However, they are cheaper to purchase than a reverse osmosis system. Reverse osmosis is excellent at removing inorganic compounds such as dissolved salts, iron, fluoride, nitrates, and heavy metals. This basically does the same thing as distillers, but they are slow and waste too much water. For every gallon of clean water you get, several gallons are wasted. If you have problems with hard water, a water softener is what you may need.
Water softeners remove minerals such as calcium, magnesium, and dissolved iron.
These are the culprits that are responsible for greenish stains on your porcelain or that slimy, soapy feeling when taking a shower. Water softeners consist of one or more tanks near the main water supply to your home. Be wary of water softeners. They work by replacing the calcium or magnesium ions from the hard water with sodium ions. So what you now have is sodium in your water which causes other problems that may be worst than calcium or magnesium.