Switching to Potassium Chloride (KCl vs NaCl)

[CNH]

Hello,

I have a Rainsoft water softener in my home. I am considering switching to using KCl vs the NaCl I have been using. I realize the KCl is about 4 to 5 times more expensive and I had some questions.

(1) The guy that sold me the Rainsoft system said that you can switch from NaCl to KCl but that after you switch, you cannot switch back to NaCl again. Is there any truth to that? I cannot find anything on-line that states this. And if it is true, why?

(2) Another plumber once told me that I really should be using KCl and he stated that while its more expensive the price fluctuates a lot as farms use potassium in their fertilizer. He said twice a year its gets really expensive but if purchased between the fertilizing peeks that it was only a few dollars more per bag than NaCl. Again, I've seen no real indication that this statement is true. If it is, when is the best time of the year to buy KCl for your water softener?

The way my house in plumbed, only one of my exterior faucets has untreated water. As my wife occasionally uses other faucets to water plants, I think I really should be using KCl and not NaCl. But reading articles like this one:
https://www.hunker.com/12000216/negative-effects-of-potassium-chloride-in-water-softening-systems
give me pause either way.

We have an RO system in the kitchen and that is usually the water we drink. But I don't know how much potassium one might absorb through the skin while taking showers or baths, if that is a concern.

Looking for some opinions on the subject...

Thanks,
Carl

 

[Reach4]

1. not truth
2. It is true prices would go up and down, but I would be surprised if bagged KCl for softner use came down to 3x regular softener salt. However I have not been watching.
3. I would consider running another tap for irrigation water. Is this from your own well, or is it city water?

I would be skeptical of claims of harmful KCl being absorbed during showers.

If your brine tank is outside, the fact is that the saturation level of KCl changes a lot more with temperature than with NaCl. This would be particularly bad if the brine tank was outside or in an AZ garage. The potential problem is an increased problem of salt bridging. Do set your softener for brine-first if you go KCl to give minimum time for the temperature to change after the water has been put into the brine tank. Cabinet types are usually brine-first, but regular softeners usually have a setting.

Note that you need more pounds of KCl to regenerate your softener than with NaCl, I forget the approximation factor.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Bannerman]

What is the reason for switching? Depending on water and environment temperature variables, often more water within the brine tank will be required compared to sodium chloride to regenerate the same capacity. Due to the temperature reactivity issues that Reach4 mentioned, there are far more bridging and caking issues when using KCL compared to sodium.

https://view.publitas.com/impact-water-products/2018-catalog-final/page/53

RO is very effective at removing sodium. The amount of sodium added by a softener is directly related to the amount of hardness to be removed. Using softened water will often not affect plants, but that will be dependant on the hardness amount and the plant variety. The link below us to a writeup on the amount of sodium added by softening.

As with most things, too much is usually not good including potassium. You normally do not fertilize plants every time they are watered.

https://view.publitas.com/impact-water-products/2018-catalog-final/page/154

 

[CNH]

2. It is true prices would go up and down, but I would be surprised if bagged KCl for softner use came down to 3x regular softener salt. However I have not been watching.

I've not been watching very closely either. But if the price is seasonal and varies with the peak fertilizing times on farms, I'm still curious when one would expect it to be at its minimum price.

3. I would consider running another tap for irrigation water. Is this from your own well, or is it city water?

We have city water, but no sewage service so I have my own septic tank in the back. And yes, our water softener is in a garage.

Cabinet types are usually brine-first, but regular softeners usually have a setting.

I wasn't certain what "Cabinet type" actually meant but I found it defined here:
https://www.diamondcrystalsalt.com/blog/types-of-water-softeners
Mine is NOT the cabinet type as my brine tank is separate from the resin tank.

What is the reason for switching?

I haven't switched yet. Its just something I'm considering. Basically I was concerned about my wife using the softened water on plants and most sites state that the KCl is better for you as it removes sodium from your diet. Based on what I've read here, I'm likely to stick with NaCl as what we usually drink is from the RO system anyways.

Sounds like what I should be looking into is adding a few more untreated faucets outside. The main water line into the home goes strait into the water softener so all the exterior facets on the home itself are treated water. However there is one exterior faucet that is off the main line to the home from the street. This is the faucet that I use to water the front and side yards as I have a 200 foot hose. But when my wife waters the potted plants and a few plant beds around the home she typically used the faucets on the home as she doesn't like dealing with the 200 foot hose. I've noticed no negative side effects from this yet but I was trying to be proactive incase it became a problem.

Thanks for the replies,
Carl

 

[Reach4]

You could tee off the water outside, as the pipe is on the way to the house. Then run pipe in a trench around the house to where you want the water.

You probably have a fairly shallow frost line, so the trench would not need to be deep.