Is Your Home Ready for a Water Softener?

Hard water can cause a lot of problems in your home. In addition to drying out skin and hair, it can clog and shorten the life spans of water-using appliances like dishwashers, washers, water heaters, toilets, and faucets. You can install a water softener to remove or neutralize the minerals in your water. Before doing so, though, make sure your house is pre-plumbed for a water softener. Read on to learn what’s involved.

What a Pre-Plumbed Home Requires

A water softener works by removing minerals from the water circulating inside your home. To separate out and only soften water coming into your home, you’ll need to install a water softener loop, plus a drain (for pipe discharge) and an electrical outlet.

This pre-plumbed pipe setup must be near your main water supply line and eventually connect your interior water distribution pipes to your water softening system. Once you install this loop, you’ll be able to put in a softener to improve the longevity of your appliances and protect your interior faucets and water lines.

See if You Have a Loop Setup

If you built your home recently, there’s a good chance your builder installed a soft water loop setup. If you’re building a home currently, make sure your plumber installs such a loop. To determine whether your home has this feature, check your garage, mechanical room or utility closet, and your home’s exterior walls.

Then, look for a horseshoe-shaped tube, which should come out of the pipes in the wall or arise from the pipes under the floor. The loop might be covered and taped in black insulation. Underneath, you should see a pipe stub emerging from the wall and an electrical outlet nearby.

Pre-Plumb Your Home

If you don’t already have a loop, install one near your main water supply line. If you have a whole-home water filter, the loop for the filter should usually appear before the filtration system. The job should cost $600 to $2,000 on average, depending on whether any pipes need to be re-routed and how far the loop will sit from your existing plumbing.

Install a Water Softening System

Once your home is pre-plumbed, you can install a water softening system. If installing such a system for the first time, you’ll need to hire a plumber to cut existing lines and install new connections. 

The cost to install a water softener is around $1,500 on average including installation. On the lowest end, you might be able to spend as little as $500. For a larger system, you could invest as much as $6,000 or more. While it can be expensive, it’s always worthwhile to call in a water softener installer near you to get the job done correctly.

Water softeners last between 10 and 25 years in most cases, so expect to see repeating installation costs every few decades. Other ongoing costs include refilling the salt as your water softener regenerates and consumes salt to flush the system, as well as water softener repair costs from time to time.