A more direct approach is to reduce the salt content of the water before using it. Some homeowners boil water to remove the salts. This procedure does remove some salts, which build up as a scale inside the kettle, but many salts remain in the water. There are a number of different systems for salt-removal available to the homeowner. Before I discuss them, here are a few more facts about water and salts.
Saline water has a high concentration of many different salts, including calcium and magnesium.
This is the system most commonly used by homeowners to soften water for laundry and washing. But it may not be suitable if you want water that is safe for your houseplants. The amount of sodium released is equal to the amount of calcium and magnesium in the untreated water. If the water is very hard and contains high amounts of calcium and magnesium, the treated water will contain an equally high amount of sodium. This system is commonly used to produce purified water for drinking.