overkill, I'm not running water treatment plant or anything, the water is already treated just trying to clear out minerals for a specific part of the system. There is no life/death situation if it fails either so no sense in paying big bucks for a lab test.

I may just have to experiment, if I boil off water in a pot and keep adding more I should end up with mineral build up. Use that as baseline then try different things.

 

[LurchFrinky]

I think the general consensus is to get a water softener.
But I just wanted to point out that filters are incapable of removing anything that is dissolved, which includes what is generally accepted as "hardness." They are excellent at improving overall water quality, though.
The only things that removes hardness are water softeners, but there are some devices that will keep the hardness from sticking to surfaces. I believe there are a couple of different technologies and one of the simpler ones uses magnets to affect the ions somehow. Sorry, I don't know the names of any of them.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Ok that's what i was looking for, whether or not filters could work instead of softner. Water softners take up a lot of space compared to RO or filter systems so I'm considering that too but if that's absolutely what I need then I'll go with that.

There are magnetic ones that use a coil around a pipe but I would imagine the minerals just accumulate along the pipe so what happens when it's "full"? They need to go somewhere.

 

[waffleironhead]

I still cant figure out why you are concerned by scale in your water heater and are talking about an RO system. Most of those RO systems you are looking at put out a few gallons a day at best and dump like 4-8 gallons of waste water for every treated gallon. They are designed to go under you sink and have their own small storage container for treated water. Full house RO is like $10k and makes maybe 500 gallons a day and will take up more room than a softener.

Seriously, get a whole house filter and a water softener.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I'm finding more RO options in my search so that's why I was asking, since it would be cheaper and take up less space. But if water softener is way to go then I'll go that route.