• Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • NEWS
  • PRODUCTS
  • CONTRACTORS
  • ENGINEERS
  • RADIANT & HYDRONICS
  • INSIGHTS
  • MEDIA
  • RESOURCES
  • EMAGAZINE
  • SIGN UP!
cart
facebook instagram twitter linkedin youtube
  • CONTRACTORS
  • BATH & KITCHEN PRO
  • BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
  • HIGH EFFICIENCY HOMES
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • WATER TREATMENT
  • PMC COLUMNS
  • PMC COLUMNS
  • Dave Yates: Contractor’s Corner
  • John Siegenthaler: Hydronics Workshop
  • Kenny Chapman: The Blue Collar Coach
  • Matt Michel: Service Plumbing Pros
  • Scott Secor: Heating Perceptions
  • ENGINEERS
  • CONTINUING EDUCATION
  • DECARBONIZATION | ELECTRIFICATION
  • FIRE PROTECTION
  • GEOTHERMAL | SOLAR THERMAL
  • PIPING | PLUMBING | PVF
  • PME COLUMNS
  • PME COLUMNS
  • Christoph Lohr: Strategic Plumbing Insights
  • David Dexter: Plumbing Talking Points
  • James Dipping: Engineer Viewpoints
  • John Seigenthaler: Renewable Heating Design
  • Lowell Manalo: Plumbing Essentials
  • Misty Guard: Guard on Compliance
  • RADIANT & HYDRONICS
  • RADIANT COMFORT REPORT
  • THE GLITCH & THE FIX
  • INSIGHTS
  • CODES
  • GREEN PLUMBING & MECHANICAL
  • PROJECT PROFILES
  • COLUMNS
  • SPONSOR INSIGHTS
  • COLUMNS
  • Codes Corner
  • Natalie Forster: Editorial Opinion
  • Guest Editorial
  • MEDIA
  • PODCASTS
  • VIDEOS
  • WEBINARS
  • RESOURCES
  • INDUSTRY CALENDAR
  • DIRECTORIES
  • EBOOKS
  • PM BOOKSTORE
  • CE CENTER
  • MARKET RESEARCH
  • CLASSIFIEDS
  • EMAGAZINE
  • EMAGAZINE
  • ARCHIVE ISSUES
  • CONTACT
  • ADVERTISE
  • PME EMAGAZINE ARCHIVES
search
cart
facebook instagram twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • NEWS
  • PRODUCTS
  • CONTRACTORS
    • BATH & KITCHEN PRO
    • BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
    • HIGH EFFICIENCY HOMES
    • TECHNOLOGY
    • WATER TREATMENT
    • PMC COLUMNS
      • Dave Yates: Contractor’s Corner
      • John Siegenthaler: Hydronics Workshop
      • Kenny Chapman: The Blue Collar Coach
      • Matt Michel: Service Plumbing Pros
      • Scott Secor: Heating Perceptions
  • ENGINEERS
    • CONTINUING EDUCATION
    • DECARBONIZATION | ELECTRIFICATION
    • FIRE PROTECTION
    • GEOTHERMAL | SOLAR THERMAL
    • PIPING | PLUMBING | PVF
    • PME COLUMNS
      • Christoph Lohr: Strategic Plumbing Insights
      • David Dexter: Plumbing Talking Points
      • James Dipping: Engineer Viewpoints
      • John Seigenthaler: Renewable Heating Design
      • Lowell Manalo: Plumbing Essentials
      • Misty Guard: Guard on Compliance
  • RADIANT & HYDRONICS
    • RADIANT COMFORT REPORT
    • THE GLITCH & THE FIX
  • INSIGHTS
    • CODES
    • GREEN PLUMBING & MECHANICAL
    • PROJECT PROFILES
    • COLUMNS
      • Codes Corner
      • Natalie Forster: Editorial Opinion
      • Guest Editorial
    • SPONSOR INSIGHTS
  • MEDIA
    • PODCASTS
    • VIDEOS
    • WEBINARS
  • RESOURCES
    • INDUSTRY CALENDAR
    • DIRECTORIES
    • EBOOKS
    • PM BOOKSTORE
    • CE CENTER
    • MARKET RESEARCH
    • CLASSIFIEDS
  • EMAGAZINE
    • EMAGAZINE
    • ARCHIVE ISSUES
    • CONTACT
    • ADVERTISE
    • PME EMAGAZINE ARCHIVES
  • SIGN UP!
Green Plumbing and MechanicalWater Treatment

A look inside a salt-free water softening system

What’s the water like?

By Nadia Askar
Salt-free water

The NuvoH2O system doesn’t require a separate drain, electricity, soft-water loop, brine tank or calibration. Photo Credit: NuvoH2O

Salt-free water

The data illustrated represents water hardness on a national and regional scale. Photo Credit: U.S. Geological Survey

Salt-free water

The Torrijos family (from left: Dominic Torrijos, Ayden Torrijos, Nicole Torrijos) has seen many benefits from their salt-free water softening system — especially where their son’s skin is concerned. Photo credit: Cobey Ackerman

Salt-free water
Salt-free water
Salt-free water
August 15, 2014

Hard water isn’t just another name for ice — it’s something that can be detrimental to a home’s plumbing system.

When water is referred to as “hard,” it means it contains more minerals than ordinary water. Although generally not harmful to one’s health, the high presence of calcium and magnesium ions in water can cause a variety of problems for your home, including shortening the lifespan of appliances.

“These ions can lead to buildup of lime scale,” says Scott Wilson, president of NuvoH2O, a manufacturer of salt-free water softeners. “This can slow plumbing, promote corrosion and shorten the longevity of high-cost home appliances such as dishwashers, washing machines and water heaters. Scale buildup is more than just unsightly on your fixtures. In your water heater, scale buildup acts as an insulator so it may cost 25% more to heat your water.”

Water-softening systems treat the calcium, magnesium and other minerals in hard water. The resulting water, now called soft water, is more compatible with soap and extends the lifetime of plumbing and appliances. Soft water can be achieved through water softening or water conditioning.

Water softening can be achieved using ion exchange. Ion exchange devices reduce the hardness of water by replacing magnesium and calcium with sodium or potassium ions. This is done with the use of water-softening salt. With water conditioning, the minerals are converted so they can’t bind to surfaces.

Although there are many benefits to saltwater softening systems, the greener solution is salt-free. “Unlike salt systems, salt-free systems have no need to purge any minerals, eliminating water waste,” Wilson says. “In addition, because it maintains the healthy essential minerals found in water, it is a healthier alternative to traditional salt softeners.”

Paul Peterson, owner of Salt Lake City-based contracting company Professional Plumbing Services, agrees salt-free is the greener option. “A traditional salt system uses electricity and lots of water to regenerate and clean out the system,” he says. “Also, if you leave you have to shut your water off, so now you have to reset everything with the system. With salt-free systems, there is no adjustment needed, it just works on the flow — it is on when the water is turned on and off when the water is turned off.”

 

Inside the system

To consumers looking for a soft-water system that doesn’t leave the slick feeling of salt water on the skin, doesn’t have the room or doesn’t think that it can be installed in their house, Peterson, who has the system installed in his house, suggests they inquire about a salt-free system.

NuvoH2O’s website explains how their salt-free water softeners work: “First, instead of removing calcium like traditional salt softeners, our system chelates (binds) and sequesters (isolates) the calcium ions, preventing them from precipitating out and forming scale. Once bound to CitraCharge, the chelant, the mineral cannot form scale. Second, it lowers the measured pH of the water to reduce or eliminate scale formation.”

A primary ingredient in CitraCharge is an FDA-approved citric acid. The CitraCharge formula keeps the hard-water-causing mineral ions apart by creating a ring structure to bind the ions to the CitraCharge instead of to other ions. Now, the water passes right through instead of attaching to the metal in the pipes. Because they’re bound, those minerals also freely wash away from surfaces, such as the body, dishes, fixtures and appliances.

The water produced by the system is safe to drink, so no additional plumbing or major remodeling is required for a soft-water loop. It doesn’t require a separate drain, electricity, soft-water loop, brine tank or calibration.

“Because of the size, you can install it where you normally can’t fit a salt-water system,” Peterson says. “There are some challenges to getting it on the whole house; sometimes things are sheet-rocked or the rooms are finished. But I have never had to turn away and say I can’t do it.”

Another feature the company highlights is its easy-to-replace cartridges. With a built-in bypass, no additional shutoff valves are required to change the cartridge. “There are companies that will come out and install your salt for you, but with NuvoH2O all homeowners have to do is change the cartridge once every six months,” Peterson says. “We can come out and replace it for the owners or they can do it themselves. I show them how and tell them when the time comes they can call me and I’ll talk them through it.”

 

Inside the home

Homeowners choose salt-free over salt for a variety of reasons. “We wanted it first and foremost for ourselves,” says Nicole Torrijos, a civilian for the U.S. Air Force, who had the system installed in her house in April. “The water in Utah is very hard. Being from Hawaii where we don’t have hard water, it was really tough to get used to not only the hard water but the dry climate on top of that.

“My son has eczema and when we were back in Hawaii his eczema was almost completely gone. So we figured if we didn’t have hard water at home maybe that would help take it away.”

For many, the easy maintenance is a huge deciding factor. “I like the fact that it doesn’t involve salt,” Torrijos says. “I don’t have to go and buy bags of it and drag it up and down the stairs — our system is in the basement.

“I also like the fact that even our hoses are attached to it,” she continues. “If we wanted to wash our cars, we wouldn’t have the white, hard water spots covering them or have to rush to dry off the car before the water dried.”

Torrijos’ whole-house system was installed by Peterson. “Nicole’s was a basic installation,” he comments. “It was very straightforward. Sometimes what we find is where people want the system, they have the whole room filled with things, so we have to spend time moving things out. That was not the case with this. They were ready for us — it worked out really well.”

Torrijos adds: “I haven’t had it a very long time, but I have seen a huge difference so far. The fact that it helps my son with his skin is a huge plus. It eliminated us having to put steroid creme on his skin, which I really didn’t want to do. It has been a huge benefit to our family all the way around. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is looking to put in a water softener.”

Watch a how-to video on installing NuvoH2O’s salt-free water-softening system at in the August digital edition.

 


HELPFUL LINKS:

  • NuvoH2O
  • Contact Us
  • Follow PM on Twitter!
  • Find PM on Facebook!
  • Join PM on LinkedIn!
  • PM is on Google+ 

Hard water isn’t just another name for ice — it’s something that can be detrimental to a home’s plumbing system.

When water is referred to as “hard,” it means it contains more minerals than ordinary water. Although generally not harmful to one’s health, the high presence of calcium and magnesium ions in water can cause a variety of problems for your home, including shortening the lifespan of appliances.

“These ions can lead to buildup of lime scale,” says Scott Wilson, president of NuvoH2O, a manufacturer of salt-free water softeners. “This can slow plumbing, promote corrosion and shorten the longevity of high-cost home appliances such as dishwashers, washing machines and water heaters. Scale buildup is more than just unsightly on your fixtures. In your water heater, scale buildup acts as an insulator so it may cost 25% more to heat your water.”

Water-softening systems treat the calcium, magnesium and other minerals in hard water. The resulting water, now called soft water, is more compatible with soap and extends the lifetime of plumbing and appliances. Soft water can be achieved through water softening or water conditioning.

Water softening can be achieved using ion exchange. Ion exchange devices reduce the hardness of water by replacing magnesium and calcium with sodium or potassium ions. This is done with the use of water-softening salt. With water conditioning, the minerals are converted so they can’t bind to surfaces.

Although there are many benefits to saltwater softening systems, the greener solution is salt-free. “Unlike salt systems, salt-free systems have no need to purge any minerals, eliminating water waste,” Wilson says. “In addition, because it maintains the healthy essential minerals found in water, it is a healthier alternative to traditional salt softeners.”

Paul Peterson, owner of Salt Lake City-based contracting company Professional Plumbing Services, agrees salt-free is the greener option. “A traditional salt system uses electricity and lots of water to regenerate and clean out the system,” he says. “Also, if you leave you have to shut your water off, so now you have to reset everything with the system. With salt-free systems, there is no adjustment needed, it just works on the flow — it is on when the water is turned on and off when the water is turned off.”

 

Inside the system

To consumers looking for a soft-water system that doesn’t leave the slick feeling of salt water on the skin, doesn’t have the room or doesn’t think that it can be installed in their house, Peterson, who has the system installed in his house, suggests they inquire about a salt-free system.

http://www.nuvodirect.com/ NuvoH2O’s website explains how their salt-free water softeners work: “First, instead of removing calcium like traditional salt softeners, our system chelates (binds) and sequesters (isolates) the calcium ions, preventing them from precipitating out and forming scale. Once bound to CitraCharge, the chelant, the mineral cannot form scale. Second, it lowers the measured pH of the water to reduce or eliminate scale formation.”

A primary ingredient in CitraCharge is an FDA-approved citric acid. The CitraCharge formula keeps the hard-water-causing mineral ions apart by creating a ring structure to bind the ions to the CitraCharge instead of to other ions. Now, the water passes right through instead of attaching to the metal in the pipes. Because they’re bound, those minerals also freely wash away from surfaces, such as the body, dishes, fixtures and appliances.

The water produced by the system is safe to drink, so no additional plumbing or major remodeling is required for a soft-water loop. It doesn’t require a separate drain, electricity, soft-water loop, brine tank or calibration.

“Because of the size, you can install it where you normally can’t fit a salt-water system,” Peterson says. “There are some challenges to getting it on the whole house; sometimes things are sheet-rocked or the rooms are finished. But I have never had to turn away and say I can’t do it.”

Another feature the company highlights is its easy-to-replace cartridges. With a built-in bypass, no additional shutoff valves are required to change the cartridge. “There are companies that will come out and install your salt for you, but with NuvoH2O all homeowners have to do is change the cartridge once every six months,” Peterson says. “We can come out and replace it for the owners or they can do it themselves. I show them how and tell them when the time comes they can call me and I’ll talk them through it.”

 

Inside the home

Homeowners choose salt-free over salt for a variety of reasons. “We wanted it first and foremost for ourselves,” says Nicole Torrijos, a civilian for the U.S. Air Force, who had the system installed in her house in April. “The water in Utah is very hard. Being from Hawaii where we don’t have hard water, it was really tough to get used to not only the hard water but the dry climate on top of that.

“My son has eczema and when we were back in Hawaii his eczema was almost completely gone. So we figured if we didn’t have hard water at home maybe that would help take it away.”

For many, the easy maintenance is a huge deciding factor. “I like the fact that it doesn’t involve salt,” Torrijos says. “I don’t have to go and buy bags of it and drag it up and down the stairs — our system is in the basement.

“I also like the fact that even our hoses are attached to it,” she continues. “If we wanted to wash our cars, we wouldn’t have the white, hard water spots covering them or have to rush to dry off the car before the water dried.”

Torrijos’ whole-house system was installed by Peterson. “Nicole’s was a basic installation,” he comments. “It was very straightforward. Sometimes what we find is where people want the system, they have the whole room filled with things, so we have to spend time moving things out. That was not the case with this. They were ready for us — it worked out really well.”

Torrijos adds: “I haven’t had it a very long time, but I have seen a huge difference so far. The fact that it helps my son with his skin is a huge plus. It eliminated us having to put steroid creme on his skin, which I really didn’t want to do. It has been a huge benefit to our family all the way around. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is looking to put in a water softener.”

Watch a how-to video on installing NuvoH2O’s salt-free water-softening system at PMmag.com and in the http://www.pmmag.com/digitaleditions August digital edition.

 

 

HELPFUL LINKS:

http://www.nuvodirect.com/ NuvoH2O

http://www.pmmag.com/contactus Contact Us

https://twitter.com/PnMmag Follow PM on Twitter!

https://www.facebook.com/PMmagazine Find PM on Facebook!

http://www.pmmag.com/linkedin Join PM on LinkedIn!

https://plus.google.com/+Pmmag/postsPM is on Google+

http://www.nuvodirect.com/
KEYWORDS: green plumbing water conservation water treatment

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Nadia askar

Nadia Askar is the former group multimedia editor for BNP Media’s Plumbing Group. She was responsible for leading the direction of the brand’s digital and social presence by ensuring the brand websites and social media outlets are consistently updated, and interacting with readers and followers.

Recommended Content

JOIN TODAY
to unlock your recommendations.

Already have an account? Sign In

  • Worker using the Milwaukee Tool SWITCH PACK drain cleaner

    Pipeline profits: Drain cleaning, pipe inspection create opportunities

    Drain cleaning and inspection services offer lucrative...
    Green Plumbing and Mechanical
    By: Nicole Krawcke
  • Uponor employee, Arturo Moreno

    The reinvestment in American manufacturing and training

    Plumbing & Mechanical Chief Editor Nicole Krawcke and...
    Plumbing News
    By: Nicole Krawcke and Natalie Forster
  • March 2024 Women in Plumbing hero image of woman engineer overlayed by circle of hexagon shapes with numbers from 1 to 10

    Celebrating 10 Influential Women in the Plumbing Industry

    Celebrating Women's History Month and Women in...
    Plumbing News
    By: Nicole Krawcke
close

1 COMPLIMENTARY ARTICLE(S) LEFT

Loader

Already a Registered User? Sign in now.

Subscribe For Free!
  • eNewsletters
  • Online Registration
  • Subscription Customer Service
  • eMagazine
  • Manage My Preferences

NIBCO Press Solutions

NIBCO Press Solutions

Bell & Gossett Illustrates Path to Net-zero at AHR Expo

Bell & Gossett Illustrates Path to Net-zero at AHR Expo

IPEX celebrates grand opening of new Florida distribution center

IPEX celebrates grand opening of new Florida distribution center

AI can boost efficiency and profitability for plumbing, HVAC contractors

AI can boost efficiency and profitability for plumbing, HVAC contractors

More Videos

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content is a special paid section where industry companies provide high quality, objective, non-commercial content around topics of interest to the Plumbing & Mechanical audience. All Sponsored Content is supplied by the advertising company and any opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily reflect the views of Plumbing & Mechanical or its parent company, BNP Media. Interested in participating in our Sponsored Content section? Contact your local rep!

close
  • J.J. Keller CMV vehicles on road
    Sponsored byJ. J. Keller & Associates, Inc.

    The dash cam game-changer for small business safety

Popular Stories

Figure 1 is a sketch of the flow problems of the current plumbing system.

Hydronic heating glitch solved: Why adding a circulator won't fix primary loop flow issue

The interior of a government building.

President Trump signs executive order promoting skilled trades and apprenticeships

Underfloor heating installation with drain sewer hole in bathroom close up on water floor heating.

Using hydronics to leverage time-of-use electrical rates

PM BEMIS June 25 Free Webinar: Optimizing Plumbing Solutions for Single-Family, Multi-Family & Public Spaces

Events

November 13, 2024

Future Proofing MEP: Navigating the 2026 High Efficiency Water Heating Standards

Join our deep dive into DOE’s new standards so you can future-proof your MEP practice.

EARN: 0.1 ASPE CEU; 1 AIA LU/HSW; 0.1 IACET CEU*; 1 PDH

View All Submit An Event

Poll

Will business be up or down in 2025?

Do you anticipate business in 2025 to be up or down in comparison to 2024?
View Results Poll Archive

Products

The Water Came To A Stop

The Water Came To A Stop

See More Products

Download the FREE Water Conservation, Quality & Safety eBook: Plumbing Trends Increasing Safe Water Availability

Related Articles

  • Featured

    A look into the offerings of residential touchless faucets

    See More
  • PHCC

    Become a water auditor

    See More
  • Tubing 1

    A lesson about PERT: Matching the appropriate materials to the proper application

    See More
×
The NuvoH2O system doesn’t require a separate drain, electricity, soft-water loop, brine tank or calibration. Photo Credit: NuvoH2O
The data illustrated represents water hardness on a national and regional scale. Photo Credit: U.S. Geological Survey
The Torrijos family (from left: Dominic Torrijos, Ayden Torrijos, Nicole Torrijos) has seen many benefits from their salt-free water softening system — especially where their son’s skin is concerned. Photo credit: Cobey Ackerman

Keep your content unclogged with our newsletters!

Stay in the know on the latest plumbing & piping industry trends.

JOIN TODAY!
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Directories
    • Store
    • Want More
    • Supply House Times
  • SIGN UP TODAY
    • Create Account
    • eMagazine
    • eNewsletter
    • Customer Service
    • Manage Preferences
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2025. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing

search
cart
facebook instagram twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • NEWS
  • PRODUCTS
  • CONTRACTORS
    • BATH & KITCHEN PRO
    • BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
    • HIGH EFFICIENCY HOMES
    • TECHNOLOGY
    • WATER TREATMENT
    • PMC COLUMNS
      • Dave Yates: Contractor’s Corner
      • John Siegenthaler: Hydronics Workshop
      • Kenny Chapman: The Blue Collar Coach
      • Matt Michel: Service Plumbing Pros
      • Scott Secor: Heating Perceptions
  • ENGINEERS
    • CONTINUING EDUCATION
    • DECARBONIZATION | ELECTRIFICATION
    • FIRE PROTECTION
    • GEOTHERMAL | SOLAR THERMAL
    • PIPING | PLUMBING | PVF
    • PME COLUMNS
      • Christoph Lohr: Strategic Plumbing Insights
      • David Dexter: Plumbing Talking Points
      • James Dipping: Engineer Viewpoints
      • John Seigenthaler: Renewable Heating Design
      • Lowell Manalo: Plumbing Essentials
      • Misty Guard: Guard on Compliance
  • RADIANT & HYDRONICS
    • RADIANT COMFORT REPORT
    • THE GLITCH & THE FIX
  • INSIGHTS
    • CODES
    • GREEN PLUMBING & MECHANICAL
    • PROJECT PROFILES
    • COLUMNS
      • Codes Corner
      • Natalie Forster: Editorial Opinion
      • Guest Editorial
    • SPONSOR INSIGHTS
  • MEDIA
    • PODCASTS
    • VIDEOS
    • WEBINARS
  • RESOURCES
    • INDUSTRY CALENDAR
    • DIRECTORIES
    • EBOOKS
    • PM BOOKSTORE
    • CE CENTER
    • MARKET RESEARCH
    • CLASSIFIEDS
  • EMAGAZINE
    • EMAGAZINE
    • ARCHIVE ISSUES
    • CONTACT
    • ADVERTISE
    • PME EMAGAZINE ARCHIVES
  • SIGN UP!