Advice on which electric scale inhibitor to use.

[Rob Morley]

Told you it was good.

[Guy King]

The message from Alex contains these words:

Because they invent spurious bollocks.

[The Natural Philosopher]

How does the labour government get away with doing naff all useful?

Same principle.

You can fool enough of the people enough of the time..

[andysideas]

I assumed they worked because my plumber installed a magnetic one inline to the new boiler I brought. I thought it was the same principle. Are you guys all saying that these don't work either ?

I guess the word inhibitor rather than preventor is key. It only helps but does not eliminate.

I've seen demonstrations where water particles run a different way after going through this type of system. I am trying to prevent water marks on the shower chome and glass only.

[Grunff]

It is the same principle - that idiots will buy any old crap regardless of whether it works.

Yes.

No, it does *nothing*. The wording is irrelevant.

Ah, ok, in that case just BUY ONE! You've just demonstrated that you are a target customer. Just go for it.

[Andy Hall]

These will not do that.

The choices are phosphate dosing if you want to address scaling, or ion exchange water softener if you also want to reduce detergent and shampoo use.

[Doctor Drivel]

One housing officer I was talking to recently always installs Liff magnetic inhibitors. He says they had great success with them. I have seen these extensively in hospitals too.

You clearly haven't a clue what you are talking about. As usual.

[Doctor Drivel]

Matt, what experience of these do youhave, besides guessing?

[The Natural Philosopher]

Even with a softener our shower screen gets a bit cloudy.

Not quite sure why - OK its TONS better than unsoftened, but there is still something coming out.

[Richard Perkin]

Andy Hall wrote in news: [e-mail]:

This document:

based on research from WRc (if I remember correctly, the now- privatised Water Research Centre labs) that physical conditioning devices do *indeed* work, but that the scale-reducing effect cannot be guaranteed.

Which is not quite the same as "useless" - more a case of "suck it and see".

WRc does say that other testers have found the AQAtotal device efective.

The document at the link above will answer most (?) questions and will repay careful reading. Whether the cost of the AQAtotal (which I don't know) would be repaid is a different question...

Find info on the AQAtotal here:

For info: as part of a house renovation project, the plumber doing the boiler installation for me has installed an in-line permanent magnet device. I expressed my scepticism that it will work; he claims it does, and has one himself. I will wait and see - but I'm not holding my breath.

Hope this helps

[Andy Hall]

The document is liberally sprinkled with the words "if", "might", "maybe"

The WRC reference is worthless because it only relates to whether conditioners do or don't conform to regulations and is not related to fitness for purpose.

There is only one PC device that has passed the German DVGW tests and this is not the typical type of £30-90 device that is sold.

These are useless.

[Andy Hall]

I think that this could be salt deposits from the content in shampoo, because I notice that it does vary according to what has been used.

[Doctor Drivel]

That is not what the WRC say.

[Guy King]

The message from Richard Perkin contains these words:

However, it also goes on to say

"At the present time no device can be guaranteed to work to produce an acceptable benefit, except in very specific circumstances."

Which to my mind falls far below "Suck it an see" and down in the realms of snake oil. The firms that do these tests seem quite sensitive to concerns about being prosecuted by a manufacturer for slating a product. It's rare for an individual test to show that something is snake-oil. Think about all the trouble with the Broquet fuel catalyst during the switch from leaded to unleaded.

[Doctor Drivel]

Matt, so usless it has passed German DVGW-W512 guidelines. Independently tested in the US by Spectrum Labs, who said, "there was 99% less hardness scale in the treated chamber than what was detected in the untreated chamber."

Isn't that amazing! And not a Makita manual in sight.

[Doctor Drivel]

The Germans found one that 100% works. It must high grade snake oil

[Andy Hall]

There are a sufficient number of caveats, exceptions, maybes, and "might work" but circumstances undefined and undefinable, that they are doing nothing more than being kind.

As I said. Useless.

[Andy Hall]

One product which is nothing like the £30 - £90 con trick rubbish that you claim works.

[Doctor Drivel]

Assertion is not proof.

[Doctor Drivel]

Mine is made by Aqua-Dial, who make many type of softeners, and it works.