" I’m also not familiar with soft water and the “slimy” feeling it leaves. "

I would describe it more as slippery than slimey but it's the same thought. I dislike too soft water because when showering, as an example, it feels like the water doesn't wash off the soap and the residue remains. Whether it does or not, I don't know, that's how it feels.

Also, the slippery sensation seems to adversely affect foot traction, as when standing in a tub or shower, making it seem easier to slip and fall.

This is the reason why I've never wanted a water softener as part of my home plumbing. We once bought a house that had one, we had it removed.

Ok thanks. Yes I’m leaning towards not doing it, since our levels are fine and it would be personal preference and I don’t have a personal preference! I’ve heard people say they love it, others hate it! I don’t know where I would land without experiencing it, but I’m good with our water as it is now.

I guess more so I’m wondering about the health of the pipes in either scenario. I’ve read different things on this aspect too. Our plumber said it’s absolutely better for pipes. In my googling search he read otherwise (if it messes with the PH).

If someone said definitively that it would be amazing for our pipes, extend the life of everything, I’d maybe be okay with the different “feel” but no one has said this yet haha

Let's clear some things up:

1. Your water is about 4.5 grains per gallon hardness - which is "moderately hard" on a subjective scale. That's a solid "maybe" for installing a water softener.
2. Your current water "conditioner" (I hate that term- it's so bogus) is a carbon filter and particulate filter - and that's about all it does. Any claims about magnets or electromagnets and not leaving hard water deposits has NEVER been supported in residential systems - in this filter or any other iteration. And that's been true for decades and nobody on here has provided any documentation otherwise.
3. The "slimy feeling" that people talk about is what your skin actually feels like when it's not coated with soap scum.
4. "Soap scum" is the combination of cleaning agents and hard water deposits. With hard water it can coat your skin, hair, clothes, dishes, shower, sinks, etc. Hard water deposits on your toilets makes them rough and more likely to not clean completely when they flush (skid marks).
5. The pH of your water is near neutral. A water softener would make it only slightly more acidic - but not significantly. This is particularly true because you don't have very hard water. If the copper pipes are original, they are about 90 years old and may be near the end of their service life. I'm not suggesting they are going to suddenly fail, but If you have problems with leaks in your plumbing, it's because of the age, not because of a water softener.

So, do you get a water softener with 4.5 grains per gal hardness? Do you have a problem with deposits on your dishes, your sinks and showers? If not, I'd say don't do it. Water softeners are great if you have hard water (mine is 21 grains per gal hardness) but they are an expense and a maintenance item (salt, etc). If you have a tankless water heater I'd skew towards a water softener.

Do you get a whole house carbon filter? I always say that toilets don't need carbon filtered water. Neither do washing machines. I'd say it's really iffy about showers (smell of chlorine residue and whatever that might do to hair and skin). Carbon filters are great for cleaning up taste, odor, chlorine and a laundry list of chemicals for drinking water. You already have that covered though with an RO filter. in your case, I'd say the shower and possibly the little bit of drinking water in the bathroom when you take medication and brush your teeth are only places that you might notice.

Backwashing whole house carbon filters are available for about $600-$600. Some contain KDF 55 to help extend the life of the carbon. Please disregard any clams about "scale inhibiting" though. I'm not endorsing the one in the link - just giving it as an example. Check if your utility is using chlorine or chloramine as a disinfectant and make sure the carbon filter is appropriate.

My setup is a water softener and unsoftened but carbon filtered drinking water (Carbon/KDF 55 cartridge filter).

Water softeners will not change the PH of your water. If the water had elevated levels of carbon, sulfur, nitrogen/nitrates, Iron, copper and zinc the drop in PH would only change at the most 0.2 in heavily treated water as a worst case scenario. Your pipes will be fine with or without a water softener based on the numbers you posted.

The chemistry involved in a water softer involves the exchange of calcium and magnesium ions in the water for sodium ions. Because all three ions have the same electrical charge no change in PH will occur. The elements I listed above are included in your total dissolved solids (TDS) but would require further testing to break them down individually. If any of them were elevated the PH change would only be minor as I stated above but your TDS level is excellent as they are, and half the level to be concerned about.

To dissolve or corrode copper pipes the process would start below a PH of 6.5 and accelerate as PH dropped lower, and IF your PH dropped a tenth of a point or two you're still at a save level.

Usually the copper pipes in older homes wear out not because of corrosion (dissolving) but from erosion using the suspended solids s as the abrasive media. Even water using a 1 micron filter will still have abrasive solids in it.

I have micro-lapping film down to 0.5 microns for polishing glass to it's fine stage, so even 0.5 micron particles will wear out copper pipes over time, and 95 years is a long time. If your house has the original copper plumbing I'd be VERY concerned over the condition of the pipes. Even if they were replaced in the 60's or 70's I'd still be concerned. Thin copper pipe like type M have a life span of 30 to 50 years, thicker pipe like type L can run 50 to 100 years.

What I would suggest is having a company come in and measure the thickness of your copper pipes with a good ultrasonic thickness gauge and can be as accurate to 0.0001 in. Or if you can get your hands on a good gauge measure them yourself. A cheap amazon gauge won't tell you much when the accurate is plus minus 0.01 in when the wall of 1/2" type M copper pipe is only 0.028 inches thick.

I bought an old house with only 30 years on thin type M copper pipe. I found some of it was very thin when doing some remodeling so I replaced all of it. A two inch copper drain pipe was like tin foil in one section because of vertical drop and turn increasing water velocity along with a change in acidity from chemicals used in the kitchen sink and large eroding particles. I dodged a minor disaster on that one.

@outpaientzero

Good to know - I thought a water softener did change the pH slightly. Thanks for that.

Yeah, the potential issue with the copper pipes is simply age, erosion, and how well they were installed (did they ream the cut pipe so it doesn't cause turbulence, wipe off the excess flux, not mix with galvanized without transitions, etc.

Drain lines, particularly kitchen drain lines, always eat through metal pipes - galvanized included. The food particles collect and then acids form and those eat through metal pipes. I've seen paper thin chrome/brass traps also. PVC is great for drain lines.

So Jake, I was wondering if you could clear up a few things? Could you possibly elaborate what a grain actually is and how it would relate to PPM as a comparison for someone could relate to?

All very helpful insights, thanks! As for the age of our pipes, I’m not 100% sure. Previous owners did a big extension and renovation project, I want to say in the 90’s, so I don’t know if the copper pipes are all original or if they used that opportunity to update them. Not sure if there’s any way to really know unless I open up walls.

That said, something the plumber is recommending is a house water leak detection system (a Moen). It’s not cheap, but I’m going to check with my insurance to see if it would help on that end (I’ve heard it could give us a break on insurance if we install it). Reviews on it are mixed, but could offer some peace of mind….

@outpaientzero

Hardness in grains per gallon = 17.1 ppm

Most water softeners use grains per gallon.

Hard water starts at 7.

@helpmehelpthishouse

I've never had a pipe break unless it froze first. I've had pinhole leaks in copper pipe - but never something that some of these smart valves would pick up unless they had physical sensors. I think they are playing on fear.

I've had a water heater open up in a basement - but even that was a leak... not a catastrophic failure. If you are on a slab and want to put water detectors near laundry and the water heater that's going the extra mile. Use good quality hoses for connecting sinks, toilet, laundry and replace your water heater after about 15 years preemptively. Also make sure you have an expansion tank on the water heater if you have a PRV or check valve on your water line.

Well it turns our insurance wouldn't offer any incentive for a house leak detector so we are going to say no to that option. Still slightly torn on the water softening though. I need to find someone I know who has it who will let me shower at their house for the full experience lol