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The ranch house is well water supplied. I knew the water was hard, seen things over time such as shower heads getting clogged at points but since hard water isn't harmful to the health, I figured I would rough it, that a water softener is just one of those things that the liberal city people use.
Well, I've been going through a recent rash of my clothes looking like HCL had been spilled on them. Undies with lots of "moth holes" (and worse) in them, tough denim jeans that are holing at the hoops and pocket seams, ripping at stress areas like my rump and crotch. Is this a result of hard water?
I am "hoping" that it might be living with the 7 Dwarves, my cats, who like to lie on my laundry and leave their various secretions like slobbering, often, sometimes pee, on them if I give them a chance. So might it be that, instead?
Or a combination of the two? Or something else about living out in the country?
The ranch house is well water supplied. I knew the water was hard, seen things over time such as shower heads getting clogged at points but since hard water isn't harmful to the health, I figured I would rough it, that a water softener is just one of those things that the liberal city people use.
Well, I've been going through a recent rash of my clothes looking like HCL had been spilled on them. Undies with lots of "moth holes" (and worse) in them, tough denim jeans that are holing at the hoops and pocket seams, ripping at stress areas like my rump and crotch. Is this a result of hard water?
I am "hoping" that it might be living with the 7 Dwarves, my cats, who like to lie on my laundry and leave their various secretions like slobbering, often, sometimes pee, on them if I give them a chance. So might it be that, instead?
Or a combination of the two? Or something else about living out in the country?
Get the water tested.
If it has a lot of calcium you are essentially washing your laundry with rocks.
I've never experienced holes as a result of hard water, just soap scum and dingy clothes, especially whites.
My water softening system consists of a strainer before the water meter (I have city sewer with well water; the sewer bill is based on my water consumption). Hard water goes to the outside faucets and the cold water for the kitchen sink. After this is the 5 micron filter which is 20" by 4.5", and gets changed every 2 months. The filter traps the slate particles that get by the strainer, and filters out the iron particles that have precipitated out. After the filter, most of the water goes into the water softener. I bypass enough water to achieve a hardness of about 60 ppm. Completely soft water is aggressively corrosive. When I wash the vehicle, I change the valving so that the water in that faucet is completely soft, which cuts down on water spots. I use the type of water softener salt designed for iron in the water, because my well water contains dissolved iron.
I was a water & wastewater laboratory technician, and can do my own wiring and plumbing. One of my fellow employees also blended his soft water with hard water, for the same reasons.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Get a water softener system. No one will call you a liberal city person. What you see in the shower head is also accumulating in your pipes throughout the house, the water hearer, and faucets. The life of all of those will be shortened, in addition to the effects on your clothes.
The ranch house is well water supplied. I knew the water was hard, seen things over time such as shower heads getting clogged at points but since hard water isn't harmful to the health, I figured I would rough it, that a water softener is just one of those things that the liberal city people use.
Well, I've been going through a recent rash of my clothes looking like HCL had been spilled on them. Undies with lots of "moth holes" (and worse) in them, tough denim jeans that are holing at the hoops and pocket seams, ripping at stress areas like my rump and crotch. Is this a result of hard water?
I am "hoping" that it might be living with the 7 Dwarves, my cats, who like to lie on my laundry and leave their various secretions like slobbering, often, sometimes pee, on them if I give them a chance. So might it be that, instead?
Or a combination of the two? Or something else about living out in the country?
Every water source is unique regardless whether its a private well, small or big municipality. The chemistry can change by season or after an event such as a major rainstorm, spring thaw/snowmelt, drought, etc. On the eastern seaboard/Gulf coasts salt water intrusion into aquifers during or after hurricanes can happen. Hardness (presence of calcium and/or magnesium) is just one aspect of household water that can affect appliances, plumbing, laundry and bathing. The water could also contain iron and other metals, other minerals, sulfur, all sorts of organics. Pure distilled water has a pH of 7; neutral. Other contaminants can raise or lower the pH which contributes to how they affect household systems. Yes, hard water can shorten the life of fabrics. Different "softeners" buffer or filter out different substances. People who happen to have municipally-treated water (those city folks) might get water that has been conditioned in some way such as buffering for pH or filtering out a specific mineral or organic. Specific to each utility.
Get your water analyzed. You would want to know not only what substances are present, but also the concentration. Take the results to a local company with a good reputation that offers water softening systems. They can explain what effects various substances might have on household items, what it would take to reduce the problem, and how much an appropriate system might cost.
Last edited by Parnassia; 11-23-2020 at 03:02 PM..
The ranch house is well water supplied. I knew the water was hard, seen things over time such as shower heads getting clogged at points but since hard water isn't harmful to the health, I figured I would rough it, that a water softener is just one of those things that the liberal city people use.
Well, I've been going through a recent rash of my clothes looking like HCL had been spilled on them. Undies with lots of "moth holes" (and worse) in them, tough denim jeans that are holing at the hoops and pocket seams, ripping at stress areas like my rump and crotch. Is this a result of hard water?
I am "hoping" that it might be living with the 7 Dwarves, my cats, who like to lie on my laundry and leave their various secretions like slobbering, often, sometimes pee, on them if I give them a chance. So might it be that, instead?
Or a combination of the two? Or something else about living out in the country?
You don't provide enough information for more than a guess.
What you describe about fabric developing holes can come from spilled chlorine bleach, a top loader with an agitator that is not working right, washing jeans without the zippers being zipped shut, a defective soap dispenser in the washer, vinegar use, overloading a washer, or a bunch of other things.
While my water treatment system is complicated, as I explained above, my current water heater is almost 11 years old. The 2 previous heater only lasted 7 years. I did replace the anode a few years ago, in an attempt to make it last longer. If you have an electric hot water tank, make sure it has stainless steel heating elements, for better corrosion resistance.
The City of Wooster uses a lime, soda, CO2 treatment process, which provides the best quality of water. City water heaters last longer. When people would ask about using a softener on City water, I would not recommend it, as the water was just the way we wanted it when it left the water plant.
When my clothes developed holes, it was because I had spilled acid on them. The 12% bleach we used at the water plant is really hard on clothes, too. No longer a problem once I retired.
If your water has an particulate matter in it (mine has shale), then you need to filter the water before it goes into the softener. Particulate matter will wear out the moving parts in the softener. Also, the salt with iron remover in it is really corrosive. Thankfully, newer water softeners are more corrosion resistant.
I had this problem in a prior house and it turned out to be from the chlorinator. The chlorinator is supposed to add chlorine, then the activated charcoal is supposed to remove it, but some of the chlorine was making it past the activated charcoal and essentially destroying clothes. It was a low level of chlorine, couldn't even smell it, but certain brands of clothing just couldn't handle it and came out bleached and/or with holes.
OP- do you have a chlorine system on your well?
The house I now live in has no chlorinator and I do not have the issue. I have only a pre-filter, an iron filter, an activated carbon filter, and a water softener. I also have a point-of-use RO system under the kitchen sink that has a UV light to kill bacteria. I'm happy with my current setup as all I need to do is add salt once a month and potassium for the iron filter once every 3 or 4 months.
Clothing problems aside, the softener is nice for other reasons as well. If you do go the softener route, I recommend getting one that is "smart" and that somehow monitors usage. I have a dumb smart one- Kinetico. It has a water flow meter in it so it only runs when needed, not based on time. All in, uses less salt.
Last edited by NYCresident2014; 11-24-2020 at 07:50 AM..
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Without it our water tastes terrible and turns everything orange. 
