water softener

Definitions of water softener

1. noun

   a substance (such as sodium chloride) that lessens the hardness of water by replacing calcium and magnesium ions with sodium ions and so gives the water more efficient sudsing power
   types:

   zeolite

   any of a family of glassy minerals analogous to feldspar containing hydrated aluminum silicates of calcium or sodium or potassium; formed in cavities in lava flows and in plutonic rocks

   chabasite, chabazite

   a group of minerals of the zeolite family consisting of a hydrous silicate of calcium and aluminum

   heulandite

   a group of minerals of the zeolite family consisting of a hydrous aluminum silicate of sodium and calcium

   natrolite

   a group of minerals of the zeolite family consisting of a hydrous silicate of sodium and aluminum

   phillipsite

   a group of white or reddish crystalline minerals of the zeolite family consisting of a hydrous silicate of calcium and potassium and aluminum

   type of:

   softener

   a substance added to another to make it less hard