Water softeners? Worth it or not?

[KalamazooMom]

I bought my house 18 months ago. There was a water softener unit (GE brand). Turns out it hasn't been working for a bit and I have noticed more hard water stains on my dishes. Well the estimate I got was $450 to fix it and it looks like new ones are around $4-500. So I'm obviously not going to get it fixed. But my question is should I replace it or not? Pretty much everyone I know around here has one so I guess the city water is pretty hard. Can I just get a softner for the kitchen and not get a whole house unit? Anyone have any experience with this?

[PluggingAway]

We lived the first 7 years in our current house without a softner because I wanted to keep life simple (no worrying about salt, maintenance, extra water usage to flush the tank, etc.) and we just dealt with the issues that come with having hard water (laundry mishaps, hard water stains, yucky hair). Everything was fine, but then a couple of months ago, we got a softner and LOVE IT. I definately consider it a luxery and not a neccessity.

[bender]

My SIL needed a water softener, because otherwise the hard water damaged their washing machine. They went through multiple washers before getting the softener, but it really helped them.

[da-tamsta]

Our water is so hard it ruined a toilet, washer, and dish washer along with multiple coffee pots. Argh! Yes, our water softener is a necessity. (I can't complain about how it makes my hair and skin feel.) And sounds like yours is too. Make sure to use a third party site to check out yours. We got ours at Home Depot on sale, but we checked a lot of places Lowes, Sears, etc. We also have a place called kinetico that is $$$ but most reliable.

[34me]

I could not drink the water at my parents house without one. It was an after market add on; it's for the whole house. They have reverse osmosis at the kitchen sink.

[mom0810]

YES! Worth it. Where I live, our well water is so full of iron and tannins and we get that gross iron bacteria slime in our toilet tanks as it IS... without the water softener, all of our clothes would be orange and so would my sinks...

[Turquesa]

FIL is a plumber and says that it depends on where you live. Call your city to find out the mineral content of your water. If it's high, softener. (I forget what constitute "high." Sorry. ) But in some areas, softening the water is unnecessary.

[jeannineb]

Where I live the water is super hard, a softener is not a luxury here. You will save tons of money over the long run with a softener, no question. My friend who was without a softener for years, would literally pour a handful of hard, calcium sediments out of her coffeemaker on a monthly basis!! Imagine what that does to the inside of your pipes, washer, dishwasher, water heater, not to mention clothes, fixtures...you get the idea!!

[lynsage]

If the water where you live is hard enough to cause deposits that ruin your appliances, fixtures, and tile and make you have to use extra soap, detergent, shampoo, etc to get dishes, clothes, and bodies clean, then yes, it is completely worth it!

[KalamazooMom]

Thanks everyone. Very interesting. I did notice calcium deposits on my shower head, and I have not been able to get my sink clean. I'm thinking perhaps I really ought to replace the softener.