If you are looking for the best salt free water softeners, you’re in the right place! We’ve taken the time to do the research and read endless articles to provide you with our top choices! These are a great choice and alternative to sodium and chemical based systems and provide you with just as good results!
In these next few paragraphs I’ll review my top picks, go over some benefits of salt-free systems, answer the question of “do they actually work” and then follow up with my recommendation.
Salt Free Water Softener Reviews
Contents
Here is a list of the best salt free water softeners that you can get for your home.
Nuvo H2O DPHB Home Salt Free Water Softener System
The Nuvo H20 DPHB is whole house salt free water softener capable of filtering about 35,000 gallons of water per cartridge. Nuvo H20 is a Better Business Bureau accredited business and is FDA approved as well NSF certified. They are one of the most popular brands of salt free water softeners on the market today. Nuvo has designed a few different water softeners each made specifically for different sized homes. The Nuvo H2O DPHB Home system is specifically designed for average sized homes that are between 1,000 and 2,000 square feet and will provides enough water flow for you not even to notice a difference in your homes water pressure.
The Nuvo H2O DPHB home softener uses a process known as chelation to disarm some of the harmful impurities and particles found in your water source. The most popular of these impurities and particles is magnesium and calcium, which are known to cause hard water. The Nuvo H2O DPHB uses replaceable cartridges that will last for approximately 1 year depending on use, or 35,000 gallons of conditioned water, whichever comes first. The installation process on the Nuvo H20 DPHB is very simple installation and in most cases will not require a call to the plumber. They provide you with all of the necessary mounting components, screws, as well as a specialty wrench for changing out the cartridges. I’d recommend the Nuvo H2O if you’re looking for a whole house, salt free water conditioner.
Clearwave Electronic Water Softener System
The Clearwave Electronic water softener is a unique salt-free system that does not use filters or cartridges to soften your water. Overtime, calcium causes scale buildup on your hot water heater, appliances, plumbing and faucets causing them to eventually break down and fail. In a traditional water softener these calcium particles are removed and replaced with things like sodium or potassium, or some salt-free softeners use a process known as chelation to disarm these harmful particles. The Clearwave uses a completely different approach. The Clearwave Electronic Water Softening system creates a series of inaudible waveforms that cause the calcium crystals to flow right through the pipes, appliances and faucets without sticking. This also causes the existing scale to break down over time.
Since the Clearwave doesn’t use any type of filter, cartridge or chemicals, it’s practically no maintenance and very easy on the wallet. Once installed, it is out of site and out of mind! Which does make it an extremely attractive option when looking for a salt free option. Clearwave is positive that this is the right choice for you as long your water hardness is under 25 grains of hardness. Clearwave offers 90-day money back satisfaction guarantee.
Aquios Full House Water Softener and Filter System
The Full House Water Softener and Filter System by Aquios is a great choice if you’re looking to purchase something similar to the Nuvo systems but want to spend a little last cash. Aquios has several different sized salt free softeners that are designed for different sized homes and applications. This unit in particular is designed to give you about 40,000 gallons of filtered clean water before it requires a cartridge replacement, which should be just right for a house under 3,000 square feet with 2 or 3 bathrooms. The Aquios is also deigned to not affect your houses water pressure, which is typically around 12-15 gallons per minute.
The Aquios uses a carbon block filter to remove sediment, chlorine smell and taste and several other impurities, which is unique for a whole house softening system. In addition it softens the water and causes the harmful calcium and magnesium minerals to fall right through the drain preventing scale build up on your pipes, appliances and faucets. The filter replacement on the Aquios is a very simple easy process and they even provide a special cartridge wrench for easy removal. I would recommend the Aquios if you’re looking to spend a little less than the Nuvo H2O system but would still like an incredible salt free softener.
PurHome Premier Salt-Free Softener PS-1000
The PurHome PS-1000 is a premium salt free water softener that is powerful enough to provide plenty of softened water for up to 3 bathrooms. The first thing you’ll probably notice about the PS-1000 is the price, as it’s much more expensive than most of the other salt free softeners I’ve reviewed. But there is a reason for the high price! This thing is a beast of a water softener. It can soften a whopping 600,000 gallons of water and will last you on average of 5 years! That is significantly longer than the other salt free water conditioners, and in the long run may save you money and time not having to change out filters and cartridges.
The PurHome PS-1000 is just as easy to install as any of the other salt free softeners but does take up a significant amount of room when compared to the more compact brands due to the large capacity. The PurHome PS-1000 is designed to soften your water supply and dramatically reduce the amount of scale buildup as well clear up existing scale deposits that have developed in your plumbing and water heater. The PS-1000 has a slightly lower gallons per minute rating, but not significant enough for you to really notice the difference. This is great softener if you are willing to spend the extra money.
The Benefits of Salt Free Water Softeners
The salt free water softener has tons of benefits that are very convincing when deciding on your purchase. I’ll start with my personal favorite! You no longer need to drive to the store and pick up a gigantic 40lb bag of salt and lug all the way to your house and then try and dump it into a tiny bin without spilling any! You don’t know the struggle until you’ve tried it!
You no longer have to spend money on salt and chemicals to keep your softener running, not to mention the electricity it takes to run the unit. Most of the salt-free units also take up less space than most salt-based water softeners freeing up more space for other things. After all, it’s not to often you find yourself having too much space in your home.
Do Salt Free Water Softeners Work?
Yes. However, they work in a different way than sodium and chemical based softeners. They condition your water instead of soften. The basic principle of a sodium or chemical based water softener is that it actually removes the impurities and particles that cause your water to be hard and replaces them with something else (sodium, potassium, etc.) This process is known as ion exchange and it actually softens your water source.
Salt-free water softeners take a completely different approach when handling these harmful impurities and particles. In fact, the potentially harmful particles and impurities are not removed at all. They are converted and “disarmed” by a process known as chelation. This process causes the harmful minerals to pass right through your plumbing and appliances without sticking. So some of you may now be asking, “Well then does it actually soften my water?” The answer is no, it technically conditions your water. However, you will notice the same results as a chemical and sodium based softener. These minerals are actually good for your health, just not good for your appliances and plumbing.
Our Recommendation – Here’s What We Think
Now that we’ve covered exactly what salt free water softeners do and supplied you with information on the best salt free water softeners in 2015 it’s time to make the decision on which product best fits your needs, which is not quite something I can decide for you. However, hopefully I’ve made the decision much easier for you! But if you must know, I would recommend the Aquios Full House Water Softener and filter system. This is a great price and comes with an additional filter to catch the sediment and rust that may pass through you water supply.