By Cheri Sicard
Are RV water softeners worth it? Here to answer the question is certified RV inspector Duane from the RV Inspection And Care YouTube channel.
Duane’s videos are always highly educational, and this one is no exception. He starts by explaining exactly what a water softener does, which is the first step to determining if you need one.
Water from your hose goes in one side of the softener. Inside are resin particles that attract the hard water minerals from the water. The then “softened” water flows out the other side of the water softener and into your RV.
Why might you need an RV water softener?
Without a water softener, hard minerals in the water like calcium, magnesium, iron, etc., can build up in your RV’s water system.
Hmmmm, I shudder to think what my pipes might look like. After spending six months in Baja, I could see the mineral deposits building up in my RV’s toilet.
To be sure, you can be using hard water for a long time before it creates problems, but it can create issues.
Hard water can also have an off taste or odor. If it’s high in iron, it can leave rust stains. It can make your skin dry. And worst of all, it can shorten the life of your appliances and RV plumbing system.
According to Duane, a whopping 85 percent of homes in the United States are dealing with hard water. So the problem is not uncommon.
How do you know if you need an RV water softener?
Duane recommends a small water testing kit that you can use in the places you like to camp. He thinks you’ll be surprised at how many of them have hard water.
Not to mention that campground water, in and of itself, can often be suspect. Duane has encountered it around the country, and I know I have, as well.
That’s why a lot of RVers have water filters (these are the ones Duane uses), which do get rid of larger particulates. But they, unfortunately, do not soften the water.
Duane says you will notice an immediate difference in the quality of the water when using a water softener. Not only that, there are more benefits, including:
- Soaps and shampoos will suds more and work better.
- You’ll no longer deal with clogged shower nozzles.
- Appliances will be cleaner, run better, and last longer.
How to use an RV water softener
Watch the video as Duane shows how he uses the water softener in his own rig. He actually sandwiches it between two different filters and claims they always have really great water. It works well but, of course, there are methods.
RV water softener maintenance
Using the method of doing some filtration before softening, Duane says you will need less water softener maintenance.
That said, there is always going to be some maintenance involved with this particular RV accessory. But it is not a lot and is both cheap and easy to do.
After a while, those resin beads in the water softener become saturated with hard minerals. You need to get those minerals off of the beads. Duane says regular old table salt does a great job of this. In the video, Duane demonstrates exactly how to do this simple task.
Because of the quality of the water, Duane counts his RV water softener as one of the best overall RV accessories they have in their rig. With 85 percent of U.S. water being full of hard minerals, it seems like most RVers could benefit, too.
Do you use a water softener in your RV? Please share your experiences in the comments below.
Here are the water softeners Duane uses and recommends:
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RVT1269
A good water softener will also help reduce leaving water spots on the rv when washing it, especially the windows!
There is a new trend in RV water softeners – an external brine tank that removes the need to manhandle the softener to drain and add salt. Most use a standard whole house filter housing and a special insert (in place of the filter cartridge) for the salt. Other than periodic back flushing, there is no need for tank acrobatics and thumping. This moves RV softening systems 1 step closer to how most automatic house systems operate.
The other issue for cold season RVers, is keeping the softener from freezing – that’s a whole other story.
Our current 5th wheel came from the previous owner with a water softener. Lack of instruction, online or from maker, have left me confused as to whether it works or not. I have reloaded it with fresh salt and flushed. The water tester I bought still shows hard water. The soap suds better than at home and the same as the old camper. Lack of information and user experience has me questioning whether I really need the thing.
RV water softeners are an inexpensive way to prevent mineral buildup. One valve repair, one water heater replacement costs many times more than a softener. Easy to set up, easy to recharge. We wouldn’t be without one.
Even though I use a on the go water softner once per year via the water pump suction hose I put a 50/50 mixture of white vinegar and water in my motorhomes water system and turn on the hot water heater and let everything sit for 24 hours. I do get a lot of cloudy water with occasional chunks of minerals out of the water heater and my faucets and etc work great.
We have an On-the-Go double. I bought it in 2019 when we got a new-to-us motorhome with hydronic heat/hot water. Those little tubes the water flows through in any on-demand system are susceptible to getting clogged up by hard water. A softener is cheap insurance to mitigate that.
We wouldn’t be without one now.
I like the softer water with our water softner. I just wish they had a way to dial in how soft you get the water. In many instances, it is just too soft, and feels slimy when showering.
Thank you for noting and summarizing the video, Cheri. Thank you, too, for rerunning this, Emily. Toward the end of the video, Duane tells how to recharge the resin, which is extremely helpful. Based on this video and, I think, an article by Nanci Dixon caused me to buy a water softener to carry with the RV. I have been very happy with it. Have a great week and safe travels!
We’ve used a 10,000 grain softener for almost 10 years. It’s kept our toilet from getting rust stains, shower heads from clogging and makes my wife happy shampooing her hair, making it soft and manageable. You know: ‘Happy Wife, Happy Life.’
Recharging the softener with salt varies from every week to every 2 or 3 weeks. It all depends how much mineral there is in a campground’s water. I charge the softener when soap no longer lathers or my wife’s hair just isn’t quite right.
Our softener opening to charge with salt is only 1″ in diameter. I dilute 1.25 pound of salt into a heavy duty 1 gal plastic jug for a few hours then pour solution into softener container.