Are Fabric Softeners and Water Softeners The Same?

Most people cannot separate these two items and I will explain the difference between the two here. Fabric softeners and water softeners are different. They differ in the following...

This is what fabric softeners do... Fabric softeners ensure clothes become fluffy and soft to the touch and they impart properties to garments that make them anti-static preventing them from clinging to your body). Fabric softeners are normally in liquid form and they do not soften the water.

Water softeners on the other hand get rid of all the magnesium and calcium substances from hard water thereby making the hard water softer in the process.

You can read a wide range of water usage articles. They discuss the use of water in the house and home ... topics covered include filters, heaters, softeners and water in the garden too. The links change each time you visit the page

Where do I get more information about hardness and hard water?

You can get more information about water hardness from the Water Department or the Local City Municipality. These sources will provide the valuable information and he is how to help you understand the jargon... hardness is expressed as parts per million (ppm) or mgs/litre (= ppm) or as seen above grains per gallon (gpg) and even something called epm (equivalents per million). NB: 17.1 PPM (parts per million), equals 1 GPG . If you know this then you can work out the hardeness. Here's an example ....

-You water supply has 300 PPM of calcium. Divide 300 by 17.1 = 17.5 gpg.

By referring to the table above this means your water is very hard. To go from gpg to ppm or mg/litre you do the opposite and multiply by 17.1 Water softening is not the same as water filtering for purer water at home.

There are a wide range of water usage articles which cover issues such as water usage in the house, filters, softeners, heaters and water in the garden as well. Links to topics change every time you visit the page