It all started here- inline easy to fit if you are a plumber. Magnets, zinc. They do not claim to be water softeners but to protect your pipes from scale by stopping it sticking. We have taken loads off and every customer has had a water softener having never seen any benefit. Luckily they are cheapish and the customer says 'arewell'

Again a device that does not normally claim too much just to stop pipes scaling up. I would love to see some hard science or something I could measure but I have never been that lucky. Normally fitted by a plumber when the house had a new boiler so no great financial loss to the customer.

Now we are getting into proper science. These units contain release polyphosphates into your water that actually do stop calcium forming into hard scale. You change the cartridge every year. They do not make the water softer or give you any great help with keeping your house clean. Personally I am not keen on drinking polyphosphates even though they claim on some models to be food grade.

So what else do we have. These offer a combination of containers which normally contain softener resin, a filter and some polyphosphates plus a secret ingredient resin with AMAZING NEW abilities, so lets break it down. A filter takes out any solids to 20 micron normally but can restrict the water flow. The softener resin will indeed remove scale but the quantity they put in will normally be exhausted within a week and there is no means of regeneration. The polyphosphates as mentioned above will dose the water and stop the scale clumping and finally the AMAZING NEW PRODUCT X. It claims to stop scale sticking, forming etc. 

So here is the problem we cannot measure any change in the water. No less calcium. Many customers contact us after having these units fitted and show us that the scale in their showers etc is getting worse. The companies that sell them will often say to them that their water was harder than they thought, the pipes are the wrong sort or our favourite would you be interested in a salt softener sir.

The other thing to bare in mind is after sales service especially if you are buying equipment with AMAZING MAGIC RESIN SUPER X.  

"many customers come to us to have their water tested for hardness after having one of these fitted as they feel they are not working. Always rock hard"

We will happily take it out and fit a proper water softener with a money backed guarantee that you will be able feel the difference and that you can measure the difference.

Paul Webb