What Is A Water Descaler?
The electronic water descaler is one of the newest salt-free water softener technologies that has become a very popular form of hard water treatment. It’s much more affordable than the other water softeners like magnetic descalers and ion exchange softener.
What is an electronic water descaler?
An electronic water descaler is a salt-free electronic device consisting of coils of insulated electrical cables wrapped around the pipes at your main water inlet. They produce electromagnetic waves that alter the chemical structure of the water minerals thereby preventing limescale from attaching and building up in the pipes.
How does it work?
The electronic water descaler is made up of an electronic box that is connected to two electrical cables, also known as antennas which are coiled around the pipes at your main water inlet.
The electronic box passes an alternating current (once positive, once negative) through the cables wound around the pipes. In turn, the alternating current generates electromagnetic waves that interact with the incoming water molecules passing through the pipes.
A common electrical cable has two parts, the outer insulating part (polymer) and the inner conduction part which is the copper wire. When the positive current goes through the copper wire (inner conduction part), the outer insulating part becomes negatively polarized.
Therefore, the water molecules which pass through the pipes are attracted and repelled successively, and as such, the cations and anions present lose their affinity for water. They break away from their existing association and disperse.
This way, the electromagnetic waves prevent the calcium and magnesium ions in the water from forming calcium and magnesium carbonate which are the main cause of limescale deposits in plumbing systems and appliances.
Instead, the dissolved bicarbonates and dissolved solids like calcium crystallize to form non-scaling microcrystals which do not adhere to the pipes, taps, and kettles, thereby effectively preventing scaling.
What are the benefits?
Installing and using an electronic water descaler at your home offers several benefits which include:
Helps Extend the Life of Appliances and Pipe Work at Home
Hard water causes the buildup of limescale on the pipework at home which includes the water-using fixture, sinks storage tanks, water heaters, radiators, tubs, shower pipes, washing machines, and dishwashers.
This accumulation of hard water scale can significantly shorten the life of these appliances leading to more frequent replacements which can prove costly over time.
Salt-free water softeners can effectively reduce and prevent the buildup of limescale on your home’s pipes and appliances which not only helps extend their life but also means less costly repairs which can save you plenty of money and headaches over the long term.
Does not Influence Water Quality
An electronic water descaler adds no chemicals or salt into the water. Aside from the electromagnetic waves, it doesn’t interact with the water in any way and as such, they don’t affect the quality of the water as it passes through the pipes.
For those who have cardiovascular issues or need to monitor their sodium intake, using an electronic water descaler can also be beneficial since they don’t add or produce sodium during the descaling process.
Salt-based softeners, on the other hand, leave some sodium in your water after treatment while with an electronic water descaler, you are only left with the natural sodium present in the water.
Leaves Essential Minerals
Electronic water descalers don’t remove the important minerals which are beneficial to your health. All the essential minerals like calcium, potassium, and magnesium simply crystalize to eliminate the problems of water hardness, so they remain intact in your water.
Therefore, if you need to prevent limescale buildup and still leave the healthy minerals in your water for consumption, then you can rely on an electronic water descaler.
Affordable Pricing and Low Operating Costs
Compared to other water softeners, particularly the salt-based systems, electric water descalers are low investment devices. They are very much affordable than ion-exchange water softeners with some models even costing almost half the price of standard salt-based systems.
Another bonus is that they only require limited electricity to run and use much less water without producing any discharge.
Thereby, they are less costly to operate and can save you money. Salt-based systems use much more water and require frequent replacement of salt and other chemicals, all of which will cost you money.
The replacement salt bags are also not that cheap which makes them relatively expensive to operate than electric water descalers.
Easy to Install and Very Low Maintenance
Salt-based systems are large bulky units that require drainage and a lot of space to install and operate. However, salt-free systems like electric water descalers are much more compact and easy to install.
They don’t need remodeling your plumbing to accommodate them as they can fit almost anywhere and have less moving parts.
The best part is that they require very low maintenance than salt-based systems. They can run unsupervised for long periods and there are no salts or other chemicals that need regular replacements. Salt-based systems require in-depth maintenance and constant monitoring since you will have to attend to the unit at least once every week to replace the salt which is quite a hassle.