water softener for 5ther

[Alie&Jim's Carrilite]

52 minutes ago, FL-JOE said:

Yep, he has a pretty nice set up.  I think one of the ABC softeners like Alie's & Jim's would work nicely, especially if someone was just going to pull it out and use it for washing the RV and stuff like that.

Next step up.... But you would need to plumb it in, and plumb the brine tank for the automatic recharge.  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06Y43L533/?coliid=I3CLKQK9M9F3A2&colid=2H1RCUR7HWM8I&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

[noteven]

I calls the guy at a company that makes nice short softener units intended for rvs. Looks like it will stow nicely in the cargo hold of The Big Fiver. 

I asks the guy, “Does it have a nice drain to protect it from freezing?”

“No.”

 

[chirakawa]

24 minutes ago, noteven said:

I calls the guy at a company that makes nice short softener units intended for rvs. Looks like it will stow nicely in the cargo hold of The Big Fiver. 

I asks the guy, “Does it have a nice drain to protect it from freezing?”

“No.”

 

Why would it freeze in the basement?  Does your fresh water tank freeze?

I've not stayed in any cold climates during the Winter.  I generally spend the Winter down South.  However, one Winter it got down to 10F and stayed below freezing for four straight days.  My basement stayed within 20 degrees of my living space.  Most people keep their living space above 60F, so the basement should not get below 40F.  Just my experience.

[noteven]

Not sure about your question chirakawa- any “rv” stuff I have needs to be capable of being “winterized” easily and let freeze in storage. It is -11c inside and outside that particular trailer right now. Yes the fresh water tank is frozen but it is also empty.

[chirakawa]

8 minutes ago, noteven said:

Not sure about your question chirakawa- any “rv” stuff I have needs to be capable of being “winterized” easily and let freeze in storage. It is -11c inside and outside that particular trailer right now. Yes the fresh water tank is frozen but it is also empty.

My bad.  I just assumed you were referring to while in use.  I have no idea what -11c means, but it sounds really cold.  🙂

[noteven]

-11C is = 12F.  

No bugs. 😀

No living in that trailer right now it is happier in the desert. 

[rynosback]

On 11/5/2018 at 1:06 AM, Twotoes said:

Is there a difference between a reverse osmosis system and a water softener?

Huge difference.  I know people that have a RO system and fill there fresh water haloding tank with it.  The thing about RO systems is that they re higher maintenance and the original set up is much more $$.  Plus I think you have to go through 3 gallons of water to get one filtered water.  

I prefilter with the blue outside filter then go into the on the go water softener, larger one.  Then it goes though the onboard house filter.

[Ray,IN]

15 hours ago, noteven said:

I calls the guy at a company that makes nice short softener units intended for rvs. Looks like it will stow nicely in the cargo hold of The Big Fiver. 

I asks the guy, “Does it have a nice drain to protect it from freezing?”

“No.”

 

Turning a water softener upside-down to drain is not an option either. it would disturb the resin-bed.

[57becky]

If someone needed to winterize their rig, it's probable that they will be living in a house or some other permanent structure, and in that case, removing the softener and bringing it into the warm home would be the best option.  I'd plug the inlet and outlet while in storage just to maintain a sanitary condition.

[noteven]

On 11/2/2018 at 10:31 PM, Ray,IN said:

Another method of making soft water is to use a Cation Resin Softener Water Filter. It fits in a standard whole house filter housing.

Of course this is not nearly as good as the On The Go unit, however  it would suffice for those times we encounter really hard water.

Yes Ray I forgot that part. The rep did confirm this - do not turn the unit upside down to  drain it.

Or use antifreeze liquid products. 

Possibly you could displace the water out of it with clean compressed air to where what’s left could freeze with expansion room so as not to damage the unit. 

I determined it is not what we call Canada Proof. 

[MidMOTraveler]

Actually the instructions from “On The Go Water Softners” has 2 ways to remove water for storage 

1) leave cap on and turn upside down 

2) leave cap on and apply low pressure air

 

[Clay L]

I have the FloPuir Mark 8000 SEE HERE
Cost is $182 and includes shipping if bought from the site above. Regeneration is done with a box of common table salt.
It is similar to others like the "On-The-Go" water softener which is the one Camping World sells I believe.

Both are 8000 grain units which means they will last longer than those with smaller numbers without requiring regeneration. Some folks use  "Water Sticks" but the biggest one of those I have seen is only 1500 grains. The 10,000 grain units will last even longer before needing regeneration. I didn't have room for the bigger 10,000 grain model so I got the 8000 grain one.

In AZ where we spent most of the winters the water hardness is about 50 grains per gallon. That means that an 8000 grain unit will soften about 160 gallons before needing to be regenerated. Since we use about 13 gallons of water per day we have to regenerate every 12 days or so.

In our home in CO we have a water hardness of  20 GPG, there the softener will last about a month.