Water Softener ?

[jmh]

Hello...I'm a newbie and have learned a lot from this forum.    I will be having my Sundance Altamar delivered in a couple of weeks and I'm trying to be ready.  

My water comes from a well and I use a water softener.  If I didn't the water would be brown and have an odor.  High levels of iron and manganese. With a softener it is great ie. no odor and is very clear.   I have seen in several places it is not recommended to use a softener with a spa.   Can somebody explain why this is not recommended.  My dealer says I can use it as long as I add calcium to replace what was taken out by the softener.  

Is there anything else I should do to deal with using a water softener?  

Thanks for anyone who can give me some direction.

[Vinny]

The problem with soft water it attacks the plumbing to try to get the hardness back.

Do as your dealer instructed and you should be fine.

[jmh]

Thanks Vinny.   Is the Taylor Test Kit something I should have?  Does it test for hardness to make sure I am adding the right amount of calcium?

[Vinny]

Yes, it will but so will a complete test kit from Walmart, K-mart, ...  Just look for something that tests for hardness in the kit, it will say so on the package.

[sandiego]

You absolutely need to follow the advice of your dealer. Having soft water will cause you to have major service issues down the road. Add some calcium to the water and you will be fine.

[BK]

We have city water with high levels of iron and manganese. We fill with softened water and add calcium back in to meet specs. We use Lamotte five way test strips which have a hardness test.

Filling with the hard water here caused alot of problems for us. Softened with calcium added is the way to go for us and probably for you too.