Well water or softened water for resurfacing?

[drbhomer]

I am building my first rink this winter, 40x80. I live on a well so I plan on having the initial supply of water delivered. I have 2 different water options for resurfacing throughout the season. 1) cold well water, or 2) cold or hot water that has first passed through a water softening system. With regards to my water softening system I also have 2 different options to soften the water, 1) sodium chloride, or 2) potassium chloride.

Since this will be my maiden voyage and would hate to construct the rink only to later find out that my water supply isn't conducive for resurfacing. Don't want to disappoint my kids!

Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

[Reider]

I'm hoping someone responds, I'm interested in the answer as well. This year is my first rink too.

Curious though, what made you decide to bring in a service for the initial water? I'm on a well too and I figured I would fill my 30x50 rink with my own water.

[drbhomer]

One reason is so I don't drain my well, and, I was told that well water makes a brittle ice that flakes, although I haven't confirmed it through a reliable source.

[Joe]

Hey guys - sorry for the delayed response. Let me parse this out:

-I have never once heard of someone differentiate between hard and soft water when talking about rinks. I suppose at the molecular, science-y level, there is probably a difference that someone with a white lab coat could teach us about. But on the whole, there is no such thing as a hard water rink vs a soft water rink. At least no difference that anyone would be able to tell.

-I have resurfaced, over my many years, using cold water that was run through a water softener (with NACL), warm and hot well water that was NOT through a softener, and cold water not through a water softener. Aside from the smoother ice using the warm water, I have seen no appreciable difference. Cold water is cold water. As long as its cold, water will freeze, and you'll have a ton of other elements to deal with (snow, rain, warm temps, branches, leaves) that will make your surface a challenge that you'll never isolate your problem to something like a water softener.

-I've always lived on a well, and had my water trucked in. It's $250, but a new well pump is $2500 and a new well...is worse. I look at the water delivery like I look at a new liner each year: it's insurance that almost guarantees a good start to the year. There are lots of things that can wreak havoc on a rink...I like to try to control the ones I can. A fresh, strong new liner and 6000 gallons of water that won't stress my well is something I can be sure of.

[kevmac]

The only major difference you will find between a rink made with water straight from a well and water run through a softener is a very fine white residue in the ice. I assume it is a byproduct of the softening process. It was only noticeable if you happen to slide along the ice in dark clothing, as my kids used to do in their snowsuits instead of skating. A couple of years ago, I installed a direct line to my outside tap so that it bypassed the water softener and I no longer see this white residue.

If you have the choice of bypassing your water softener, do it simply because it is harder on your softener system in dealing with all that water. Plus those salt bags are heavy and you'll be filling your salt reservoir way more often.

As for the well water being more brittle than other water; this would be a fallacy. You will get brittle ice depending on the temperature at which you resurface your ice and the temperature at which you skate on the ice. If you are in the ballpark of below -20'C for either activity, your ice will become brittle whether it is well water or not.

Hope this helps,
Kevin
Been filling my rink from the well since 1999!