Softener, carbon filter, reverse osmosis or salt-free conditioner?
A salt-based softener removes the hardness from your water. A carbon filter reduces the chlorine taste and smell. An under-sink reverse osmosis system filters your drinking water at one faucet. A salt-free conditioner reduces scale buildup but does not remove the hardness.
The four side by side
| What it does | What it does not do | Where it goes | Upkeep | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salt-based softener (ion exchange) | Swaps the hardness minerals (calcium and magnesium) for sodium, which removes the hardness and cuts scale. | It is not a filter: softeners do not typically treat other contaminants. It does not remove lead, and we won't tell you it does. | Where your water comes in, so every indoor tap gets softened water. | Check the salt tank about once a month and top it up when it's low. |
| Carbon filter | Reduces the chlorine taste and smell. | It does not soften the water; softening is the softener's job. We make no claim that ours reduces lead. | Where your water comes in, together with the softener. | Ask the company for the replacement schedule and its cost in writing. |
| Under-sink reverse osmosis (drinking water) | Filters the water once more for drinking and cooking. Water passes through a membrane with extremely fine pores; most dissolved minerals and salts don't, and they're rinsed down the drain. | It treats one faucet, not the whole house, and it sends rinse water down the drain while it refills its small storage tank. What it is certified to reduce is whatever its certification listing shows. | In the cabinet under the kitchen sink, with its own small faucet. | The filters change about once a year, and the membrane less often, depending on how much water you use. |
| Salt-free conditioner | Conditions the hardness minerals to reduce scale buildup, without using salt. | It does not remove the hardness minerals. Ask to see the certification listing for the exact model, because a certification covers only what its listing names. | Varies by model. We install salt-based softeners, not this type. | There is no salt to add. Ask the maker what else needs replacing, and when. |
Sources for the softener and salt-free rows: the U.S. EPA's water softener guide and the Water Quality Association's glossary.
What our system combines
Our City Water Package puts a softener and carbon filtration where your water comes in, so every indoor tap gets softened water with less chlorine taste and smell. It adds a separate reverse osmosis system under the kitchen sink, with its own faucet, for drinking and cooking.
Prices, what is included and what can change them are on the cost page.
Whatever you buy
Ask to see the certification listing for the exact model. A certification covers only what its listing names, so that listing, not the brochure, tells you what a product is certified to reduce.
Related questions
What is the difference between a whole-house water filter and a water softener?
A softener swaps the hardness minerals (calcium and magnesium) for a small amount of sodium, which cuts scale. A carbon filter reduces the chlorine taste and smell. Our whole-house system does both where the water enters your home, so every indoor tap gets it.
The drinking-water faucet at your kitchen sink is a separate reverse osmosis system, for drinking and cooking.
See a softener, a carbon filter, reverse osmosis and a salt-free conditioner side by side.
What is the difference between a salt-free conditioner and a softener?
A traditional softener swaps the hardness minerals (calcium and magnesium) for sodium, which removes the hardness. A salt-free conditioner does not remove the hardness minerals: the EPA says it conditions them to reduce scale buildup, and the Water Quality Association describes the same job as counteracting scale buildup without salt.
Whatever you consider, ask to see the certification listing for the exact model, because a certification covers only what its listing names. We install salt-based softeners. See all four side by side.
Does reverse osmosis send water down the drain?
Yes. As it filters, an RO system rinses the membrane and sends that rinse water down the drain. It only happens while the system is refilling its small storage tank, not all day.
Does a water softener remove lead?
No, and we won't tell you it does. In Chicago, lead comes from older service lines and plumbing inside homes, not from the treatment plant.
If lead is your concern, start with a real test of your own tap. Chicago residents can request a free lead test kit from the city.
Whether a drinking-water system reduces lead depends on its certification. We won't say ours does until the exact model's certification listing shows it, and we send you that listing before you buy.
Not sure which one your home needs?
Tell us where you live and where your water comes from. We'll do the rest on a short call.
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