BWT Water Softener

Omega the new service partner for BWT Water Softeners

BWT (Best Water Technology) are a world wide manufacturer and distributor of water softeners and filtration systems and have been since 1990. They develop  environmentally friendly and economic water treatment products and services and Omega are delighted to be working alongside such a worldwide organisation.

The commercial catering sector faces many challenges when it comes to water filtration, with many varying factors and many different types of equipment its not always obvious that filtration or softening is required, its normally when a breakdown occurs that organisations then realise that a water filtration product is needed.

Scale Diagnosis

Limescale Diagnosis on a Houno Combi Oven

Who thought water could be so complicated? We certainly didn’t… When you talk to water experts like BWT you learn that water is made up of different minerals depending on who and where the water is supplied from. We have all heard of the term ‘hard’ or ‘soft water’, but does anyone know exactly what makes it like this? Well, there are many varying factors and depending on your geographical location, will depend on how the water is treated and what type of water you get. Its not always as simple as hard or soft water either, just because someones got hard water it doesn’t mean the next persons hard water is exactly the same.

Its not all good and its not all bad, it just means that everyones water is different, and as long as we know what is in the water then we can offer solutions to treat it. Some water has high limescale content, some has high sulphates and calciums, and its when we understand a waters content, only then can it be treated.

Working alongside such a knowledgeable company (BWT), and with their ongoing support to service partners like ourselves, we can offer first class advice on water filtration solutions. Backed by our usual high level of service, we can also offer site specific water testing so we know exactly the mineral content in your water. The days of fitting a generic water softener solution have gone, in fact were never there. With companies offering water filtration solutions off the shelf without even testing your water content, how can you be sure that your water is even being treated. Further to that, how do you know when your current filtration needs replacing? These are all questions you should be asking your current service partner.

CTU Water Softener Unit

CTU Water Softener Unit

We have seen and replaced water softeners that are clearly not fit for purpose, in fact we can relate to a particular site that had a CTU (Calcium Treatment Unit) fitted to a new combi oven. The markings on the head of the CTU clearly said not to be used above 35 Degrees C, incidentally the water was being fed straight into a boiler tank on the oven at over 100 Degrees C. Any effect that the CTU had would have been reversed immediately due to the temperatures involved. We further tested our findings by testing the hardness of the intake water before the CTU and again after it had come out of the CTU. The results were astounding, a water hardness of 16 was achieved direct from the mains whilst a water hardness of 18 was achieved coming from the CTU. That made the CTU to further harden the water and would have caused a faster build up of scale or calcium carbonate. The CTU should never have been fitted in the first place and was replaced with a filter from the BWT range which was tested with a water hardness of zero.

More and more manufacturers are now excluding limescale / calcium carbonate damage from their warranties, after all their equipment is tested in controlled environments and manufactured to the water quality in their country. If proper water filtration cannot be seen and validated then this could void all of the warranty, especially when we see some equipment offering 4 years warranty.

BWT Aqua Meter

BWT’s Aqua Meter

BWT’s water filtration products are designed to, once correctly setup, filter all the minerals that are harmful or not required and BWT offer a vast array of solutions for different applications. Using technology like ‘aqua meters’ to accurately record the number of litres of water left before the filter needs changing, you can be certain not to suffer from a non working filter and prolong the life of your equipment. This also negates the need for a ‘change the filter every 6 months’ scenario, your filter may have been good for 12 months or only good for 3 months, with an aqua meter, you will know exactly how long its good for. Flush valves are also a necessity to flush water through and prime the new filter for optimum filtration, many competitors of which don’t supply or offer.

Omega can offer a site visit to survey and test the water quality and accurately advise proper water treatment. Proper testing and evaluation is crucial to any softener installation, as too much softening can actually make the water acidic and that will corrode equipment very quickly, not enough softening will cause limescale or calcium carbonate build up and in equipment such as coffee machines can triple your service calls. Omega offer a 2 stage test, one will test the water hardness and the other will test the limescale content of the water. Other tests can be performed if one of the first two tests cause us some concern. With a site water test you will know your water quality and because its a test per individual site, you can be certain that we are able to offer you the best possible solution to your water problems.

Equipment such as coffee machines, combi ovens, ice machines, glass washers, atmospheric steamers and any other commercial catering equipment that needs water, we can tailor a solution for you. The purer the water, the better the final product is going to taste, no extra minerals to taint or odour the food meaning fresher tasting coffee, more succulent chicken and all round fresher tasting food.

For more information on affordable water filtration solutions, contact Omega today to discuss how we can help you and your business.