If the shower heads crust over, the glasses come out of the dishwasher spotted, and the water heater rumbles, that's hard water. It's calcium and magnesium carried in the supply, and in homes from Carlton Hills to Riverwalk it leaves the same marks. The minerals you can see on the faucet are also building up inside the pipes and the water heater, where you can't.
There are two main kinds of treatment, and they do different jobs. A water softener removes the hardness minerals, so scale stops building in the pipes, fixtures and water heater. Filtration deals with taste, odor and whatever else is in the water, either for the whole house or at one tap, like a drinking water system at the kitchen sink. Some homes need one, some need both.
The contractor starts by testing your water, so the recommendation is based on what's actually in it. Then you hear the options in plain English, whole house or point of use, what each one does, and what upkeep looks like over time. The choice is yours.
