A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)

Somewhere, here?, I got the impression that softening the water more
might lessen the deposits, but it would make the taste worse, and vice
versa. Yes????

Maybe she could fill her water pitcher with the well water, before it
went through the softener. Is there are a chance the water would
taste better then? She says there is no spigot to do that with. The
house was built with loads of bells and whistles. Shouldn't there be a
way to bypass the softener and find out what the water tastes like
unsoftened???

If it did taste better, she'd be willing to pay to put in a spigot and
go to the basement to fill her water bottle. She might even be willing
to run a pipe up to the kitchen counter.

She lives in what was rolling farmland near Finksburg / Westminster
Maryland. Only a quarter mile from one of Baltimore's water
reservoirs. IIRC, Baltimore barely treats its water -- just a little
chlorine and maybe fluoride -- before sending it to homes.

Thanks

On Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 10:40:54 PM UTC-4, micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)

Somewhere, here?, I got the impression that softening the water more
might lessen the deposits, but it would make the taste worse, and vice
versa. Yes????

Maybe she could fill her water pitcher with the well water, before it
went through the softener. Is there are a chance the water would
taste better then? She says there is no spigot to do that with. The
house was built with loads of bells and whistles. Shouldn't there be a
way to bypass the softener and find out what the water tastes like
unsoftened???

If it did taste better, she'd be willing to pay to put in a spigot and
go to the basement to fill her water bottle. She might even be willing
to run a pipe up to the kitchen counter.

She lives in what was rolling farmland near Finksburg / Westminster
Maryland. Only a quarter mile from one of Baltimore's water
reservoirs. IIRC, Baltimore barely treats its water -- just a little
chlorine and maybe fluoride -- before sending it to homes.

Thanks



call the driller who drilled the well for advice. with the right filter the water should be fine

On Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 8:40:54 PM UTC-6, micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)

Somewhere, here?, I got the impression that softening the water more
might lessen the deposits, but it would make the taste worse, and vice
versa. Yes????

Maybe she could fill her water pitcher with the well water, before it
went through the softener. Is there are a chance the water would
taste better then? She says there is no spigot to do that with. The
house was built with loads of bells and whistles. Shouldn't there be a
way to bypass the softener and find out what the water tastes like
unsoftened???

If it did taste better, she'd be willing to pay to put in a spigot and
go to the basement to fill her water bottle. She might even be willing
to run a pipe up to the kitchen counter.

She lives in what was rolling farmland near Finksburg / Westminster
Maryland. Only a quarter mile from one of Baltimore's water
reservoirs. IIRC, Baltimore barely treats its water -- just a little
chlorine and maybe fluoride -- before sending it to homes.

Thanks

The outside tap is usually not on the softened water line but is purposely
routed from the water intake line before the softener. Nobody wants to waste treated and conditioned water and that is the reason. If she wants untreated
water just get it from the outside tap. Come winter this will not be possible.
Big jugs of water from the supermarkets sell for $2 to $5...that also works.

On Thu, 30 Apr 2015 20:43:56 -0700 (PDT), Roy
wrote:

On Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 8:40:54 PM UTC-6, micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)

Somewhere, here?, I got the impression that softening the water more
might lessen the deposits, but it would make the taste worse, and vice
versa. Yes????

Maybe she could fill her water pitcher with the well water, before it
went through the softener. Is there are a chance the water would
taste better then? She says there is no spigot to do that with. The
house was built with loads of bells and whistles. Shouldn't there be a
way to bypass the softener and find out what the water tastes like
unsoftened???

If it did taste better, she'd be willing to pay to put in a spigot and
go to the basement to fill her water bottle. She might even be willing
to run a pipe up to the kitchen counter.

She lives in what was rolling farmland near Finksburg / Westminster
Maryland. Only a quarter mile from one of Baltimore's water
reservoirs. IIRC, Baltimore barely treats its water -- just a little
chlorine and maybe fluoride -- before sending it to homes.

Thanks

The outside tap is usually not on the softened water line but is purposely
routed from the water intake line before the softener. Nobody wants to waste treated and conditioned water and that is the reason.

Ugh. I should have thought of that! Maybe it was in the back of my
mind when I thought there would be a tap in the basement.

If she wants untreated
water just get it from the outside tap. Come winter this will not be possible.
Big jugs of water from the supermarkets sell for $2 to $5...that also works.


Thanks,

Separate answer
call the driller who drilled the well for advice. with the right filter the water should be fine

I'm sure his name is on the pump or someplace nearby.

And thanks Bob.

cc: water drinker

micky wrote:
On Thu, 30 Apr 2015 20:43:56 -0700 (PDT), Roy
wrote:

On Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 8:40:54 PM UTC-6, micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)

Somewhere, here?, I got the impression that softening the water more
might lessen the deposits, but it would make the taste worse, and vice
versa. Yes????

Maybe she could fill her water pitcher with the well water, before it
went through the softener. Is there are a chance the water would
taste better then? She says there is no spigot to do that with. The
house was built with loads of bells and whistles. Shouldn't there be a
way to bypass the softener and find out what the water tastes like
unsoftened???

If it did taste better, she'd be willing to pay to put in a spigot and
go to the basement to fill her water bottle. She might even be willing
to run a pipe up to the kitchen counter.

She lives in what was rolling farmland near Finksburg / Westminster
Maryland. Only a quarter mile from one of Baltimore's water
reservoirs. IIRC, Baltimore barely treats its water -- just a little
chlorine and maybe fluoride -- before sending it to homes.

Thanks

The outside tap is usually not on the softened water line but is purposely
routed from the water intake line before the softener. Nobody wants to waste treated and conditioned water and that is the reason.

Ugh. I should have thought of that! Maybe it was in the back of my
mind when I thought there would be a tap in the basement.

If she wants untreated
water just get it from the outside tap. Come winter this will not be possible.
Big jugs of water from the supermarkets sell for $2 to $5...that also works.


Thanks,

Separate answer
call the driller who drilled the well for advice. with the right filter the water should be fine

I'm sure his name is on the pump or someplace nearby.

And thanks Bob.

cc: water drinker

Have the water tested to know exactly what's what.
Here we can have it tested by local government free.
We just send in the sample for testing.

On Thu, 30 Apr 2015 22:11:05 -0600, Tony Hwang wrote:


Thanks,

Separate answer
call the driller who drilled the well for advice. with the right filter the water should be fine

I'm sure his name is on the pump or someplace nearby.

And thanks Bob.

cc: water drinker

Have the water tested to know exactly what's what.
Here we can have it tested by local government free.
We just send in the sample for testing.

There is a certain type of bacteria that can contaminate wells. It will
cause what looks like a brown/greenish slime inside the toilet tank.
(like algie). It makes the water taste like sulfur. (nasty).

I ran across this when I worked as a plumber. I was sent to the job
because the toilet was running all the time, and some faucets in the
house barely had water. Since most of my jobs were in a city, I was
puzzled when I saw all that slime in the toilet tank, and in faucet
strainers, and everywhere else in the plumbing. My boss came out and
even he was not sure what was the cause. The homeowner said they did not
drink the water because ut tasted reak bad. A well driller was called
and he determined it was this bacteria. (I cant recall the name of it).

He had to do something to treat the well, (I was not there). After that
the water was clear and the homeowner said it tasted good again. But we
had to replace all the toilet ballocks and some other stuff.

Yes, unsoftened water usually tastes better and is better for you. My
well where I live now has very hard water, but tastes great. I dont use
a softener. I get orange (rust) stains in the toilet, but "The Works"
cleans it away. It really dont cause me any other problems.

Adding a faucet anywhere should not be a big deal. Cut the pipe, add a
tee, and a faucet! Add one in the basement onto the pipes that feed the
outdoor spigot. Pipe it up to the kitchen if you want. They do sell
sinks with 3 holes just for that purpose. If it's stainless steel, cit
an extra hole with a drill and/or hole cutter (which is often sold for
making larger holes in electrical boxes). Made by "Greenley" (I think
that's the name of the company????)

On Thu, 30 Apr 2015 22:40:51 -0400, micky
wrote:

A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)


First thing to check is to see if the softener is working. Softening
eliminates the minerals and thus, the deposits. You can take a sample
to anyone that sells softeners or water treatment and they will test
it for you. Or you can buy a test kit and DIY.

The water treatment company can make recommendations. She may need a
carbon filter for the taste aspects. RO systems are available too.

On 4/30/2015 10:40 PM, micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)

Somewhere, here?, I got the impression that softening the water more
might lessen the deposits, but it would make the taste worse, and vice
versa. Yes????

Maybe she could fill her water pitcher with the well water, before it
went through the softener. Is there are a chance the water would
taste better then? She says there is no spigot to do that with. The
house was built with loads of bells and whistles. Shouldn't there be a
way to bypass the softener and find out what the water tastes like
unsoftened???

If it did taste better, she'd be willing to pay to put in a spigot and
go to the basement to fill her water bottle. She might even be willing
to run a pipe up to the kitchen counter.

She lives in what was rolling farmland near Finksburg / Westminster
Maryland. Only a quarter mile from one of Baltimore's water
reservoirs. IIRC, Baltimore barely treats its water -- just a little
chlorine and maybe fluoride -- before sending it to homes.

Thanks


I don't treat mine and it tastes fine but wife does not like it because
sitting in a container will show sediment. I have a sediment filter but
apparently something occurs to precipitate minerals on standing.
Plumber tested my water for free as he might have gotten the job to put
in a softener. I thought results were borderline and did nothing.
Actually for those with heart conditions softened water with high sodium
is worse to drink.

Softeners exchange calcium for sodium and should not effect taste.
Carbon filters or reverse osmosis could get rid of bad taste.

I've got neighbors that have bottled water delivered but wife buys
bottled when she wants water to just drink.

[snipppppp .. regarding a sulfur smell
and lots of slime in well water]

There is a certain type of bacteria that can contaminate wells. It will
cause what looks like a brown/greenish slime inside the toilet tank.
(like algie). It makes the water taste like sulfur. (nasty).
...
He had to do something to treat the well, (I was not there). After that
the water was clear and the homeowner said it tasted good again. But we
had to replace all the toilet ballocks and some other stuff.

lots of good info:

http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/e...rosulfide.html



--
__________________________________________________ ___
Knowledge may be power, but communications is the key

[to foil spammers, my address has been double rot-13 encoded]

On Fri, 01 May 2015 05:32:51 -0700, Frank "frank wrote:

....snip....
Actually for those with heart conditions softened water with high sodium
is worse to drink.

Softeners exchange calcium for sodium and should not effect taste.
Carbon filters or reverse osmosis could get rid of bad taste.

I've got neighbors that have bottled water delivered but wife buys
bottled when she wants water to just drink.

My test for water, besides taste is to make coffee or tea and watch. In
the city of San Jose, CA the tap water creates 'sludge' on the sides of
our tea pot and huge amounts of sludge on the coffee put, worse, the
coffee has a 'fishy' taste to it. Absolutely discusting!

Now, using the well water here in AZ, [Note the water comes from an
aquifer over 600 ft down and is notably hard, leaving white powder upon
drying EVERYWHERE!] Upon making coffee/tea there is no sludge and the
taste is ok. However *if* the coffee sits for a while, like 6 hours,
develops 'fishy' taste, so avoid doing unless emergency, when run ou of
bottled water.

For bottled water, we use Crystal Geyser bottled water because it
satisfies thirst, has NO measurable sodium. [at least that is my
understanding] Plus, left over coffee can be reheated days later and still
tastes great.

Distilled water also works for coffee/tea, but often because the distilled
water has sat for so long, the coffee/tea has a peculiar taste, like
plastic. Importantly, it is my undertanding, don't drink distilled water.

On 5/1/2015 9:05 AM, RobertMacy wrote:
On Fri, 01 May 2015 05:32:51 -0700, Frank "frank wrote:

....snip....
Actually for those with heart conditions softened water with high
sodium is worse to drink.

Softeners exchange calcium for sodium and should not effect taste.
Carbon filters or reverse osmosis could get rid of bad taste.

I've got neighbors that have bottled water delivered but wife buys
bottled when she wants water to just drink.

My test for water, besides taste is to make coffee or tea and watch. In
the city of San Jose, CA the tap water creates 'sludge' on the sides of
our tea pot and huge amounts of sludge on the coffee put, worse, the
coffee has a 'fishy' taste to it. Absolutely discusting!

Now, using the well water here in AZ, [Note the water comes from an
aquifer over 600 ft down and is notably hard, leaving white powder upon
drying EVERYWHERE!] Upon making coffee/tea there is no sludge and the
taste is ok. However *if* the coffee sits for a while, like 6 hours,
develops 'fishy' taste, so avoid doing unless emergency, when run ou of
bottled water.

For bottled water, we use Crystal Geyser bottled water because it
satisfies thirst, has NO measurable sodium. [at least that is my
understanding] Plus, left over coffee can be reheated days later and
still tastes great.

Distilled water also works for coffee/tea, but often because the
distilled water has sat for so long, the coffee/tea has a peculiar
taste, like plastic. Importantly, it is my undertanding, don't drink
distilled water.



You get some minerals you need from water and distilled water of course
has none.

My wife has no problem with taste and cooks or makes tea with our well
water but just does not drink the pure stuff because of deposits.

I'll figure it out but there may be an oxidation phenomenon that makes
less soluble salts.

Years ago when my mother and father were alive, they would often come to
our house for drinking water as sometimes the city water had off taste.
I worked in the city and could not stand the chlorine taste and odor
of the tap water at times.

On 04/30/2015 08:40 PM, micky wrote:
IIRC, Baltimore barely treats its water -- just a little
chlorine and maybe fluoride -- before sending it to homes.

That explains a lot. I always figured there was something in the water.

micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)
....

she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be. drinking treated/softened water is not good
for you (added salts or other minerals). there should
be either a RO unit or an untreated line for drinking
water or the plumber was on crack.

drinking RO water all the time isn't that good for
a person either. your body needs minerals to keep
the bones strong, if it doesn't get enough it will
start pulling them from the bones.

well water that tastes a little like iron is better
than nothing. those pitchers with the filters on
them will take care of the off taste. i don't mind it
so drink it untreated.


songbird

Years ago when my mother and father were alive, they would often come to
our house for drinking water as sometimes the city water had off taste.
I worked in the city and could not stand the chlorine taste and odor
of the tap water at times.

I find that if you take city tap water and simply leave it in a container in the fridge for about 1 day, the chlorine smell/taste goes away.

Mark

On Fri, 01 May 2015 06:05:39 -0700, RobertMacy
wrote:


For bottled water, we use Crystal Geyser bottled water because it

I tried Crystal Geyser, but the bottle blew up and left pieces of glass
all over the kitchen.

Every 44 minutes


satisfies thirst, has NO measurable sodium. [at least that is my
understanding] Plus, left over coffee can be reheated

RobertMacy writes:
On Fri, 01 May 2015 05:32:51 -0700, Frank "frank wrote:

....snip....
Actually for those with heart conditions softened water with high sodium
is worse to drink.

Softeners exchange calcium for sodium and should not effect taste.
Carbon filters or reverse osmosis could get rid of bad taste.

I've got neighbors that have bottled water delivered but wife buys
bottled when she wants water to just drink.

My test for water, besides taste is to make coffee or tea and watch. In
the city of San Jose, CA the tap water creates 'sludge' on the sides of
our tea pot and huge amounts of sludge on the coffee put, worse, the
coffee has a 'fishy' taste to it. Absolutely discusting!

That would be disgusting, I imagine. Not all parts of San Jose
are on the same water system; santa teresa is on well water, and
while hard, it's quite tasty.

| Yes, unsoftened water usually tastes better and is better for you. My
| well where I live now has very hard water, but tastes great.

I'm not so sure those are accurate generalizations. If
it were me I'd want to test the water, as Tony said, before
deciding to drink it on a regular basis without filtering.
Manganese, for instance, is associated with nerve damage.
And local well water could contain just about anything.
I also don't see any reason to think that hard water is
better for you. If you eat decent food and get minerals
that you need, then why would non-organic minerals
dissolved in water necessarily be "better for you"?

I once lived in Arizona. Hard water. Salty. Terrible taste.
I now live near Boston. Soft water. Delicious. A top-rated
water system. Yet Cambridge, which is next to Boston,
has separate reservoirs and has some of the worst water
I've tasted. It's both salty and "swampy". The flavor is not
removed by water filters such as Britta. When I work in
Cambridge I try to bring enough water for the day, so that
I won't have to drink Cambridge water. Their reservoir gets
lots of leaves and then gets treated with lots of copper
sulfate. When I once lived there I was told that about 1/3
of the delivery pipes were lead and that some are oak. It
might start out good but several factors affect it along
the way.

In another local town, Woburn, there was a famous case
of cancer clusters due to trichloroethane from industrial
sources that migrated to local wells.

Another possible risk with well water is radon gas, especially
if there's granite bedrock. Radon has been estimated to
be a cause of lung cancer in possibly 20% of cases. It
can come up with the water and then be spread in the
air when taking a shower.

Different water supplies. Very different issues with the water,
and big differences in flavor, none of which has much to do
with soft vs hard.

On 2015-05-01, micky wrote:


water doesn't taste good.

Sounds like the well water we had back in CA. Terrible stuff! Almost
undrinkable. Even Kool-Aid wouldn't help.

Try letting the water stand in the refrigerator over night. If that
doesn't help, try a filter, like Brita. If all else fails, there's
bottled water filter stations most everywhere. Bring yer own jugs.

nb

| I've got neighbors that have bottled water delivered but wife buys
| bottled when she wants water to just drink.

I'm not aware of any regulations on bottled water.
Where I live, at least, I know that it can be legally
sold in a bottle marked "Crystal Spring Water" having
been filled out of any old tap. And then there's the
question of possible chemicals leeching in from the
plastic bottles. It's fine when local water is not safe,
but the idea of bottled water being superior is a
case of marketing overwhelming common sense.

A great example is Dasani, from Coca Cola. In many
cases it's just filtered local water with minerals
added back in. They don't even pretend otherwise!

----------------------------------
Expertly Designed Water
In designing DASANI to be the best tasting water, we start with the local
water supply, which is then filtered by reverse osmosis to remove
impurities. The purified water is then enhanced with a special blend of
minerals for the pure, crisp, fresh taste that’s delightfully DASANI.

http://www.dasani.com/
----------------------------

A lot of fancy talk to say, "We're charging you an arm
and a leg for your own water, sucker."

In some cases it's reportedly water
from India, which created a water crisis there because
Coca Cola was taking too much of it. Yet yuppies go
and pay ridiculous prices at their health clubs because
the bottles look good and the name sounds stylish.

On Fri, 1 May 2015 11:00:43 -0400, "Mayayana"
wrote:


I'm not aware of any regulations on bottled water.
Where I live, at least, I know that it can be legally
sold in a bottle marked "Crystal Spring Water" having
been filled out of any old tap. And then there's the
question of possible chemicals leeching in from the
plastic bottles. It's fine when local water is not safe,
but the idea of bottled water being superior is a
case of marketing overwhelming common sense.

True. And bottled water costs about 100,000 times as much as water from
the tap. Literally 100,000.

On Fri, 1 May 2015 09:42:06 -0400, songbird
wrote:

micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)
...

she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be.

I've never heard this before.

Does anyone else agree with this?

drinking treated/softened water is not good
for you (added salts or other minerals). there should
be either a RO unit or an untreated line for drinking
water or the plumber was on crack.

drinking RO water all the time isn't that good for
a person either. your body needs minerals to keep
the bones strong, if it doesn't get enough it will
start pulling them from the bones.

well water that tastes a little like iron is better
than nothing. those pitchers with the filters on
them will take care of the off taste. i don't mind it
so drink it untreated.


songbird

On Friday, May 1, 2015 at 11:56:20 AM UTC-4, micky wrote:
she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be.

I've never heard this before.

Does anyone else agree with this?


Where I grew up in the midwest it was standard practice to put the softener only on the hot water side. So your outside faucets would be hard (so the salt didn't kill the grass) and the cold side of your kitchen sink.

When I worked in a hospital we were told never to make coffee from the hot water side, because the salt in it could be unhealthy.

I don't know if they still do that. It's not common where I live on the East coast.

On 05/01/2015 12:21 AM, wrote:

[snip]


I am in SW Florida where the city water sucks and my well water is
just nasty. (Sulfur, minerals, salt water intrusion etc)
We run it through an aerator, water softener, filter and then a
reverse osmosis unit.
It is as good as bottled water then.


I grew up on a farm in east Texas, and we used a well. The water was
really good for drinking but bad for washing (it took a LOT of rinsing
to get the soap out). The water looked like weak beer (especially when
it hadn't been used for awhile). My grandmother said it had been tested
and had iron in it, but a filter would be too expensive.

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to
realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first." -- Ronald
Reagan

micky writes:
On Fri, 1 May 2015 09:42:06 -0400, songbird
wrote:

micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)
...

she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be.

I've never heard this before.

Does anyone else agree with this?

drinking treated/softened water is not good
for you (added salts or other minerals). there should
be either a RO unit or an untreated line for drinking
water or the plumber was on crack.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-li...m/faq-20058469

On Fri, 01 May 2015 12:45:55 -0400, Laine
wrote:

micky wrote:

On Fri, 1 May 2015 09:42:06 -0400, songbird
wrote:

she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be.

I've never heard this before.

Does anyone else agree with this?

Yes.

I live in an area where everyone has wells. Leaving at least one water
line unsoftened if you have a water softening system is SOP. And it's
normally the kitchen, AFAIK. (I don't have a softener, but some of the
neighbors do.)

Well, she bought the house from the guy who designed and built it for
himself, so who knows what he did. I'll send her a copy of this.

TimR wrote:
Where I grew up in the midwest it was standard practice to put the softener only on the hot water side. So your outside faucets would be hard (so the salt didn't kill the grass) and the cold side of your kitchen sink.

When I worked in a hospital we were told never to make coffee from the hot water side, because the salt in it could be unhealthy.

I don't know if they still do that. It's not common where I live on the East coast.

Thanks to you both.

On Fri, 01 May 2015 11:15:16 -0500, Mark Lloyd wrote:

On 05/01/2015 12:21 AM, wrote:

[snip]


I am in SW Florida where the city water sucks and my well water is
just nasty. (Sulfur, minerals, salt water intrusion etc)
We run it through an aerator, water softener, filter and then a
reverse osmosis unit.
It is as good as bottled water then.


I grew up on a farm in east Texas, and we used a well. The water was
really good for drinking but bad for washing (it took a LOT of rinsing
to get the soap out). The water looked like weak beer (especially when
it hadn't been used for awhile). My grandmother said it had been tested
and had iron in it, but a filter would be too expensive.

Iron builds strong bones. Much better than that calcium stuff God
usually uses for mass-produced humans. .

On Fri, 01 May 2015 17:12:41 GMT, (Scott Lurndal)
wrote:

micky writes:
On Fri, 1 May 2015 09:42:06 -0400, songbird
wrote:

micky wrote:
A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)
...

she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be.

I've never heard this before.

Does anyone else agree with this?

drinking treated/softened water is not good
for you (added salts or other minerals). there should
be either a RO unit or an untreated line for drinking
water or the plumber was on crack.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-li...m/faq-20058469

Thanks.

I just got an email from her and she says instead of drinking water,
she's going to drink rum. So her problem is solved.


Just kidding.

On 5/1/2015 9:51 AM, wrote:


Years ago when my mother and father were alive, they would often come to
our house for drinking water as sometimes the city water had off taste.
I worked in the city and could not stand the chlorine taste and odor
of the tap water at times.

I find that if you take city tap water and simply leave it in a container in the fridge for about 1 day, the chlorine smell/taste goes away.

Mark


Chlorine will go away by evaporation or oxidizing other stuff in the
water. City water here came from streams that sometimes got
contaminated by phenolic compounds which would get chlorinated, remain
in the water and make it taste worse. That's when Mom and Dad would get
my water.

On Friday, May 1, 2015 at 1:51:17 PM UTC-4, Frank wrote:
I find that if you take city tap water and simply leave it in a container in the fridge for about 1 day, the chlorine smell/taste goes away.

Mark


Chlorine will go away by evaporation or oxidizing other stuff in the
water. City water here came from streams that sometimes got
contaminated by phenolic compounds which would get chlorinated, remain
in the water and make it taste worse. That's when Mom and Dad would get

In many cities including mine, chlorine is no longer used as the disinfectant for water. That is because it can react with organics in the water and produce trihalomethanes, and there are EPA limits on how much of those can be present.

So it has been replaced by chloramine, a combination of chlorine and ammonia. This is a weaker disinfectant but it persists much longer - no way it's gone in a day, it may be there a week.

But it shouldn't smell at all. If properly mixed it is all monochloramine and has no smell. If it smells of chlorine it has some dichloramine in it and it has less disinfectant qualities. If it smells medicinal then it has gone to trichloramine and it doesn't disinfect at all.

Mayayana wrote:
I've got neighbors that have bottled water delivered but wife buys
bottled when she wants water to just drink.

I'm not aware of any regulations on bottled water.
Where I live, at least, I know that it can be legally
sold in a bottle marked "Crystal Spring Water" having
been filled out of any old tap. And then there's the
question of possible chemicals leeching in from the
plastic bottles. It's fine when local water is not safe,
but the idea of bottled water being superior is a
case of marketing overwhelming common sense.

+1

One locally (central Florida) popular water (neighbors used to buy it)
states right on the bottle, "Bottled from the Dallas, TX municipal water
supply".

--

dadiOH
____________________________

Winters getting colder? Tired of the rat race?
Taxes out of hand? Maybe just ready for a change?
Check it out... http://www.floridaloghouse.net

TimR wrote:
On Friday, May 1, 2015 at 11:56:20 AM UTC-4, micky wrote:
she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be.

I've never heard this before.

Does anyone else agree with this?


Where I grew up in the midwest it was standard practice to put the
softener only on the hot water side. So your outside faucets would
be hard (so the salt didn't kill the grass) and the cold side of your
kitchen sink.

When I worked in a hospital we were told never to make coffee from
the hot water side, because the salt in it could be unhealthy.

Softening water does not but salt in it. Sodium, yes; sodium chlorite, no.

--

dadiOH
____________________________

Winters getting colder? Tired of the rat race?
Taxes out of hand? Maybe just ready for a change?
Check it out... http://www.floridaloghouse.net

On 5/1/2015 10:04 AM, micky wrote:
On Fri, 01 May 2015 06:05:39 -0700, RobertMacy
wrote:


For bottled water, we use Crystal Geyser bottled water because it

I tried Crystal Geyser, but the bottle blew up and left pieces of glass
all over the kitchen.

Every 44 minutes


I read your post this morning. Nearly
choked to death. Very well done, sir!

-
..
Christopher A. Young
learn more about Jesus
.. www.lds.org
..
..

On 5/1/2015 3:35 PM, dadiOH wrote:
TimR wrote:
On Friday, May 1, 2015 at 11:56:20 AM UTC-4, micky wrote:
she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be.

I've never heard this before.

Does anyone else agree with this?


Where I grew up in the midwest it was standard practice to put the
softener only on the hot water side. So your outside faucets would
be hard (so the salt didn't kill the grass) and the cold side of your
kitchen sink.

When I worked in a hospital we were told never to make coffee from
the hot water side, because the salt in it could be unhealthy.

Softening water does not but salt in it. Sodium, yes; sodium chlorite, no.


The nutritional/health requirement is based on sodium no matter what the
anion is.

| $3.27 + $5.85 a thousand gallons for the first 6000 (.92 cents a
| gallon)and $4.09 for the next 3000 (.994 cents a gallon) where the
| sewer gets capped.
| The water gets more expensive tho.
|
| I can buy a gallon of bottled water at the grocery store for 69 cents.
| 35 .5l bottles (about 4.4 gallons) is $4-5 at Sams
|
| !00,000 times? Not hardly, more like 70-80 times as much.

On the other hand, $2 for 16 oz. is not an unusual
way to buy it. Nearly everyone I know will buy a
bottle when they're out and about, rather than carrying
water with them. I even often see people buy a bottle
in a sandwhich shop rather than ask for a glass of water
that's made available. They feel like they're buying an
official drink to go with their meal. A glass of water just
isn't official enough. That's $16/gallon, which is more than
1,600 times the cost you quote. That may not be 100,000
time as much, but it's getting up there. Now, say you're
stuck in an airport terminal and want to buy an 8 oz
bottle....

(I haven't actually flown since 9/11, but I've been told
that one of the current scams is that one cannot carry
more than 3 oz of liquid. Apparently a lot of planes are
blown up with shampoo. But once one has passed the
security gauntlet one can buy bottled water to take on
the plane. I can only guess what they charge that
captive audience.)

Frank "frank writes:
On 5/1/2015 3:35 PM, dadiOH wrote:
TimR wrote:
On Friday, May 1, 2015 at 11:56:20 AM UTC-4, micky wrote:
she needs to trace the lines and make sure that the
kitchen sink is not treated/softened water. it should
not be.

I've never heard this before.

Does anyone else agree with this?


Where I grew up in the midwest it was standard practice to put the
softener only on the hot water side. So your outside faucets would
be hard (so the salt didn't kill the grass) and the cold side of your
kitchen sink.

When I worked in a hospital we were told never to make coffee from
the hot water side, because the salt in it could be unhealthy.

Softening water does not but salt in it. Sodium, yes; sodium chlorite, no.


The nutritional/health requirement is based on sodium no matter what the
anion is.

And, of course, the sodium chloride salt is 40% sodium, by weight.

That said, there is not enough sodium ions added by conditioning to
have a health effect on anyone other than the most sodium constrained
patients. Within the healthy adult guidelines of 2.5g/day, the
10s of milligrams of sodium in conditioned water is in the noise,
unless you drink hundreds of gallons a day.

On 5/1/2015 12:21 AM, wrote:
On Thu, 30 Apr 2015 22:40:51 -0400, micky
wrote:

A friend bought a house that is only 2 or 3 years old, with a well.

She has a softener, but the water still leaves deposits on the shower
door, and on glasses after they're washed. And at the same time the
water doesn't taste good. (In her previous home she drank water from
the tap, after it went through some filter that screwed to the kitchen
faucet.)

Somewhere, here?, I got the impression that softening the water more
might lessen the deposits, but it would make the taste worse, and vice
versa. Yes????

Maybe she could fill her water pitcher with the well water, before it
went through the softener. Is there are a chance the water would
taste better then? She says there is no spigot to do that with. The
house was built with loads of bells and whistles. Shouldn't there be a
way to bypass the softener and find out what the water tastes like
unsoftened???

If it did taste better, she'd be willing to pay to put in a spigot and
go to the basement to fill her water bottle. She might even be willing
to run a pipe up to the kitchen counter.

She lives in what was rolling farmland near Finksburg / Westminster
Maryland. Only a quarter mile from one of Baltimore's water
reservoirs. IIRC, Baltimore barely treats its water -- just a little
chlorine and maybe fluoride -- before sending it to homes.

Thanks

I am in SW Florida where the city water sucks and my well water is
just nasty. (Sulfur, minerals, salt water intrusion etc)
We run it through an aerator, water softener, filter and then a
reverse osmosis unit.
It is as good as bottled water then.


I use an r/o system and the water is better than bottled, and cheaper.
Tap water here is undrinkable.

On Fri, 01 May 2015 15:33:28 -0400, wrote:

On Fri, 01 May 2015 11:38:16 -0400, micky
wrote:

True. And bottled water costs about 100,000 times as much as water from
the tap. Literally 100,000.

I know this is true, I read it on the internet.

It was the tv, but I may have been misled.

The fact is over 3 orders of magnitude from this assertion, at least
here.
"City" water is almost a penny a gallon when you factor in the sewer,
that you pay based on water use.

http://www.leegov.com/gov/dept/Utili.../UserFees.aspx

$3.27 + $5.85 a thousand gallons for the first 6000 (.92 cents a
gallon)and $4.09 for the next 3000 (.994 cents a gallon) where the
sewer gets capped.

I only pay 1/400 of the cost of the water I use. Of course I also pay
1/400th of the cost of the water 399 other families use. But that all
means that what I myself use has no effect on my water bill, and also,
if the bill is itemized, like specifying a sewer charge, I never see it.

The upshot is that I can drink 800 gallons of water and only pay for 2.
I guess that takes me about 3 years.


The water gets more expensive tho.

I can buy a gallon of bottled water at the grocery store for 69 cents.
35 .5l bottles (about 4.4 gallons) is $4-5 at Sams

!00,000 times? Not hardly, more like 70-80 times as much.

In "Mayayana" writes:

isn't official enough. That's $16/gallon, which is more than
1,600 times the cost you quote. That may not be 100,000
time as much, but it's getting up there. Now, say you're
stuck in an airport terminal and want to buy an 8 oz
bottle....

(I haven't actually flown since 9/11, but I've been told
that one of the current scams is that one cannot carry
more than 3 oz of liquid.

you can bring an _empty_ water bottle past the TSA
checkpoint, then fill it up at a water fountain
in the secured zone.


--
__________________________________________________ ___
Knowledge may be power, but communications is the key

[to foil spammers, my address has been double rot-13 encoded]

| (I haven't actually flown since 9/11, but I've been told
| that one of the current scams is that one cannot carry
| more than 3 oz of liquid.
|
| you can bring an _empty_ water bottle past the TSA
| checkpoint, then fill it up at a water fountain
| in the secured zone.

I've heard that. Yet people buy the water. It's as
though we've been gradually trained to feel that if
it's not a retail experience it's not any experience at
all.

| Apples and oranges. Now you are talking about the price of a "one off"
| purchase from high mark up retailer. If you compare Desani to Pepsi,
| you are saying a couple of tablespoons of sugar is worth buck more
| too.
|
It was meant as a joke. The idea of debating 100,000
times vs 70-80 times seemed a bit silly.... Whether it's
100,000 times, 1,600 times or 70 times the cost, it's still
an absurd waste to buy bottled water in a 1st-world
country with plenty of drinkable, tested water available
out of the tap, and with no reason to think that the bottled
water is particularly good, or even as safe as one's own
tap water.

| BTW do you carry a canteen around? Would anyone?
|

Yes, I do. Why not? I generally have a quart Gatorade
bottle full of water. It's strong, non-BPA plastic and the
bottle costs about $2 vs $10-$30 for special, high-tech,
official water bottles that people carry to the gym or
on bikes.

I wonder why anyone *wouldn't*. I don't see many
water fountains these days. If I'm going out for a few
hours, regardless of where I'm going, I'm going to get
thirsty. So why not bring some water? Do you just buy
sodas everywhere you go? Two bucks for a concoction
of acid, water, sugar and who-knows-what flavoring?
Why would anyone do that?

Or maybe you're one of the people supporting the bottled
water industry, with empty 12 oz and 16 oz bottles strewn
around your house and car? If so then I'd like to show you
my collection of pet rocks and twigs. They make great
companions and I'm selling them cheap... For a limited
time only!!! The pebbles start at a mere $35 and come
with an official certificate declaring them to be official
pebbles. You don't want to miss this deal! And it's 10%
off if you buy a dozen or more. In fact, this week only
I'm selling a whole wheelbarrow full for only $3,400. (Plus
a shipping and handling fee of $637.42) I'll throw in 6
steak knives and a slicer-dicer for free!!!

I always bring my Gatorade bottle to work, as well.
I can drink up to 1/2 gallon some days at work. If I'm
working in the summer at a place with no water available,
or where the water is bad quality, I often bring 2 bottles.
I take a bottle in the truck whenever I go out. Who
wouldn't?

But you've got me wondering now. If it's never occured
to the majority of the population that they can carry liquids
with them on their travels then there might be a great
business opportunity here. I won't even need to put water
in bottles in order to sell them. I can sell them as official
*portable* containers! I imagine it won't be hard to get
a UL seal and all that other official stuff. I can't believe
no one else has thought of this. And the marketing will
be easy:

"Tired of the tyranny of $3 drinks at theaters?... Sick
of searching high and low for a water fountain at the mall?
.... Frustrated with trying to find a convenience store on
the Interstate when you're thirsty?... Well, suffer no more!
Now there's the new Acme Portable Container! In 4 different
sizes for all occasions!"

Then I'll warn people that, due to germ risks, the bottles
shouldn't be used more than 3 times. That'll take care of
that pesky saturated market problem.