If your O'Fallon home has a water softener, you may have heard that softened water contains sodium. That is true, and it helps to know where the sodium comes from, how to learn what your own tap carries, and what you can do if you cook with the water, prepare drinks, or mix formula. This guide walks through the practical choices.

What the softener adds

A softener removes the calcium and magnesium that make water hard. It does this by swapping those minerals for sodium on a resin bed. The water that leaves the softener is not sodium-free, and the amount it carries depends on how hard the incoming water is and how much water your household uses. Public water reports for O'Fallon describe the tap water as hard, so softened water is common across town.

Gather what you already have

Before changing anything, collect a few records.

  • Your yearly public water report for O'Fallon, which lists hardness and other results for the supply.
  • The softener settings, including the hardness target the unit is set to produce.
  • Any regeneration history your unit logs, or your own notes on when it last ran.

These records tell you roughly how hard the supply is and how hard the softener is working. They do not tell you the sodium level at your tap, because that depends on your plumbing and water use. A lab test gives you the actual result.

Ask a lab for a sodium test

If you want a measured answer for your home, collect a sample from the softened cold tap you use for drinking and send it to a state-certified or accredited water laboratory. Ask for sodium, and tell the lab the sample came from a softened line. Write down the date and whether you let the tap run first, since the lab may ask. The result is most useful when you can compare it with a sample from an unsoftened source, such as an outdoor spigot or a line that bypasses the softener, if your home has one. Lab fees vary, so ask for the cost before you send a sample.

Choices for drinking and cooking

Several options suit homes that want less sodium in the water they drink and cook with.

  • Use an unsoftened cold line for drinking and cooking, if your plumbing includes a bypass valve or an existing unsoftened tap.
  • Keep a pitcher of water drawn from an unsoftened tap in the refrigerator, and use it for drinking.
  • Buy bottled water that is labeled for low sodium, and read the label rather than assuming what it contains.
  • Ask your doctor or a registered dietitian how much softened water fits your eating plan.

If you use a bypass valve, check its handle position before you rely on that line, and make sure the other lines in the house are still set the way you expect. Mark the valve with a note so other people in the home know what each position means.

What not to change without a plan

Avoid turning the softener off, or lowering its setting a great deal, just to reduce sodium without a plan for the effects that follow. Less softening leaves more hardness in the water, which can bring back scale on fixtures, water heaters, and appliances. Treat a settings change as a service question. Test first, then talk with whoever services your unit about what setting makes sense for your home.

Formula, pets, and plants

Infant formula is a question to settle with your pediatrician before you decide which water to use. Pet bowls and garden watering are usually less sensitive uses, but they still deserve a look, especially if you are watering plants that respond to added sodium. Keep the same habit with each use: know which tap feeds it, and write that down.