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Water treatment questions, answered straight.
What it costs, what is actually in Eastern Iowa water, what we will talk you out of, and what happens on install day. If your question is not here, call us — we would rather answer it than have you guess.
Getting started
What does it cost to find out what is in my water?
Nothing. The in-home water test is free and there is no obligation attached to it. We test at your kitchen sink, show you the readings, and explain what they mean in plain language — whether or not you ever buy anything from us.
What actually happens at the water test?
It takes about half an hour. We test hardness, chlorine or chloramine, total dissolved solids, and iron where it matters, and you watch the numbers come up. Then we recommend the smallest system that actually fixes what we found, and we put the price in writing before we leave.
Am I going to get a hard sell?
No, and we will tell you when you do not need something. If your water tests below about 3 to 4 grains per gallon, a softener is not worth your money — Iowa City tap water arrives around 3 grains, so most homes there need filtration and drinking-water treatment, not softening. Same rule on wells: a clean bacteria test means we will not sell you a UV light.
Can I get a price without anyone coming out?
Yes. The instant quote asks five questions and gives you a real number in about two minutes — equipment, installation, warranty and taxes included. The in-home test is what confirms the sizing.
How soon can you come out?
We book around your schedule, including evenings and weekends. We are reachable Monday through Friday 8am to 8pm and Saturday and Sunday 8am to 5pm Central. Call 319-319-6566 or request a visit online.
Should I get more than one quote?
Yes, and we mean that. Get two or three and compare them on the same four things: the actual installed price with tax included, what the warranty covers and for how long, whether you own the equipment at the end, and what the annual service costs. Plenty of quotes in this business look cheap until you find the rental agreement or the service contract underneath. Ours is one number, and the instant quote shows it to you before you ever call us.
What it costs
How much does a whole-home system cost?
Our standard build is $2,850 installed — a whole-home softener with NSF/ANSI 42 certified carbon filtration, plus a 7-stage reverse osmosis system with an alkaline stage at the kitchen sink. That is the system most homes on city water end up with. You can read the full build on the system page.
What is included in that price?
Equipment, professional installation, the lifetime parts warranty, and taxes. There is no separate trip charge and no surprise line item at the end — the quoted price is the price.
What if I do not need the whole system?
Then do not buy it. A softener on its own is $1,900, whole-home carbon filtration on its own is $1,150 (or $1,450 for catalytic carbon), a tank reverse osmosis system is $800 and a tankless one is $900. The standard whole-home build without reverse osmosis is $2,500.
What would push the price up?
Household size first: eight or more residents or four or more bathrooms means the Whole Home XL at $3,150, and a dual-tank city build is $700 more. After that it is site conditions — rock is $175, burying tanks runs $400 to $1,000, an attic tie-in is $250, and trenching is quoted from the plumber's actual cost. Well systems start at $3,800 and move up for distance, trench or rock.
Do you offer financing?
Yes — 0% financing is available, because clean water should not wait on the budget. We will walk you through the options at your water test.
Do you offer any discounts?
Military and first responders get $100 off. Just tell us when we schedule.
Do you rent systems, or do I own it?
You own it, from day one. We do not rent equipment and we do not do rent-to-own. Those agreements are common in this industry, and over a long enough term they can add up to well more than the system is worth. If you would rather not pay it all at once, 0% financing is available — but the equipment is yours either way, and the number on the quote is the total.
Your water
Is my water actually hard?
In Eastern Iowa, almost certainly. Marion city water runs 18 to 20 grains per gallon, and even Cedar Rapids, which lime-softens its supply, still leaves the plant at 6.5 to 7 grains. Look up your own city to see the numbers where you live.
Chlorine or chloramine — how do I know, and does it matter?
It depends on your utility, and yes it matters. Marion and Hiawatha run plain chlorine; Cedar Rapids, Robins and anything fed by Cedar Rapids water are chloraminated. Activated carbon handles chlorine well, but meaningful chloramine reduction takes a full catalytic carbon tank — a $150 upgrade on a standard build, and one we only recommend where the water calls for it.
What makes well water different?
There is no treatment plant between the aquifer and your tap, so iron staining, a rotten-egg sulfur smell, sediment and bacteria are all yours to handle. Gear built for city water assumes a head start it does not get on a well, which is why we build wells in layers. More on our well water treatment page.
Should I be testing my well?
Yes, every year. Iowa DNR recommends testing every private well at least annually for nitrate and coliform bacteria, and Iowa's Private Well Grants Program makes that lab testing free for well owners. We will help you line it up — see free well water testing in Iowa.
Can I see what has been detected in my city's water?
Yes. We publish a free water report for every city we serve, built from the utility's own reported results. Find yours on the service areas page.
Why does only my hot water smell like rotten eggs?
Because the water heater is probably making it, not your well. The magnesium anode rod inside a water heater can react with sulfate-reducing bacteria in the tank and give off hydrogen sulfide — the rotten-egg gas. If the smell is on the hot side only, that is the usual cause, and it is a water heater job rather than a treatment one. If both hot and cold smell, the gas is coming in with your water and it needs a sulfur stage. We run both taps at the free water test, because the two fixes are completely different and only one of them involves buying a system.
What do the stains in my sink tell me?
Quite a lot. Reddish-brown or orange staining on sinks, tubs and laundry is iron. Black or dark grey streaks on fixtures and silverware usually mean manganese, which often turns up alongside iron. Chalky white crust on faucets and shower doors is hardness scale. Iron starts staining at very low concentrations — the EPA's aesthetic guideline is 0.3 mg/L, and that is a staining and taste threshold, not a health one. All three are common on Eastern Iowa wells, and which stage you need depends on what the test says, not on the stain.
The systems
Softener or salt-free conditioner?
A softener removes calcium and magnesium through ion exchange, so the water is genuinely soft. A salt-free conditioner does not remove them — it changes their structure so they are far less likely to form scale. Your water still tests hard, and soap scum and spotting can continue. Salt-free is the right call for low-sodium households and milder water; most very hard Iowa homes are happier with a softener.
Do I need reverse osmosis if I already have a softener?
They do different jobs. The softener protects the whole house from scale; reverse osmosis perfects the small amount of water you drink and cook with. Softening alone will not give you the crisp, neutral drinking water most people are after, which is why the two together is our most popular install.
Will softened water taste salty?
No. The salt in the brine tank cleans the resin — it does not end up in your glass as salt water. Ion exchange trades hardness minerals for a very small amount of sodium, and if you are watching sodium closely, the reverse osmosis stage reduces it at the drinking tap anyway.
Will a system cut my water pressure?
It should not, and ours do not. Pressure loss usually comes from an undersized system or narrow plumbing, so we install with full 1-inch lines rated to 28 GPM. Two showers and the dishwasher at once should feel exactly like it did before.
Are your systems NSF certified?
Yes, and here is exactly what that means. Our softeners are built entirely from NSF/ANSI 44 certified components — the tank, the control valve and the ResinTech CN10 resin each carry their own listing. Both reverse osmosis systems are certified to NSF/ANSI 58, the U.S. standard for RO, which requires at least a 75% reduction in total dissolved solids: the tankless unit is certified by NSF International and the tank unit by IAPMO R&T, an accredited body that certifies to the same standard. The carbon is NSF/ANSI 42 certified Jacobi coconut shell, and our UV is certified to NSF/ANSI 55. Ask and we will send you the certificates.
Are you the same company as Kind Water Systems?
No. Kind Water Co is an independent, family-owned company in Marion, Iowa, founded in 2021 by Ryan Brunton. We are not affiliated with Kind Water Systems of Daytona Beach, Florida, which sells salt-free filters through big-box retailers, or with KindWater in the UK. We install and service whole-home softeners, filtration and reverse osmosis in Eastern Iowa, Middle Tennessee and Southern Illinois, and our name is our promise.
What is actually inside the tanks?
USA-made ResinTech ion-exchange resin, NSF/ANSI 42 certified Jacobi coconut-shell activated carbon, a graded gravel bed to keep flow even, and a lifetime-rated ceramic-disc control valve running it all. The drinking-water side is a 7-stage reverse osmosis system with an alkaline stage that puts healthy minerals back. See it broken down on our systems page.
Does reverse osmosis waste water?
Some, and we would rather tell you than have you find out later. Per the EPA's WaterSense program, a typical under-sink reverse osmosis system sends five gallons or more down the drain for every gallon it produces. For most families the trade is worth it at the kitchen tap, but it is a real number and you should know it going in.
Will you show me how to use it?
Yes, and it is the part of install day we care most about. Before the installer leaves, he walks you through the system — how to add salt, what the control valve is doing, when the filters need changing, and what to look for if something ever seems off. Ask him to show you rather than tell you, and ask the dumb questions while he is standing there. A system you understand is a system you will actually keep up with.
Can I change the reverse osmosis filters myself?
Yes, and plenty of people do. It is a few minutes about once a year, and the installer shows you how at handover so you are not guessing about it later. If you would rather not think about it at all, the annual service visit is $199 and includes replacing all three filters. Either way it is your call — there is no service contract you have to sign to keep the warranty.
Installation
Who actually installs the system?
Licensed, insured local plumbing professionals we vet, schedule and stand behind. We arrange the work personally and we are insured and bonded, so the person who designed your system is accountable for how it performs.
How long does the install take?
A standard install is usually about half a day. Well systems and jobs that need trenching take longer, and we will tell you which one yours is before we schedule.
What is install day like?
Your water is off for part of the day while the system is plumbed in. The installer cleans up after himself, can haul the old unit away for about $100, and walks you through the system — how to add salt, when to change filters, what the valve is doing — before he leaves.
Do I need to be home?
Yes, for access and for the walkthrough at the end. That last fifteen minutes is the difference between owning a system and living next to one.
I have no water at all — can you help?
Honestly, probably not, and we would rather point you the right way than waste your afternoon. A total loss of water on a well is almost always the well pump, the pressure tank, or the electrical feeding them, and that is a well contractor's call. We do not service well pumps or pressure tanks. Once the water is flowing again, though, if it comes back cloudy, gritty or smelling different than it did, that part is ours — call us and we will test it.
Warranty & service
What does the warranty cover?
Lifetime on parts, five years on media, and one year on labor. We can offer that because of what goes into the system — a ceramic-disc control valve and USA-made resin rather than the parts that fail first in big-box units.
Does the warranty transfer if I sell my house?
No — the warranty does not transfer to a new owner. If you are moving and want to take the system with you, removal is $200 and reinstallation at a new home is $500.
How much maintenance is this really?
Very little. Add salt roughly every two to three months, swap the reverse osmosis filters about once a year, and if you have a UV lamp, replace it annually. On a well, the sediment filter gets changed on a schedule set by how much grit your well produces. We walk you through your exact routine at install.
What does service cost after the first year?
The annual service visit is $199 and it includes replacing all three reverse osmosis filters. If something specific needs fixing, a known-issue trip is $99 plus the part. When the media is finally spent — usually somewhere between seven and twelve years — a tank swap is $1,000.
What if I move or want the system taken out?
Removal is $200 and reinstallation at a new home is $500. If you are moving within our service area, taking it with you is usually the cheaper choice.
Do you service a system another company installed?
Usually, yes. We will look at what you have and tell you honestly whether it is worth servicing or worth replacing — we are not going to call a good system junk to sell you a new one. A lot of what we get called out to is ten or fifteen years old and needs service rather than replacement. If it does come out, removal is $200 and we can haul the old unit away for about $100.
Do you deliver salt?
Yes. Hauling 40-pound bags is the one part of owning a softener nobody enjoys, and we would rather bring them to you than have you put it off and lose your soft water for a month. Call us at 319-319-6566 and we will set it up.
Will you remind me when service is due?
Yes. We track when your system is due — reverse osmosis filters, media, a UV lamp if you have one — and we reach out rather than leaving you to remember a schedule. Saying yes to a reminder does not sign you up for anything, and there is no service contract attached to your warranty. If you would rather manage it yourself, the installer leaves you the schedule at handover.
About Kind Water Co
Where do you work?
Eastern Iowa is our home base, and we also serve Middle Tennessee and Southern Illinois. There is a page for every city we cover — find yours on the service areas page. Our first 50 miles of travel are free, then it is $1 a mile beyond that.
Are you licensed and insured?
Yes — licensed, insured and bonded, and every installation is carried out by licensed, insured local plumbing professionals we vet and schedule ourselves.
Who is Kind Water Co?
A family-owned water treatment company founded in 2021 by Ryan Brunton, built around residential water in the places we actually live. Our name is our promise — the whole story is on our story page.
How do I reach a real person?
Call or text 319-319-6566, or email ryan@kindwaterco.com. We answer Monday through Friday 8am to 8pm and Saturday and Sunday 8am to 5pm Central.
Will you text me?
Only if you check the box asking us to. Those messages are transactional — your quote, your appointment, your install — and we send no more than four a month. Reply STOP to opt out or HELP for help; message and data rates may apply, and consent is never a condition of buying anything. Details in our privacy policy and terms of service.
Still have a question?
Call 319-319-6566 or book a free in-home water test. We will give you the numbers and an honest recommendation — even if the recommendation is that you do not need us.
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