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Halpin & Hayward supply, install and commission softeners for all applications and sizes ranging from the smallest domestic model to the largest custom built industrial system. Our Dublin warehouse holds stock of our most commonly used products and what we do not have in stock can be quickly sourced.
We are in operation over 60 years and our experienced service and maintenance team are always available for call outs or over-the-phone assistance.
For further information and product brochures please click on the link to either domestic or industrial.
You will often hear people saying for example- “Hard water generates white scale accumulation on my pots, whereas “soft water doesn’t leave a detergent film on my freshly washed clothes or fixtures.” Some people might even claim that soft water makes their skin smoother and hair silkier and easier to handle. Even while these findings might be accurate, they might not be strong justifications for buying a water softening system. It’s also crucial to remember that water softeners may not always solve the more severe issues with drinking water contamination. You can determine whether you need to soften your water by learning the chemistry of hard and soft water as well as the procedure utilised to create softer water.
Water Softening is done by removing the hardness of the water (lime) using water softeners. The amount of calcium and magnesium dissolved in water determines the hardness of the water. The harder the water is, the more calcium and magnesium it contains. There are two categories of water hardness: temporary and permanent. Boilers, humidifiers, dishwashers, washing machines, reverse osmosis systems, thermostats, and many other products are susceptible to limescale buildup. Limescale affects the heating of water, decreases the effectiveness of cleaning chemicals, and slows down the performance of machinery like RO plants.
A water supply is marked as “soft” or “hard” depending on the availability of calcium and magnesium, two highly soluble minerals. These minerals have no negative effects on health and are actually necessary for daily nutrition. Water has a pleasant flavour that many people find to be appealing thanks to minerals. Calcium and magnesium do however build up on surfaces that come into contact with them, possibly clog pipes, harm water heaters, and lessen the cleaning power of soaps and detergents. The water is supposed to be hard at this location.
One of two units of measurement is used to express water hardness. The first measurement is in parts per million (ppm), which is the same as the concentration of dissolved calcium and magnesium in water. Calculating hardness is made simpler by using this equivalence. One ppm denotes a calcium carbonate concentration of one unit per million units of water. Milligrams per litre (mg/l) and parts per million are equivalent terms. Calcium carbonate grains per gallon (gpg) is a second way to measure hardness. A gpg, which is only used to measure hardness, is equivalent to 17 mg/l or ppm.
When you know how rough the water is, you have two choices. You can either treat the water to lower the calcium and magnesium levels, or you can live with the hardness level, knowing that levels below 7.0 gpg usually won’t create serious scaling and soap film. The latter method can be accomplished successfully with a water softener, also known as an ion exchange unit.
Since water softening devices have been used in the water treatment sector for a long time, the technology is highly developed and, in most circumstances, effective at lowering the level of hardness.
How is ion exchange carried out? Water is filtered through an exchange medium known as resin or zeolite using a physical and chemical process. The resin is typically a sand-like substance that is either synthetic or natural and coated in positively charged sodium ions. An ion exchange environment is formed as the calcium and magnesium dissolve into positively charged ions. The resin releases its sodium ions when the water passes through the device and readily exchanges them for the calcium and magnesium ions. The water coming from the machine is now regarded as soft.
It is obvious that the resin is not an endless exchange site. The resin is exhausted and stops softening water when all the sodium exchange sites are taken over by hardness minerals. At this stage, a different cycle known as regeneration must be used with the water softener. The resin is backwashed with a salt solution during this cycle. The calcium and magnesium ions that had been adsorbed on the resin are carried away by the brine as it is reverse flushed through the system. The softener can be put back to use after backwashing is finished. Some water softeners will change to the operation cycle on their own. The switch on others is manual. The ion exchange and regeneration cycles of the water softening process.
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Beaumont Avenue,
Churchtown,
Dublin 14
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