10 Reasons Why Water Softener Water Tastes Salty [Solved] 

Last updated on January 2nd, 2023

You may be wondering why your water softener water tastes salty after you use a water softener. The main reason is the softening process. During this process, salt is added to the water to help it flow more freely through the pipes and filter system in your home or business. 

This is fine if you use hard water with high levels of minerals like magnesium or calcium, but if you have a low mineral content like sodium or potassium and little or no magnesium or calcium, then your water will taste salty after it’s softened.

The other reason for this symptom is that you may have a dirty filter in your sink, tub, or showerhead. Hard water contains lots of minerals that can build up on the inside of filters over time. This causes them to become clogged up and prevents them from filtering out the impurities in your water properly. 

Once they’ve been clogged up for a while they will start to get rid of these impurities by themselves which results in an increase in chlorine odor and taste caused by organic matter reacting with chlorine gas emitted by the filter as it breaks down over time (this reaction produces chlorine gas).

Here we are going to describe the top reasons why water tastes salty. 

10 Reasons Why Water Softener Water Tastes Salty

The filter is not working properly

The filter is what removes the minerals and other impurities from your water before it goes into your home. If there are any clogs in the filter, they can cause a salty taste in your water.

The reverse osmosis system is clogged with dirt and sediment.

Reverse osmosis systems use a membrane to push water through at a high pressure, which helps remove dissolved solids from your water. However, if there is too much dirt or sediment present in the membrane, then it will not function as well as it should and this will result in a salty taste in your water.

Your home’s plumbing system has not been flushed properly 

Flushing all of the pipes in your home can help get rid of any remaining deposits that may have formed over time due to extreme weather conditions such as floods or prolonged drought conditions. However, if you have not flushed out all of the pipes and fixtures for an extended period of time (a few months or longer), then there might still be some deposits left behind that could lead to an unpleasant-tasting water supply once again.

Water softeners are not used 

Water softeners are used to soften hard water and remove calcium and magnesium from the water. These chemicals can cause problems when they are in the water supply, such as scale build-up on hot water heaters, showers, laundry machines and other appliances.

When you run a water softener, you will notice that the water tastes salty. This is because salt is added to your system during the regeneration process of your unit. The salt allows for the removal of minerals from your water supply.

However, if you use softened water on everything in your house — including drinking glasses — then it can become an issue for some people who do not like the taste of salted water.

Salt content: water softener water tastes salty

The next reason why water softener water tastes salty is because of the salt content. Most of the times, people don’t know that a lot of salts are added to their water to make it flow better. This is why you will find that your water tastes salty after using a water softener.

Other content in the water 

Another reason why water softener water tastes salty is because of the other content in the water. The amount of these minerals can vary depending on your usage of the water softener. If you have used a lot of energy in your daily life, then your body will be using more calcium and magnesium than usual. This can cause it to create its own salt out of these minerals which is then added back into your home plumbing system.

Water softeners don’t work effectively 

A third reason why water softener water tastes salty is because of the mineral deposits in your pipes and filters as well as other components that need cleaning or replacing at certain intervals. The buildup on these components will cause them to lose their functionality after some time and thus create a new layer of minerals on top which are then added back into your system again when you carry out normal activities such as flushing toilets or running taps etc.

The Dose Is Too Low

Another reason why your drinking water could have a salty taste is if the dose (or amount of minerals) is too low in comparison to what’s needed by your home. For example, if you have a house with a lot of hard water and low levels of calcium and magnesium in its soil, then it will need more minerals than typical tap water tends to have. If this is happening, then adding more minerals such as sodium chloride or potassium chloride may help fix.

Hard Water: water softener water tastes salty

Hard water is the result of dissolved minerals in the water, usually calcium and magnesium. While these minerals can be beneficial in some ways (they are essential for healthy bones and teeth), too much of them can lead to scale build-up in pipes, fixtures, appliances, and other fixtures in your home.

Iron Toxicity: water softener water tastes salty

Iron toxicity occurs when too much iron builds up in your body over time. The most common cause of iron toxicity is drinking too much water without filtering it first (e.g., through a reverse osmosis filter). Other causes include old plumbing fixtures with corroded fittings, galvanized pipes and iron filters in your water system that aren’t functioning properly.

Why I’m Getting Salty Water from Water Softener? [How to Fix]

If your water is salty, you need to know why. You might have a problem with the water softener itself or with the system that serves it up. The most common problems are:

The filter needs to be cleaned. If it hasn’t been cleaned in a while, rust and other particles will get stuck in it and cause problems.

The system has to be serviced. The salt level in the tank may have dropped below optimal levels or there may be other problems with the plumbing and electrical systems that serve it up.

If you’re getting salty water from your water softener, it could be due to the following reasons:

• The salt level is too high.
• The tank is not properly flushed out before it’s refilled with new salt.
• The tank is not properly circulated, which results in an uneven distribution of brine solution throughout the tank.
• There are air pockets and/or leaks in the system that allow this condition to occur.
• It can be fixed by using good water softeners, etc. 

How Much Sodium Is Added By Water Softeners to the Hard Water?

When you buy a water softener, you typically want to know how much sodium is added by the water softener to the hard water. The amount of sodium added can vary from brand to brand, and from one unit to another. The amount of sodium added by a water softener depends on several factors, including:

• How much sodium is already in your source water? If you have hard water, then you may need an additional amount of sodium to lower the hardness level.
• How much sodium is being removed during the regeneration process? If not enough is being removed during regeneration, then more will need to be added later.
• The amount of salt used by your water softeners will also affect how much sodium is added to your water.

Hardness levels vary from source to source, but most homes have hard water that is between 150 and 200 parts per million (ppm). This level of hardness creates scale in pipes and appliances, making them harder to clean. It also causes scale buildup on shower heads and faucets, which makes them more prone to clogging.

Water softeners remove these minerals from your water by removing them from the water itself. They do this by adding sodium ions to the water supply and then regenerating those ions into calcium carbonate and other minerals so they can be removed later by reverse osmosis or distillation processes.

How Does A Water Softener Work?

The process of a water softener is simple. The water enters the softening chamber and passes through a bed of salt. As the water passes through the bed, it absorbs some of the minerals in the salt and becomes softer.

The salt used in most water softeners is made up of sodium, calcium and magnesium chloride. When this type of salt is used to soften water, it forms an ion exchange with calcium in your water. This means that instead of having calcium in your body, which can cause you problems like kidney stones and arthritis, you will have less calcium in your body because some of it will be exchanged for magnesium or sodium instead.

Summing Up! water softener water tastes salty

In the end, if your water tastes salty after a water softener installation you’re probably getting some sort of sediment or build-up in your water supply. To remedy this issue, simply have your water supply lines cleaned and run water for a few minutes to flush out the system. Your water should return to its normal taste.

If your water tastes salty, you’ve likely got a hard water problem. And if you’ve got a hard water problem, then you probably have some buildup in your pipes as well—most likely calcium and magnesium. As you can see then, it’s a problem that will require both the removal of the buildup and a permanent solution to prevent it from returning.