Category: Uncategorized

You may or may not have heard that having a water softener installed could save you money as a homeowner, but why exactly is that?
 
Read on to discover the pros of water softeners, and how they could result in a more affordable water supply – as well as improving its quality and taste too!
 
How could a water softener save you money?
 
In most homes, you'll find that electricity is the highest of all the utility bills. When you factor in heating and cooling the home, combined with a typical water heater, this shouldn't come as much for a surprise. Water heaters, in particular, may take up around 25 percent of your household's total energy consumption!
 
Many homeowners try to combat this expense by purchasing a new, efficient water heater. However, they don't realise that this alone won't make much of a difference. No matter how efficient a heater is, it will not function as well as you'd like it to if the conditions aren't right. So what is the condition that reduces water heater efficiency, you ask? It's simple – hard water.
 
Hard water can reduce the efficiency of your heater by around 48 percent! As your heater functions, it will begin to accumulate calcium carbonate – in other words, limescale. As this limescale builds up, it will begin to cause clogged water lines, blocked plumbing and damage to internal components of your heater, not only reducing its efficiency but also risking permanent damage.
 
As a result, you will find yourself paying higher utility bills, as well as potentially having to fork out for repairs or replacements of parts – or even a full new heating system!
 
So, what can you do about this hard water?
 
Firstly, you'll need to determine whether or not you actually have hard water, so that you can ensure hard water is the cause of the problem.
 
Take a look at your taps and shower heads. Do they have any spots or limescale build up on them? If so, hard water is more than likely the culprit.
 
The next step is getting rid of it, and it's easier than you might think to switch your supply over to soft water. All you need is a water softener!
 
What can a water softener do?
 
A water softener will not only help with the issues detailed above, but will also:
 

• Result in cleaner kitchenware and fixtures.
• Be kinder to your hair and skin.
• Use less soap to get a good lather.
• Keep your clothes soft, clean and longer lasting.
• Protect your appliances from damage.
• Taste better – although this one is down to opinion, most people prefer the taste of softer water!
• And far more!

 
If you've been convinced that a water softener could be the best choice for you and your home, why not get in touch with EWT Water Specialists? We'll be able to advise on the best water softener for your needs, as well as install it ready to improve your supply.

We all know the basic facts about water – that we should drink eight glasses per day to battle off dehydration. But what about the stranger facts? There's plenty of things to consider about water that you may not already know – here are just seventeen!
 

1. Less than 1% of the world's water is fit for consumption. In fact, some sources predict that number to be as low as 0.37%!
2. 90% of the world's fresh water is in Antarctica, meaning most of the world is sharing the remaining 10%.
3. Human bones consist of 31% water, although this is not too shocking considering the body is mostly water!
4. It is not actually water that conducts electricity – it's the impurities it contains.
5. Cold water weighs more than hot water. As it gets warmer, it becomes less dense.
6. Hot water can freeze faster than cold water – also known as the Mpemba Effect, and as observed by Aristotle over 2,000 years ago!
7. Only 0.003% of Earth's water can be consumed by humans without risk of illness.
8. Water can boost the human body's immune system, especially when fighting off colds and flu during the cooler months.
9. Drinking too much water can lead to water intoxication.
10. There's a reservoir floating in space that's over 140 trillion times bigger than all Earth's oceans put together.
11. 68.7% of Earth's fresh water is trapped inside glaciers, making it inaccessible.
12. Pure water has no smell or taste, anything you can smell relates to chemicals or impurities that have been added to the supply.
13. 80% of all illnesses in the developing world are related to water, showing the importance of good filtration where possible.
14. An ice cube will melt more slowly if it has been frozen more than once, due to gases being dissolved and bubbles being forced out with each freeze.
15. There's more fresh water under the Earth than on its surface. Less than 2% of all fresh water on Earth is above ground.
16. The average person can drink up to three gallons of water each day, although you definitely don't need this much to stay hydrated – in fact it may be dangerous! The daily recommendation is half a gallon.
17. When you start to feel thirsty, you have already lost around one percent of your body's water amount.

 
Did you learn something new today? Whether you knew these facts or not, knowing the facts about water gives you the grounds to make an informed decision when getting in your daily glasses.
While we're lucky to have a safe water supply, additional installations can help to ensure the water that comes from your tap is even cleaner, safer and more enjoyable to drink.
 
EWT Water Specialists can provide high-quality water purification, filtration and softening systems that will always result in high quality, great tasting water for you and your family!

If you are in charge of what goes on in your office, you might want to consider having a water cooler installed. It is not as much work as it seems, and your employees will no doubt thank you for it!
Here are just ten of the top reasons your office is in need of a water cooler.
 
1. It will help your employees concentrate.
Being dehydrated can reduce your concentration, attention span and memory function by approximately 10 percent! When hydrated, your employees will be able to focus on the tasks at hand.
 
2. Hydration can prevent and improve headaches.
If an employee has a headache, they're probably not going to be concentrating on their work. With an endless supply of water, dehydration and headaches are less likely. Problem solved!
 
3. Water is great for staying awake.
Water is a great way to perk up from that mid-afternoon slump and will ensure your staff stay alert right through until the end of the day.
 
4. Healthy employees are happy employees.
Drinking the recommended daily amount of water ensures your body stays healthy overall. Being healthy will mean your employees are happier, and will likely spend less time off work sick due to their improved immune systems!
 
5. It will save you and your employees money.
With a constant supply from a cooler, you will be spending far less than you would be if you instead chose to provide bottled water to every employee.
 
6. It will also save you time!
Who has the time to head out and buy water in the midst of a busy schedule? With a cooler, every employee will have cool water just minutes from their desk.
 
7. The office mood will be better overall.
When you are dehydrated, it is very possible that you will become irritated and even aggressive! Make sure everyone keeps their cool in the office by ensuring they have access to water. It's enough to keep away the office fights!
 
8. Bad breath will be a thing of the past.
When working in close proximity in an office, bad breath can be an issue. Staying hydrated improves oral health and will keep your mouth clean and fresh for longer between brushes.
 
9. You are legally obligated to provide water.
It's true! The law says that employers must provide an adequate supply of water to everyone in the workplace, according to the welfare at work regulations S.I. No. 358 of 1995.
 
10. You will get to enjoy those 'water cooler' moments!
We have all seen them on TV – the moment spent sharing work tips, advice and even gossip around the water cooler. So why not recreate them in real life? Give your employees the perfect opportunity to improve teamwork by staying social.
 
So with these reasons in mind, will you be considering a water cooler in the near future? If so, give EWT Water Specialists a call!
We can provide offices with high-quality coolers to offer your employees purified, cool water whenever they need it.
Coolers are now only £490 with a free installation, so why wait? Start the process today!

Everyone can benefit from getting the recommended daily amount of water each and every day, so it is important for your kids to get the hydration they need. Unfortunately, this can often be a difficult task, especially if your kids have a sweet tooth and a penchant for juice or fizzy, flavoured drinks.
So how do you make the transition from fruity flavours to regular water? Here are seven top tips!
 
Make water a fun choice.
There's always a way to make food and drink more fun and instantly more appealing to children. Ideas for brightening up of H20 include:

• Putting the water in a fun cup, featuring their favourite colours or characters.
• Adding a few ice cubes – bonus points if they are a fun shape!
• Letting them drink the water through a novelty straw.
• Adding fresh fruit as a 'treat' to complement the beverage.

 
Don't provide alternative options.
Kids are more likely to ask for something else if they know the option is there. But if they know your fridge is no longer full of fizzy drinks and sugary juices, they will usually settle for the water you offer them.
If you do choose to keep these drinks in the house (perhaps for yourself or to give the kids a treat), keep them out of sight and make sure the kids know it is an occasional treat rather than a daily habit.
 
Teach your kids the benefits of water.
Children love to learn, so tell them about where water comes from and the benefits it can have on the human body.
By understanding exactly why we need water and the importance of hydration, they will be more interested in testing out the results for themselves.
 
Get creative with flavours.
If your child really doesn't enjoy the taste of water, adding some flavour doesn't have to be unhealthy. Try an organic, natural squash made from real fresh fruit – or, even better, add a little fruit yourself!
You can create endless infusions by simply adding fruit pieces to water. See which ones your kids enjoy!
 
Make it readily available.
To encourage your children to drink more water, make sure they know it is readily available at all times. They will begin to learn that they can have water and feel better as soon as they start to feel thirsty.
 
Maintain a positive attitude.
The best thing you can do whilst getting your kids to drink more water is stay positive. If you nag or argue, they'll begin to see drinking water as something negative, or a chore that they're being forced to do.
As frustrating as it may be from time to time, always look on the bright side and keep up the positive approach.
 
However you choose to encourage your kids to drink more water, you can be certain you are doing the right thing by helping them live a healthy lifestyle.
To learn more about the ways you could ensure a healthy, enjoyable tasting water supply in your home that your kids would be happy to drink, get in touch with EWT! We have a wealth of options available including filters and softeners that will ensure high-quality water with every sip.

In times of economic uncertainty, we all want to do two things. Firstly, we want to increase our income, whether we are a business or individual, so that we can cope with rising costs. Secondly, we want to decrease our expenses, so that we are less fragile to economic uncertainty, and we are able to prepare for things getting worse.

One of the ways in which we can all cut costs and thus increase our income, as businesses and individuals, is to think about how we can be more efficient with our utilities. For instance, we can use less electricity. We could cut costs by using less water. Yet you might think that these are just small things that make very little difference on the big picture. One way that you can make huge cuts in expenses, at least in your business, is to start using water cooler systems for various appliances and uses.

The benefits of a water cooling system for reducing costs.

The reason that you might use a water cooling system can be boiled down to one thing-things require power can get hot. Very hot. And you might not think about heat in terms of cost of running a business, but by all means it is one. We each get a heating bill every month. We know that that costs, yet we don’t think of the costs associated with losing heat from appliances other than radiators.

When something gets too hot, it loses energy through the heat that it is expending. Also, appliances that get hot don’t last as long. This is true of everything from your personal computer, or you way up to important industrial equipment and the various fixtures and fittings which are in your workspace which have to carry heat, be they hot water pumps, or electrical appliances or your heating system itself, such as hot water tanks.

The traditional way that these things called down is by an air cooling system – no matter how hot something gets, unless it’s in an out-of-control fire, eventually that he is dispersed throughout the air, which is the way radiators work. However, cooling by air isn’t enough to cool something down quickly enough so that it doesn’t lose you any money or efficiency. Also, you can never get anything to cool down lower than the temperature of the air in the room.

A water cooling system is much more efficient, because you can have a cooling system which is colder than the ambient temperature of the room. This makes it more effective than air cooling. Water is obviously much denser in terms of its make up than air, and this is another reason that a water cooling system can help you reduce costs. If your heating system is overheating, for every moment that is a degree above its peak temperature, you are losing money and losing efficiency. Water cooling systems, because water is denser than air, disperse the excess heat much more quickly, meaning that there is less time for your appliances to operate at below peak efficiency.

Many of us have a water filter system of some sort at home. Many of us also run our own businesses, or are in charge of domestic services at our place of work. Yet rarely do these two coincide, and as such very few companies think about installing proper filtration at work.
A water filtration system is a must for any commercial space. Hard water can be a small, an often overlooked problem, which can lead to big expenses down the road. For instance, if your plumbing system fails due to a build-up of lime scale or other hard mineral deposits, you might have to replace out the whole system. This is a huge expense, as you know; businesses operate on tight margins at the best of times.

Industrial Equipment

Industrial equipment is something that is particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of hard water. Boilers, as well as other similar systems, require the ongoing circulation of water in order to be effective. Build-up of mineral deposits will affect this, and if your water balance is off, this process will be a lot faster than you think. That is why it’s important to have a water filtration system to ensure the correct pH balance in your water system.

Restaurants and Hospitality Businesses

If the small business you run is a restaurant, then getting a water filtration system is a matter of the utmost priority. If you run a catering or hospitality business, you have to understand that the quality of the water affects every part of your business. You have to stick to strict cleaning and hygiene regulations, which means the water you need to use is necessarily high quality, but you also need it to ensure that your ceramics and glassware aren’t damaged unnecessarily. Of course this is entirely aside from the issue that you need quality water for preparing food and drinks.

Other Businesses

Assuming that you aren’t operating an industrial business, or you are not operating a restaurant or hospitality business, you might think that these above issues don’t concern your company. However, where the company you run, providing it’s got premises you will be paying rent or other ongoing rates. Understand that all of these things are negatively affected by the poor water index. Your heating bills will be higher, because the radiators will be less efficient. Your electricity bills will be higher, because your kettle will be less efficient due to the build-up of lime scale. Anything that requires water will be less efficient than it can be, and as we said; margins are always tight business, you will maximise every possible opportunity to save money.

If you are not sure whether you need a new filtration system, then here are some of the signs:

·     your appliances are noticeably less effective.
·     You are experiencing a substantial drop in the water pressure in your building.
·     The water you drink is strange smelling, is cloudy, or has a funny taste.

It isn’t worth delaying if any of these problems affect you.

The human body is roughly 70% water, and it is important that we stay hydrated during the course of our lives. There are many foods that are rich in hydrating properties as well as different drinks that can increase the water level in our bodies. However, the best way of hydration is by drinking natural water.

Having said this, it is not always easy for us to drink clean water due to the high level of pollution in water sources. This is why many people filter their water before drinking it. A water filtration system isn’t necessarily expensive, and it is guaranteed to benefit you in the long run. Here are a few reasons why you should always filter your water before drinking it.

1. Your water will taste and smell better

Often when we turn on our taps, we realise that the water smells a bit like chlorine (strong mouldy smell, acid taste). The reason for this is that water may contain traces of chlorine that can harm your body. By filtering water, you can get rid of chlorine and other chemicals which will lead to your water tasting and smelling a lot better. This may also help to prevent rectal and colon cancer caused by unfiltered water.

2. Children will benefit during the growth process

Filtered water helps your child during their growth process, mainly because it filters out any toxins that may enter their bodies. These toxins can harm their organs which are still developing, and it can even lead to growth irregularities. Filtered water can help improve and build their immune system, which is why it is better to make sure that they always consume clean water.

3. It is cheaper to maintain than bottled water

You may be thinking that you don’t have to drink tap water; you could just drink bottled water instead. This is a valid argument, but it will be very expensive in the long run. A water filtration system is a once-off payment with lower maintenance costs. This is bound to save you more money than buying bottled water every day. Plus toxins from plastic bottles can leach into the water overtime, not to mention the environmental impact these plastic water bottles have.

4. It can prevent birth defects

Researchers advise pregnant women to always make sure they drink filtered water during their pregnancy. The reason for this is that toxins and unwanted substances in the unfiltered water may lead to birth defects and other disabilities later in the child’s development. It can also have severe consequences for the mother, and she can become sick during her pregnancy.
 
5. It helps you capitalise on the full health benefits of water

Water is an excellent source of nourishment, but with all the chemicals, toxins, and dangerous particles floating around, you won’t be able to capitalise on those benefits. Make sure you get the most out of your water-drinking experience by investing in a water filtration system without breaking the bank.
Click here for more information.

Pollution refers to the act of making something impure, such as water or air. In this article, we’re speaking about fresh water in lakes, streams and even groundwater.  When water is polluted, it is not fit for consumption, and can become more of a problem as technologies and businesses expand. There are three types of pollutants in water. This list includes physical, chemical, and biological.
 
Physical pollution
 
Physical pollution can be in the form of heat from an industrial or business source or particles of soil from erosion. While some are bottom sediments because of the particles releasing and going to the bottom, there are also chemical pollutants within these particles.
 
Chemical pollution
 
In fresh waters like lakes and streams, there are chemicals that dissolve from the soil onto the rocks that they go over. Inorganic elements in this list are:
 

• Calcium
• Magnesium
• Carbon
• Chlorine
• Sulfur
• And many more.

 
There are also organic compounds that play a role in chemical pollution because they are derived from decaying materials. However, nature isn’t the only pollution source as human-made compounds are also responsible for water pollution.
 
Biological
 
Living things aren't pollutants, however, what they grow can be. Certain types of bacteria and plants can become troublesome when it comes to pollution. While such pollution may not kill humans, thousands of animals have fallen victim to accidental cyanide releases from a facility in Romania. The river, known as the Tisza River, had killed not only aquatic animals but also terrestrial animals in the surrounding area.
 
Though this seems as a man-made pollution, it’s also biological. This pollution traveled so far downstream that it reached Hungary and Yugoslavia, accounting for hundreds and thousands of animal deaths for up to three weeks.
 
Point sources of pollution
 
What is the point source of pollution? It’s simply the source of pollution that can be directly pinpointed like a broken pipe from where pollutants are entering into the water. Where there are point sources, there are nonpoint sources of pollution as well.
 
Nonpoint sources of pollution

This type of pollution is something that one cannot directly pinpoint but it seeps into natural bodies of water such as urban gardens and lawns, pavements, construction sites, agricultural fields and more. There are many pollutants that end up in the urban drains such as fertilizers, herbicides, poisons, pollutants from vehicles and more.
 
Agricultural and airborne contaminants are frequent as fossil fuels and other pesticides can also run amuck in bodies of water that are untreated. Mercury, heavy metals, and other compounds are inserted naturally through precipitation, causing even more pollution when it rains.
 
Does it affect my water supply?

Usually, water comes from a reservoir, and it may be polluted. So if you’d like to keep your water clean in your home, consider buying a filter from EW Technologies. Whether you have hard or soft water, a filter can help reduce the amount of possible pollutants and minerals in your water.

Also known as a harder water headache, hard water is a form of water source where the water  has a high mineral content. This is the opposite of soft water. When hard water is heated, it typically leaves deposits of limestone and chalk, which can be seen in many forms in the home.
 
What happens when laundry is done right with hard water?
 

1. If you aren’t doing anything to prevent hard water while doing laundry, you’ll probably experience stiffness in your clothes as well as a harshness to the material.
2. Hard water may also affect the energy and water efficiency of your washing machine.
3. Hard water may also shorten the lifespan of electrical circuits of a washing machine.

 
Unfortunately, not everyone knows that they have hard water and they may often wonder if their machines are broken. But that's generally not the case.
 
Hard water and laundry
 
When doing laundry in hard water, we often have to use more detergent. This is because generally, the detergent is used up by trying to soften calcium and magnesium. Since these two are more present with hard water, more detergent is required when doing laundry.
 
How to deal with hard water
 
Hard water can be treated, albeit it is a bit more difficult to work with. For starters, you can use a water softener, which is like a filter and dilutes the amount of minerals coming through. Water softeners such as the EWT 610 Gold HE high-efficiency water softener can remove limescale from your water, is salt efficient and is energy efficient too. If this isn’t within your budget, there are other inexpensive options that work just as well like the EWT MODEL EWT500 Gold. While being cheaper, it’s still highly energy efficient while removing limescale and softening the water completely in your home or workplace.
 
If you don’t have access to either of these options, there are few DIY solutions that can reduce the amount of minerals in your water, to make it a softer or help when doing laundry.
 

• Make sure to use an adequate amount of detergent – Those who have worked with laundry and hot water are probably already familiar with the trick of adding more detergent and water when doing laundry. But this can be quite the headache and cost a considerable amount of money without actually solving the route cause.

 

• While home water softeners are great and can reduce the amount of hardness the water has during laundry, cold water can present an issue. If the hardness of your water is higher than 150 ppm, a water conditioner should be installed to make the laundry experience a lot easier.

 

When people buy their homes, they often overlook the damage hard water can cause their homes. New home buyers may be oblivious about hard water if they haven’t lived in the neighborhood before. It’s important to check the water hardness at your home so you can proceed to take the right steps in reducing the adverse effects.
 
What is hard water?
 
Hard water is when there is a certain level of minerals in the water. This is often measured by grains per gallon or parts per million (PPM). Doing your laundry or other household tasks may be tough when your water is hard as more minerals equate to more stiffness and a harsh texture on clothes and washing.  Most people automatically think they need to change their detergent or washing machine when the real issue is hard water.
 
How to tell if you have hard water?
 
When buying a home, it may not be included within the information area of the listing. While not knowing is common for the new homeowners, it’s important to always check the water hardness as you can be spending hundreds of pounds/Euro trying to fix other problems when the source of the issue is really the water.
 
To check if you have hard water at home, you must call your local water supply and ask if your area or the neighborhood has hard or soft water. A 100 ppm reading would mean you have relatively soft water and a result of up to 180 ppm or above would mean hard to very hard water. An alternative way to check for hard water is to order a water test strip and conduct a hard water test in your home.
 
I have hard water! What do I do now?
 
There are some steps to take if you have hard water, and unfortunately, you can’t replace your water supply easily, if at all.

• When it comes to something like laundry, you must put in more detergent as the minerals like calcium and magnesium in hard water tend to soak up the detergent more. This is why there is harshness and stiffness when you’re done with your laundry. To help reduce and solve this, simply put more detergent. You may have to find a new balance between the amount of water and detergent you put in.
• An alternative and permanent way to prevent harshness and stiffness within your clothes is to look for a water softener. A water softener that’s beneficial and worth every penny is the EWT 606Gold Series system. It's not only energy and water efficient, but it’s also highly effective with salt efficiency. It removes the limescale from the water and reduces other minerals.

 
Even though drinking hard water doesn’t prove any negatives for the human body, it definitely doesn’t work the same way for household tasks like laundry. For more information on how you can solve the limescale or hard water issue in your home please click here.