What Hollywood's plant already does
The City of Hollywood's 2025 Water Quality Report describes two treatment paths at its Water Treatment Plant:
- Lime softening and membrane filtration for water from the Biscayne Aquifer. Lime softening is a process designed to lower hardness.
- Reverse osmosis for water from the brackish Floridan Aquifer, which strips out most dissolved minerals.
The city does not publish a single hardness number for every tap in its report, and the mix of the two sources can vary, so the honest answer is to measure at your own faucet before buying.
Signs worth testing for
- Crusty white buildup on faucet aerators and shower heads.
- Spots that come back on shower glass right after cleaning.
- A water heater or dishwasher that seems to scale up quickly.
These can come from hardness, but evaporating water also leaves spots even with modest mineral levels. A test separates the two. More on hard water spots in Hollywood.
When a softener is the right call
- Your tap test shows real hardness. Then an ion-exchange softener is the proven way to stop scale.
- You use a private well. Well water skips city treatment and is often harder; the system is configured from the well's test. See well water treatment in Hollywood.
- You run a business. Hotels along the beach, restaurants downtown and on Hollywood Boulevard, laundries, gyms, car washes, schools and offices put a lot of water through heaters, dishwashers, ice machines and washers. These are exactly the settings where Living Water installs ion-exchange softening plants.
Softener or filter?
A softener removes hardness minerals; it does not remove chloramine. A carbon-based whole-home filter treats chloramine taste and odor but does not soften. In Hollywood, the more common need on city water is the filter. Some homes need both. See softener vs. filter in Hollywood.
Sizing and what to ask
A softener is sized from your hardness result, household size and water use. Ask any installer how the unit regenerates, how much salt and water it uses, and where the brine discharge goes. Pricing depends on those choices, so Jorge gives you an itemized quote after the free test. See water softener cost drivers.
Updated 2026-10-17 · Living Waters · Jorge Canela, Water Quality Specialist