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Water Sticks portable water softener

Yahoo Message Number: 40237
Has anyone used the Water Sticks portable water softener and if so is it any good. Thanks.
John Flynn

05 allure 31143

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40239
Hi John, we use a water softener we purchased at CW. It is black, but I don't know the brand. It works great, wouldn't be without it. Hollicks 07 Aff 6767 Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40241
John, we've not used the water sticks. We have been using an "On-The-Go" water softener for 3 years and are very happy with it. It recharges with 1 lb of table salt and will handle 250-350 gallons of water depending on hardness. I am not familiar with "water sticks." What is the actual product name?

Lee (north of Seattle, Washington)

Lee Zaborowski, Jeanne Bortz

2007 Country Coach Intrigue #12153 Branson, Missouri
http://jeanneleez.blogspot.com

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40243
I HAVE A WATER STICK AND HAVE USED IT IN LAS VEGAS WHERE THE WATER IS VERY HARD. I CAN'T RECOMMEND IT THOUGH. IF I WAS TO GET ANOTHER I'D PICK ANOTHER BRAND. THE ATTRACTION WAS THE LOW PRICE...


Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40244
John, We have had the "ON THE GO" water softner from CW for about six months and would not be without it.

Bob Mussman

2006 Allure 470 31434

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40245
We use the TravelSoft water softener. It recharges with 6 pounds of solar salt and only needs recharged about once every 2000 gallons of water. We bought it at Camping World 6 years ago and we love it. We wouldn't RV without it.

Bob Kumza

2003 Intrigue

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40277

Have owned our water stick for 8 months. Very happy. EAsy to re- generate. Hooks up easy, is lightweight and stores anywhere.

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #8 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40287
Go to www.watersticks.com. Its PVC plastic approx 30" long and contains resin. To recharge, you use 2 cups of table salt diluted in water (I use a 2 liter soda bottle). Pour it in the softener, shake it up, let sit for a while (ie, driving from campsite to campsite).
Run water through it for 20-30 seconds and hook it up. Recommended re- charge is 200-500 gallons depending on your location in the USA. Our experience is being out West requires more frequent recharging.
Again we are very pleased with ours. Size and ease of recharge being the optimum words here. There are many others out there and most are very good products. We just like the size and ease of this one. Oh yea, it cost a lot less.

Hope that helps!!
Ken

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #9 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40308
I visited the web site . . . looks like a good product! I think you made a good purchase.
Bottom line, aside from packaging, this brand is about the same as other similar products like the "On-The-Go" such as we have. I'm guessing our "On-The-Go" will soften a greater amount of "hardness" as it has more resins.
The key is the quantity of resins in the container. The greater the amount of resin the more water you can soften - that's it. Bottom line, it's a portable version of the classic home water softener.

All the rest of the marketing is BS.

Lee (in Moab, Utah)

Lee Zaborowski, Jeanne Bortz

2007 Country Coach Intrigue #12153 Branson, Missouri
http://jeanneleez.blogspot.com

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #10 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40329
I went to the Water Stick web site and saw that they have a smaller "gun" model intended for rinsing a vehicle with deionized water. That is the use I'm interested in. You have to dry your vehicle when you wash it only because if you don't the minerals in the water, mostly calcium and magnesium, will remain behind as spots when the water evaporates from the vehicle.
Walmart sells a low cost device that also connects to a water hose and has replaceable deionizer cartridges. The problem with that is you have to keep buying the cartridges. With the water stick you can inexpensively regenerate the stick. So, using a tool like this eliminates the need to dry the coach, thus saving a large portion of the labor involved in washing a coach. You can use regular water to wash and rinse. You only need to do one final rinse with deionized water to avoid drying the coach.
Does anyone have experience with the small rinsing gun sold at Walmart? It may be called Mr Clean.

George Harper
04 Allure
31093

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #11 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40330
I bought the De-Ionized system at one of the RV shows in Pomona, CA. The idea is sound, what is at issue is the rate of water that will pass through the system and for how long. Most Car, RV, Boat dealers use some form of D.I. treatment. This is because you do not need to dry the object. All of this is true, but I have found at the rates that make our systems perform I can barely generate enough pressure to get to the top of the coach. I am forever changing the cartridges ( big pain, and they smell like a 1000 dead fish).
The whole idea is great, but I get the same effect from the P&G system and much less effort, I just don't use the soap. In fact as I ready for the rally I am going to wash the coach and give the system one more go before I abandoned the system. You may find me at the rally just follow the smell of dead fish, at that will be me.

Sincerely,

Jim Spivey Allure 470 31432

PS I am getting ready to fix mud flap myself, as anybody got any idea, other that rope to tie it up?

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #12 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40333
I used a small chain and retainers to hold the mud flat in place, had to eventually replace the flap with a new one

--

Judy & Larry
04 Allure 31097

Now living in Tucson

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #13 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40461
George,

I am not familiar with the mini water stick but I will check the web site. However, if it is simply a water softener, it probably will not do the job. It has been my experience that soft water is not the whole answer. Have you tried it? Water softeners exchange calcium and other minerals with sodium (salt). So, you still get some spotting but instead of calcium you get a small amount of salt. On the other hand, if it is a De-Ionizer it will work.
IMO de-ionization is the whole answer. D.I. water leaves no spots. Bear with me for a minute. I was the sales manager at a window manufacturing plant. We had a huge washing system with a D.I. final rinse which left absolutely no spots on the glass. This was especially important because there is no way to clean spots on the inside surfaces once the two panes are assembled into an insulated glass unit. If you have ever had a fogged insulated glass window you are painfully aware of the problem. But, I digress.
Re: Mr. Clean. I have one and use it only occasionally to clean my windshield and front end between full blown washes. I have an acrylic shield which gets terribly spotted on the inaccessible inside face with tap water. Of course,I could hinge the shield down and clean both surfaces properly but when I want a quick job I use my Mr Clean (Less than $20 at WalMart). It does a pretty good job but when you switch to D.I. the spray becomes very fine. I use a small ladder to get to the top of the windshield. I find that I exhaust the tiny cartridges within about 3-4 front end washes. They cost about $5 per cartridge. The soap lasts longer. it is about $6 as I recall. BTW I tried it with non- Mr. Clean soap with poor results. So they they gotcha on the hook! But that is OK because it is a pretty convenient and compact gadget for limited use. It is well worth the small initial price and the ongoing cost of supplies.
BTW, I was at Costco today and I noticed that they have a double canister D.I. production unit at $300. It is made by "Spotless Water Systems". It looks just like the one that I saw at a booth at the Pomona, CA, FMCA convention. Has anyone had any experience with this unit?

Daron Hairabedian, 98 Allure, #30226

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #14 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40468
My rinse route: use a pressure washer on the soft spray setting - hooked to my fresh water tank which has soft water in it - have soft water with a couple of drops of Cascade dishwasher final rinse in it. Rise off washing solution with soft water - final rinse with Cascade solution. Like the glasses in the dishwater . . . spotless.

Lee (in Colby, KS)

Lee Zaborowski, Jeanne Bortz

2007 Country Coach Intrigue #12153 Branson, Missouri
http://jeanneleez.blogspot.com

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #15 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40479
Hey Lee,

Thanks for your input. This sounds like an idea that I want to try before I plunk down $300 for that bulky De-Ionizer unit at Costco. It is about 36"x18"x 12". Also, I have been told that the canisters need to be re-charged with expensive D.I. beads after about 8-10 coach rinses. Before I begin to experiment I would like to take advantage of your experience with some more instructions. I am hoping you have time to answer a few questions:
1. You said you set your machine on the soft spray setting. My old pressure washer has only one setting....full bore. Were you referring to the wide pattern spray nozzle or does your machine actually have variable pressure choices? I must admit I am somewhat ignorant regarding these gadgets. Which brand and model are you using?
2. The instructions on my machine say that normal house water pressure is required for it to work properly. I was not aware that my coach water pump provides adequate pressure and volume to make these things work. I will try it!
3. How did you add the couple of drops of Cascade spot removing final rinse liquid? My pressure washer has a 22 oz. jug that is used to dispense a small amount of soap by metering with a dial that rotates #1 through #10. Does your pressure washer have a jug with a variable metering device like mine? Do you add the Cascade drops to the soft water in that pint jug while continuing to use the soft water from your tank? What dispenser setting do you use?
4. I am assuming that you use the soft water for washing as well as rinsing. Right? Do you use car washing detergent?
5. Do you use up all of the water in your tank in this wash and rinse process?
6. Do you fill your tank with soft water from your home water softener or from a portable. If portable, which brand do you use. I just want to add your choice to the others who have reported on this forum as I am interested in purchasing one.

Sorry to ramble on. I just want to make sure I know what I am doing by knowing for sure what you are doing.

Thanks,

Daron, 98 Allure #30226

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #16 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40480
Thank you for sharing your knowledge of water purification based on your career in the glass industry. Again, that's the great thing about this group: so many experts in many fields.

You make an important distinction between soft water and deionized water that I overlooked. The water stick is clearly a water softner as it uses only one kind of resin beads (deionization requires two).
So, as you point out, the output water would be salty and would not only potentially leave crystalline spots, but would be bad for ferrous metals on the coach as well.

I looked at the Spotless dionizer system on Costco.com: http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspxProdid=11201522&whse=BC&topna v=&browse

The two resin tanks distinguish it as a true dionizer. The larger model shown in the picture is $369 and it will do 300 gallons before recharge. A pack that will do two recharges is $150. This system would do the job, but awfully expensive. I have not tried the Mr.
Clean, but I don't see how it could last very long, and as you point out, the output is poor.

In my case I have a reverse osmosis water treatment system that originally cost $4000. It is left over from before my kidney transplant when I did home dialysis and had to have ultrapure water.
My system involved a 10 micron sediment filter followed by a charcoal filter to remove chlorine, then a water softener, followed by the RO machine.

The RO puts out a slow feed of product water, but Lee's post gave me an idea. I could make RO water and dump it into my fresh water tank overnight. The the next day I could drop a pickup hose into my tank which would be connected to a pressure washer which I would use for a final rinse.

George Harper
04 Allure
31093

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #17 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40485
George, you may be worrying too much about the "salt" residues in the typical water softener. I really doubt you'd find crystals on the side of your coach, that would be so much salt in the water to be undrinkable.

Lee (in eastern Kansas)

Lee Zaborowski, Jeanne Bortz

2007 Country Coach Intrigue #12153 Branson, Missouri
http://jeanneleez.blogspot.com

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #18 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40493
Hey George,

Thanks for your response. This water thing is a huge subject! So, this is a long message. This goes a little beyond water softening per se. Pre-requisite: a passing grade in RO 101. The timid or those with limited imaginations should not proceed further.

Re: Your Reverse Osmosis Idea. RO systems were among some of the products that I sold to home owners a few ..no...a lot of years ago. I worked for a company that was very appropriately named "Nimbus". That was back when no one even knew how to spell reverse osmosis! I talked with the owner of a water purification company in his booth at the Pomona, CA, FMCA convention about on-board or portable RO systems. He said, "You can install a pressure boosting pump in-line to increase the rate of production as the production volume is directly proportional to the pressure that is being applied to the membrane. Assuming, of course, that you stay below the membrane bursting threshold."

A friend of mine produces all of their water with RO. He uses the system outside of his coach which pumps the RO pure water into his fresh water tank. The tank acts as a reservoir. Then, he taps off only tank water for all of his needs. At a ratio of 8 to 1, he goes through a lot of tap water to get his tank full of purified water but, the results are the best water you could ask for.... for all purposes. I realize this sounds quite extreme. On the other hand, every appliance, all of his fixtures, plumbing, pots and etc. must look like new inside and out. Never a water (mineral) spot. I only heard of this one other time when I was selling the systems. One homeowner in Newport Beach, CA set up a huge tank in his home for storing RO for use in the whole house. It was a good thing that he had unlimited funds because it was a very expensive installation!

The application for a coach would be much less costly. I am presently considering it.
If you have read this far you must be a detail maniac like me. Has anyone else out there done this installation or heard of it? Aren't all Country Coach owners fanatics for the ultimate perfection like me? Or.. have I just gone one step beyond the "Twilight Zone"?
BTW George, regarding your comment about expertise: I appreciate your kind thought but, I am reminded of a conversation that I had with one of my college professors. I had asked him a question for which he had no answer. I said incredulously, "But, but, you are the expert on this subject." His humble response was," Young man, remember this. There are no experts...only people with varying degrees of ignorance". Profound! As you can clearly detect, I never forgot!

Sorry for the philosophy lesson. I was majoring in Education. Sometimes I get carried away!

Daron, 98 Allure, #30226

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #19 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40495
Daron,

If you use the D.O. setup, and fill your 100 gallon freshwater tank with D.O. water,.........what do you do with the 800 gallons of water that is sloughed off by the system?

Dave Trotter 01 Intrigue 11215

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #20 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40500
Just got my On The Go demonized water system. Since I have a large system at home I am familiar with the workings and the results. This portable unit works great. Small and compact, rechargeable and does a very nice job.
08 Allure, #31600

Jake & Nancy

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #21 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40501
Dave,

Thanks. Good point! As I said, that is a lot of water. This "whole tank" thing may be the epitome in terms of quality but, for sure not be the best solution in terms of water conservation. I live in a drought area (actually an irrigated desert called Southern California). So, I am presently re-considering my earlier rash notions.
Maybe the best compromise would be the combination of soft water and RO. The softener would provide adequate quality water for most purposes. The RO water could be tapped only to the galley for drinking and cooking. The pre-filters and RO membrane could be installed in the galley cabinet under the sink. The water storage canister could be set up in the same place or, if space is an issue, in a remote location nearby. Most RO canisters designed for household applications hold about 1.4 gallons of purified water and the system shuts off automatically when the canister is full. That is about 11.2 gallons of water that the system sloughs off. IMO that is reasonable. When dry camping or using a campsite without a dump drain, the whole system could be shut off with a bypass valve.
BTW, I wonder how much water goes down the storm drain when we wash a 40-45 ft coach by hand with tap pressure? With a pressure washer? Does anyone know? Some campsites that I have visited in Southern California actually encourage washing at the campsite as it helps them to irrigate the grassy areas. Is anyone still hand washing their own coach like me? I guess I just like rubbing on it and inspecting every square foot!

Daron, 98 Allure #30226

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #22 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40502
Daron,

We buy and use drinking water in the gallon jug (60-70 cents/gal). It's so cheap that a D.O. system is not merited(IMHO).
We carry an on-board WaterMark softener for cooking and bathing. I use a push broom type wash brush on an extendable wand and water flow adjuster. I'd be surprised if I used more that 10-15 gallons for wash and rinse. The water spotting is negligable and will wipe off easily with a damp cloth.

Dave Trotter 01 Intrigue #11215

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #23 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40509
Lee, you make a good point that soft water is not salty to taste. I was mistaken, I believe, to say that soft water would contain salt (sodium chloride)and might form crystals or rust ferrous metals.
Softener resin beads exchange calcium and magnesium ions for sodium ions, not sodium chloride (salt). So, that is why the softened water does not taste salty. I guess the question is whether sodium would cause water spots. Does anyone know? I hope Daron will give his opinion. Certainly anyone on a low salt diet shouldn't drink water out of a softener as it is sodium that causes water retention and as a result, high blood pressure.

If you are right that we are worring too much about using softened water as a rinse, I think the Water Stick made for that purpose would be the best value and the great advantage to it is that it can be easily taken on the road.

George Harper
04 Allure
31093

Re: Water Sticks portable water softener

Reply #24 –
Yahoo Message Number: 40510
Daron

I read your entire post, so I'm a detail guy too. In fact my non-rv friends say I'm obsessed with "maintenance." They say I'd rather lie under the bus all day than have sex which is almost true, but not quite. I tell them I do it for the same reason dogs do (lie under the bus, that is): it's cool under there in the summer and I can see all around while no one can see me. Anyway, I feel right at home on this group where obsession is a virtue.
Dave brings up a good point: an RO produces a heck of a lot of reject water. I used to travel with my dialysis equipment in an RV. I calculated that I used approximately 300 gallons of water per treatment with most of that being RO reject water. I used to feel sorry for the campground. If they had known they would have thrown me out for sure.
Yep, we're going to great lengths to avoid drying our coaches. What do you think about Lee's point that soft water just contains sodium (not salt)? Do you think that would cause water spots? If not, I think the Water Stick for rinsing is the way to go.

George Harper
04 Allure
31093