Culligan Customer Story: The Cabral Family

Meet Nelson and Tara Cabral of Paris, Ontario, Canada – Culligan customers since 2019.

The Cabrals’ Water Challenge: Hard, Bad-tasting Water

In 2019, the Cabrals lived in a home that had two big water issues. For starters, the water was hard, meaning it had high concentrations of calcium, magnesium and other dissolved minerals that left scale buildup on faucets, fixtures and shower tiles. “I can only imagine what was building up in the pipes themselves,” Nelson says.

In addition, their municipal water didn’t taste great. First, they tried using a filtered pitcher to address the issue. However, it took up too much space in the refrigerator, Nelson says, and it was a pain to refill it and replace the filter. Sometimes they lugged home single-use bottles of water from the store, but that was inconvenient. They also didn’t like throwing so much plastic into the recycling bin every week.

The next year they transitioned their home into a rental property and moved into a new house in the same city. It also had hard water and bad-tasting drinking water. They wanted to take care of both issues but also to go a step further – they wanted to improve all the water that flowed from their taps, not just the water they drank. “Because this is our permanent residence, we wanted to have the cleanest water possible,” Nelson says.

Their Better Water Solutions

The Cabrals sought help from their Culligan dealer in Brantford, ON. Culligan “has been around since I was a kid,” Nelson says, “so for me, they’re a trusted name.”

The family decided to install a water softener in both homes. “It’s a noticeable difference,” Nelson says. Their skin doesn’t feel dry after showering, soaps lather better and clothes come out of the washing machine cleaner. In addition, because scale buildup isn’t a problem anymore, cleaning the shower has become a lot easier.

The Cabrals also installed a reverse osmosis (RO) drinking water filtration system in both homes. These water filtration solutions each sit under the kitchen sink and also connect to the refrigerator. “You couldn’t drink the tap water without having an aftertaste, and the RO system made a big difference for sure,” Nelson says. “It’s also more convenient when [filtered water] comes out of your tap and your fridge.”

Nelson says keeping the softener in the rental home helps protect the fixtures and pipes, and it enables tenants to enjoy the benefits of soft water. He mentions that the property has both a softener and RO system when he seeks new tenants.

Meanwhile, the family also installed a whole house filtration system in their primary residence. The solution reduces contaminants before water enters the home and flows through the softener. “It cleans the water, and I’ve got amazing water,” Nelson says, adding that the system offers him peace of mind.

Value Add: Digital convenience

Nelson can remotely monitor and control his water softener through the Culligan Connect app. For example, since he knows his plants don’t need softened water, he can tap the app to put the unit in bypass mode when he wants to water his lawn. The app can also tell him about his home’s water consumption and can notify him when his softener needs more salt.

What Made the Difference:

• Custom installation: The installers accommodated Nelson’s request to run the pipes in a way that wouldn’t cause any visual issues if the family decides to finish the basement one day.
• That local touch: “For us, [Culligan] is a local shop near our town. It’s nice to still be able to put a face to a name and have an actual person come to your home to check your system out,” Nelson says, noting that he appreciates that his local Culligan team is very familiar with the water in his area.
• Multiple payment options: The Cabrals purchased their Culligan solutions for their primary residence, but they are able to rent a softener and RO system for their rental property.

Ready to start your own better water story? Schedule your free in-home water test and consultation today.