Of the many responsibilities you will have to manage as an RV owner, a water softener system might not captivate your interest or be the primary focus of your attention. All the same, even though a water softener for your RV might not be the most exciting of RV accessories, an easy-to-use, dependable system that protects your RV from hard water scale can actually be a highly valuable investment.
Let’s take a closer look at how a water softener for your RV actually protects your RV against hard water and why it matters in the long run.
What Is Hard Water Scale?
To understand why a water softener for your RV is worthwhile, we need to understand what hard water scale is and what causes it.
Water is typically referred to as either hard or soft, depending on its concentration of dissolved minerals. Soft water is typically low in dissolved minerals, whereas hard water is water that contains a high concentration of dissolved minerals. Numerous minerals may be contained in hard water, but the two most common minerals present in hard water are calcium and magnesium. Groundwater that comes into contact or filters through limestone or chalk is typically fairly high in concentrations of these minerals.
Hard water is not universally considered a bad thing, and it’s even been said that hard water has a better flavor than soft water or that hard water can help supply your diet with essential minerals. That being said, hard water can be a problem for your RV, its plumbing system, and its appliances.
Does Scale Really Pose a Threat to My RV?
Hard water is present across the United States in varying concentrations, with much of the country receiving either “very hard” or “moderately hard” water designation by the United States Geological Survey.
If you consistently expose your RV’s plumbing system and appliances to hard water, you could be incurring damage that, though not irreversible, can be very costly to rectify.
When you run hard water through a pipe, it leaves behind a very small deposit of a material called scale. Scale is a conglomeration of the dissolved minerals in the water that accumulates on the inside of pipes or fixtures. After a while, scale builds up on the inside of pipes, resulting in two pronounced negative effects.
One is that a buildup of scale inside of your RV’s plumbing system can diminish its flow rates, which is an inconvenience. However, scale accumulation also increases the water pressure within the pipes, which can damage the plumbing system, its fittings, and appliances as well. Rectifying hard water damage after it has progressed beyond a certain point can be expensive and may necessitate the replacement of pipes and fittings.
Hard water scales will also accumulate on faucets, in sinks, and within appliances. At first, it will present as nothing more than a cloudy discoloration or off-white or yellow stains, but over time, the scale will continue to accumulate, resulting in unsightly spotting and discoloration.
While scale can be removed from faucets and sinks, it is difficult to take off and usually requires quite a bit of elbow grease. When scale accumulates within plumbing fixtures and appliances that draw water, the higher pressure can damage them, requiring extensive repairs or even replacement.
Hard water also makes it hard to create soap suds and some say it leaves an unpleasant feeling on skin and hair. In addition, hard water leaves deposits on glassware and serving ware and can make laundry appear dull or “washed out.”
The adverse effects of hard water range from minor inconveniences to the potential to cause serious damage to your RV. On the lookout for hard water? Keep your eyes peeled for these signs.
Need Proof? Here Are Signs of Hard Water Scale
- Lower water pressure in your RV, from your sinks, showerheads, and through appliances.
- Spotting on glassware, dishes, or silverware.
- White or yellow stains on sinks, basins, tubs, shower walls, and floors.
- Your skin or hair feels like there’s an odd film on it after you bathe.
There are other signs of hard water, but these are some of the biggest signs, specifically spotting or staining on fixtures or appliances. If you’re in doubt, you can always use water test strips to be sure.
So, then, the question becomes one of what you can do about it?
How Can a Water Softener for My RV Make a Difference?
The answer to the hard water problem, especially for an RV that might be visiting multiple areas of the country and thus multiple diverse water sources, is to use a water softener for your RV. Here at RV Upgrades, we sell a variety of practical portable water softeners that are easy to use, cost-effective, and highly efficient at eliminating hard water, thereby protecting your RV’s plumbing and fixtures.
For example, the On The Go OTG4 Portable RV Water Softener uses a standard hose connection between your RV and the park faucet and requires no tools to install or use or any electricity to operate. It can provide anywhere from 320 to 800 gallons of soft water before it needs to be recharged, and even then you can recharge it with common table salt and potassium chloride.
Other water softeners for your RV are just as easy to use and can recharge easily by adding salt and potassium chloride. We have many water softeners that have varying capacities and water flow rates as well, to meet your specific needs.
With so many different solutions to hard water in the form of RV portable water softeners that are easy to install, use, and recharge, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be able to provide your family with soft drinking water and protect your RV from the effects of hard water.
Contact Us to Learn More
If you have any questions about how hard water can damage your RV, how to detect it, what you can do about it, or simply about our products, feel free to get in touch with us. We pride ourselves on our customer service and are here to help - contact us at 866-332-7881.
No comments:
Post a Comment