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Re: Hmmmm...

Posted By: Alistair
Date: Friday, 26 March 1999, at 5:42 p.m.

In Response To: Re: Hmmmm... (Wintek)

Yes a water softner (chemical not dish washer type) removes dissolved Calcium and usually magnesium - but here's a poser for you - When you add a softerner to already soft water you change its pH to about 6.5 every time. Trust me, I've tried it in several places in Scotland (sad or what?). I still have not figured out why so if yo uahve any idea, please post them. My working thhery is CaCO3 liberates HCO3- ions in water. Removing the Ca ions and replacing them with Na ions produces NaCO3, which produces fewer HCO3- ions in water and establishes its own equilibrium point at pH 6.5. great until I discovered that apparently commercial water softners use phosphate compounds to eliminate calcium - phosphates compound establish an equilibrium at round pH 7.6. Suddenly, poof! - there goes my theory and here comes the algae. What do you think?
 

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