Using maganets to soften water?

[egon]

Hey - right on.

I'll take credit for having thought of that!!!

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Rayko]

Hi Folks:

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

I am new to this web-site, and have been browsing past posts to get familiar with the site. I came across this question concerning "Magnets and Water Softening"..

I know a little bit about this and thought I'd pass along some information that might be helpful.

Our rural home has "VERY HARD WATER". So much so, that it actually hurts to take a shower, and feels very itchy on your skin, plus it is necessary to use a lot more soap than you would imagine because of the hardness of the water.

In past years, we used to use an industrial capacity water softener (which used salt pellets) to soften the water, and even at that, we had to cycle the unit several times a week to maintain a soft water supply.

Many years ago, we had done extensive research into the concept of using "Magnets" to soften water in order to find out if they had any merit or effect at all on hard water.

We discovered the following:

If you were to look under a powerful microscope at the various mineral particles contained in "hard water", these hardness particles would look like those unpleasant sticky little "burrs" that cling to your socks and pant cuffs when you walk through a field. These round little burrs have little spikes all over them that are very sharp and grab onto any piece of clothing that comes along. They are really hard to get off too!

Hard water is filled with microscopic little mineral "burrs" that have sharp spikes all over them, just like the field burrs would have. It is these microscopic little mineral burrs that makes "hard water" feel so bad on your skin, and creates the nasty hard water experience we are all familiar with.

When strong "Magnets" are applied to a water supply line. The magnet has the unusual effect of eliminating the sharp points on those microscopic mineral burrs in hard water. As a result, the hard water "Feels" better on your skin, and the itchy feeling during a shower goes away. Its also easier to do laundry and requires less soap than was previously necessary.

If you were to analyze the water again, after applying the magnets to the water supply line, the "hardness" and mineral content of the water would be the exact same as it was prior to using the magnets. The magnets DO NOT change the molecular composition of the water, as salt does during the Ion-Exchange process that occurs during a water softening cycle.

However, the hard water feels better and works better when laundering cloths, and would generally "appear" to be softer, even though it is not.

However, the magnetically treated hard water will still leave hard water spots, and tell-tale mineral deposits (because the water is still hard, despite its change in feel and useability.

Depending on how hard your water is, the change and feel of the water when using the magnets can be quite dramatic.

In our case the change was so dramatic that we had never used a water softener again. And, we would NEVER be without "magnets" on our water supply line again.

SPECIAL NOTE: It is not necessary to purchase these expensive electro magnets, or other magnetic systems that some vendors are selling. We purchased two simple permanent magnets called "lifting magnets" measuring about 1 inch wide and about 7 inches long, and put one each across from one another on the opposite sides of our plastic water pipe supply line .

These lifting magnets are cheap and easy to find, and have a lifting capacity of about 15-20 pounds each (for reference the stronger the better).

But, any strong permanent magnet that you can find would work fine, you just want to create a strong magnetic field that extends through the diameter of your water pipe.

I hope this information is of some help. It's a very inexpensive solution, and you might enjoy the results, as we have.

Best Regards

Rayko

[egon]

Oh dear, magnets again? I understand on older carburated cars they can also increase gas milage.

Really did not know that calciun and magnesium were ferric minerals.

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/confused.gif[/img]

[GaryQWA]

"In past years, we used to use an industrial capacity water softener (which used salt pellets) to soften the water, and even at that, we had to cycle the unit several times a week to maintain a soft water supply.".

Then your softener was sized or programed incorrectly. And an industrial size softener wouldn't fit in any part of your house and may sitck up over the roof if iinstalled out side.

Also, it isn't 'salt' that softeners water, it's the cation resin or zeolite that exchanges hardness ions for sodium or potassium ions.

Gary Slusser

[GaryM]

I used to have some of these magnets, but the cow ate them! [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[egon]

Never trust a cow Gary. Do you get soft milk? [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Egon

[DocHeb]

Not only is the milk soft, it doesn't hurt when it hits him in the shower.

[egon]

Now to get Gary to put some magnets on the fuel line on his car!! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Magnets in cows is very common. Soft milk and no metal gets past the first stomach.

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[GaryM]

My ice cream is soft. Maybe there are too many magnets on the freezer?

[egon]

Have you got those magnets set up so the flux follows the right hand rule or the left hand rule? It could make a difference. [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]