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Hard water contains large amounts of calcium and magnesium — two minerals that cause the soapy scum on glasses and lime residue on bathroom fixtures. Hard water can cause mineral build-up in water heaters, pipes, dishwashers and shower heads, reducing water flow. In addition to narrowing and potentially clogging pipes, scale prevents efficient heat transfer, so a water heater with scale will have to use a lot of energy to give you hot water. Soap is less effective in hard water because it reacts to the calcium or magnesium salt of the organic acid of the soap. These salts are insoluble and form grayish soap scum, but no cleansing lather. Soap and shampoo’s ability to lather is reduced, and laundry becomes stiffer and duller in appearance. Soap and shampoo do not rinse off as they should and often leave an invisible film which blocks pores, attracting and holding dirt and bacteria, causing chapped, itchy, dry skin and limp and lifeless hair.

As Table 1 shows, water hardness is measured with five different classifications and can be expressed in mg/litre or parts per million (ppm) or grains per gallon (gpg).

Water Hardness Classification

Classification Water Hardness
Soft Below 17 mg/litre or ppm (0 – 1 gpg)
Slightly Hard 17.1 – 60 mg/litre or ppm (1.1 – 3.5 gpg)
Moderately Hard 61 – 120 mg/litre or ppm (3.6 – 7 gpg)
Hard 121 – 180 mg/litre or ppm (7.1 – 10.5 gpg)
Very Hard Over 180 mg/litre or ppm (over 10.5 gpg)

If you live in Ontario, you have Hard Water. For water hardness by city, here are water hardness levels for some of the cities we serve- Southend Barrie- 9.5, Northend Barrie- 15, Orillia- 10, Midland- 8, Collingwood- 4.5, Newmarket- 10.5.

To determine if you have Hard Water, give us a call.

A water softener reduces water hardness, making it easier to shower and clean fabrics and dishes. With softened water, less soap is needed for bathing and laundry. Soft water is gentle, beautifying, enriching. Soft water means soft, clean skin; soft, silky more manageable hair. Laundry washed in soft water will be brighter, cleaner and softer. Pipes, fixtures and appliances have less scale build-up and can operate efficiently. Mineral-derived odours may be reduced; and, there are fewer deposit stains on bathroom fixtures. Water that has been softened will save you money because it enables you to use lesser quantities of soap, shampoo, and skin care products and increases the efficiency with which they will work.

A water softener uses a medium that serves to exchange “ions” of calcium and magnesium with sodium and potassium.

This occurs in four steps:

To do the ion replacement, the water in the house runs through a resin bed of small plastic beads or zeolite. The beads are covered with sodium or potassium ions. As the water flows past the ions, they swap places with the calcium and magnesium ions. Eventually, the beads contain nothing but calcium and magnesium, and softening stops. It is then time to regenerate the beads or zeolite.
To regenerate, the beads need to regain their sodium or potassium ions by being flooded with a salty, brine solution that is rich in sodium or potassium.
Once completed, the calcium and magnesium, dirt and sediments are flushed from the beads and into the drain in a process called backwash.
The final phase rinses the mineral tank with fresh water and loads the brine tank so it’s ready for the next cycle.
Automatic water softeners are usually programmed to recharge at specific times that will not disrupt the occupants. It is more water-efficient to have a metered model that will regenerate only when required.

Demand History Technology means that your new water softener will have the ability to learn your actual water usage so you will use less water and salt and save money!

The only maintenance required of your new water softener is that you add salt to the brine tank when needed, that’s it!

Our water softeners use about 6 to 12 pounds of salt per regeneration cycle and will regen about every four to eight days depending on size and water demand.

Usually a water softener and brine tank require about 4 square feet of floor space. Most importantly, your new water softening equipment should be located close to the main water inlet and shut off valve plus also be within reach of a power source and drain.

Newer water softeners should not damage your lawn or garden as they are much more efficient at cleaning their medias of salt than older models. It has been found that there is more salt in one slice of bread than there is in one gallon of softened water. But, if you prefer, we can bypass an outdoor faucet for an additional cost.

Yes, you can move your Purisoft water softener quick and easy to your new home and the good news is that the warranty goes along with you!

The use of chlorine in water systems began in the late 19th century as a way to combat diseases like cholera and typhoid and it proved quite effective. As the levels of such diseases dropped municipal water systems began a veritable love affair with chlorine and added more and more into the water. Chlorine is a powerful combatant against many parasites and disease-causing pathogens because of its harsh nature. Unfortunately, Chlorine is also a poison. Just as its harshness attacks pathogens and parasites, it attacks delicate body tissues when breathed or absorbed through the skin. Also, Researchers have now linked chlorine in drinking water to higher incidences of bladder, rectal and breast cancers. Reportedly chlorine, once in water, interacts with organic compounds to create trihalomethanes (THMs) which when ingested encourage the growth of free radicals that can destroy or damage vital cells in the body. The link between chlorine and bladder and rectal cancers has long been known, but only recently have researchers found a link between common chlorine disinfectant and breast cancer. A recent study conducted in Hartford, Connecticut found that women with breast cancer have 50-60 percent higher levels of organochlorines (chlorine byproducts) in their breast tissue than cancer-free women.

But, don’t think that buying bottled water is any solution. Many brands of bottled water come from public municipal water sources that are often treated with chlorine.

Most people recognize the effect of chlorine on the taste and health of drinking and cooking water, but what about the water they bathe in everyday? Even if you can’t detect its pungent odor, chlorine may be a hidden menace in your shower. When showering, the heat of the water causes pores to expand and these enlarged pores absorb chlorine instantly. Chlorine can leave skin feeling dry and itchy and leave hair dry, brittle, and prone to dandruff. It can even change your hair color. Chlorine can cause or further aggravate rashes and other skin irritations and leaves eyes feeling sore and itchy. Besides the damaging effects on skin and hair, chlorine can cause health problems when inhaled. Inhaling shower water also allows exposure to volatile organic chemicals (VOCs). Combined with chlorine, these chemicals can be incredibly dangerous to the delicate tissues in the lungs. The hot water and confined nature of a shower vaporizes chlorine and VOCs and this chemical vapor is then taken into the lungs. Inhalation of these chemical vapors cause great problems for asthmatics, and can cause similar lung and sinus problems even for those with healthy respiratory systems. In fact, inhaling chemical-laced steam during a shower actually provides more exposure to dangerous chemicals than drinking that very same water! One estimate is that a bather can be exposed to as much water pollution during a 20-minute hot shower as by drinking two litres of tap water per day.

“Taking long hot showers is a health risk, according to research presented …in Anaheim, California, at a meeting of the American Chemical Society. Showers – and to a lesser extent baths – lead to a greater exposure to toxic chemicals contained in water supplies than does drinking the water. The chemicals evaporate out of the water and are inhaled. They can also spread through the house and be inhaled by others. House holders can receive 6 to 100 times more of the chemical by breathing the air around showers and bath than they would by drinking the water.”
NEW SCIENTIST, 18 September 1996
Ian Anderson

“Studies indicate the suspect chemicals can also be inhaled and absorbed through the skin during showering and bathing.”
“Ironically, even the Chlorine widely used to disinfect water produces Carcinogenic traces.”
“Though 7 out of 10 Americans drink chlorinated water, its safety over the long term is uncertain.”
“Drinking chlorinated water may as much as double the risk of the bladder cancer, which strikes 40,000 people a year.”
U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT – July 29, 1991
Is Your Water Safe – The Dangerous State of Your Water

“A long, hot shower can be dangerous. The toxic chemicals are inhaled in high concentrations.”
BOTTOM LINE – August 1987
Dr. John Andelman, Ph.D.

Water Softeners that have a carbon filter will remove chlorine from your household water.

A Purisoft Chlor-a-Soft Water Softener will soften your household water as well as remove chlorine ensuring that your family can enjoy showering and bathing without concerns of toxic chemicals being inhaled or absorbed through their skin.

A Purisoft Reverse Osmosis System will remove chlorine as well as other chemicals and contaminants from your drinking water providing your family with safe, pure and great-tasting water anytime.

If you receive water from a municipal water system, whether it’s source is well or lake water, it is chlorinated so it’s potable, and is also fluoridated, but both are serious toxins for the human body. Also present in our drinking water supply are detergents, personal care products, industrial pollution and even pharmaceuticals!

“Water pollution by drugs is an emerging issue that is extremely important. Pharmaceuticals are now attracting attention as a whole new class of water pollutants. At the recent American Chemical Society conference, Chris Metcalfe of Trent University in Ontario reported finding a vast array of drugs leaving Canadian sewage treatment plants. Padma Venkatraman, a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins concluded that antidepressants, anticonvulsants, anticancer drugs and antimicrobials are among the pharmaceuticals most likely to be found at “toxicologically significant levels” in the environment.

These drugs and many more are finding their way into public water systems because pharmaceutical industries, hospitals and other medical facilities as well as households dispose of unused medicines and even human excreta can contain incompletely metabolized medicines. Millions of doses of prescription drugs that Americans swallow annually to combat cancer, pain, depression and other ailments do not disappear harmlessly into their digestive systems but instead make their way back into the environment where they may contaminate drinking water and pose a threat to life, according to researchers at John Hopkins medical center.”
The Poisoning of America’s Water Supplies-Natural News,July 03, 2008
Mark Sircus Ac., OMD

Reverse osmosis systems purify water by forcing pressurized water through a series of filters and membrane.

Stages of reverse osmosis:

During the initial filtration stage, tap water or well water (pressurized by a booster pump) is passed through a particle filter (a pre-filter) that removes silt, sediment, sand, and clay particles that might clog the R/O membrane.
The water is then forced through an activated carbon filter that traps minerals and contaminants such as chromium, mercury, copper, chloramine and pesticides. It also removes chlorine, which is important, as chlorine will shorten the life of the membrane.
Water is transferred under pressure into the R/O module, allowing only clean water to pass through the small pores in the membrane. Impurities unable to pass through the membrane are left behind and flushed down the drain.
Treated water is then sent to a storage tank.
Treated water is passed through an activated carbon filter before use to further improve the water’s taste and smell.
Reverse Osmosis units produce no noise other than the sound of water discharging into the drain (usually a sink or a floor drain).

Our five stage reverse osmosis (RO) system requires that you change a pre-sediment filter, along with a pre-carbon and a post-carbon filter once per year and the reverse osmosis membrane will need to be changed every five years. If you have a water softener your filters will last even longer. The sediment, pre-carbon and post-carbon filters will last 18 to 24 months and the reverse osmosis membrane lasts five to seven years.

Our Ultra Violet Sterilizer can ensure your water is safe for your family’s consumption and daily use.

Yes, we can definitely remove iron and sulphur from your household water supply with our chemical free Air Birm System.

We have a wide range of Back Washable Filters that can remove specific chemical and sediment problems in both well or city water.