Lake Placid is known for its lakes and murals, but inside a lot of local homes the story is white crust on the faucets, spotty glasses and a shower head that clogs every few months. That is hard water from the limestone aquifer under the Lake Wales Ridge. Florida Water Management, based up US-27 in Sebring, handles water softener installation for Lake Placid homes on town water, Placid Lakes water and private wells. Every job starts with a free in-home water test, so the system we install is set to the water that actually comes out of your tap.
Book your free in-home water test or call (863) 658-1056, Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM.
Before we talk equipment, it helps to know where your water comes from, because Lake Placid has more than one supplier. Lake Placid Regional Utilities publishes separate annual water quality reports for the Town of Lake Placid system, Highway Park and Tomoka Heights, all listed on the town’s water and sewer notices page. Placid Lakes has its own utility. And outside those service areas, many homes along the rural roads around the lakes run on a private well. Your water bill tells you which system you are on, and that is the first thing we ask about during a visit.
The town’s 2025 water quality report says the system draws from two wells in the deep Floridan aquifer. The water is treated with chlorine for disinfection, with 2025 readings between 0.7 and 2.1 ppm, and phosphate is added to manage corrosion and prolong the life of the pipes. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s source water assessment lists the two town wells at 1,680 and 1,728 feet deep.
Placid Lakes Utilities also pumps from the Floridan aquifer. State records put its wells between 1,290 and 1,996 feet deep.
Chlorine and phosphate make utility water safe and easier on the pipes, but neither removes calcium or magnesium. Water that has spent time in limestone more than a thousand feet down picks up those minerals, and they ride all the way to your faucet. The U.S. Geological Survey’s study of groundwater in Highlands County found Upper Floridan water is hard across most of the county, from 64 to 410 mg/L, which is roughly 4 to 24 grains per gallon. That is a wide range, and it is why we measure instead of guessing.
A softener only works well when it is matched to your water and the way your household uses it. During the free in-home water test we look at:
If you want to understand the settings yourself, our guide to water softener hardness settings explains what the numbers on the control head mean.
Plenty of Lake Placid homes sit empty for weeks or months at a time while the owners are up north or traveling. A softener can handle that, but it should be set up for it. Before a long trip, make sure the brine tank has enough salt, and ask us how your valve is programmed so it is not regenerating for an empty house. When you come back, run the cold taps for a few minutes to flush water that has been sitting in the lines. If the brine tank looks off when you return, our article on a brine tank full of water covers the usual causes and fixes.
We want you to understand your system before we leave. A typical Lake Placid installation goes like this:
After installation we can come back and retest, so you can compare the new numbers with your original results.
On town or Placid Lakes water, a softener plus a carbon stage covers hardness and chlorine for most homes, and a reverse osmosis system under the kitchen sink is a common add-on for drinking and cooking water.
On a private well, hardness is often only part of the picture. Iron stains and a rotten egg smell usually need a filtration stage ahead of the softener. Our page on well water treatment in Lake Placid covers those problems in detail, and we will show you the test numbers before recommending anything.
Check the salt about once a month and keep the brine tank at least a quarter full. Over the years the resin inside the tank wears out, especially when chlorinated water runs through it; our post on how often to replace water softener resin explains the signs. If the water starts to feel hard again, call us and we will retest and check the settings.
Homeowners across Highlands County have shared their experience on Google:
“Scotty came back about a week after instal to retest my water. I found him to be a good combination of professionalism as well as very personable while doing the tests. Explained what each test was for and compared them to my pre instal numbers. I am very happy with test results as well as how the water feels and tastes. First time in Florida where I actually had soapy bubbles while showering.”
— Bill Hastings, Google review
“We have severe hard water here in Central Florida and they have made the process of obtaining and maintaining our water system Absolutely wonderful. From the startup with a complementary visit, to explaining how the system works, the breakdown of costs, and the maintenance plan, our expectations were exceeded”
— Dave Mathews, Google review
We are a local team at 32415 Broadway St in Sebring and work in Highlands and Polk counties every week. Customers mention clear explanations from Scotty and Dusty, no-pressure visits and installers who leave a clean job. Reviews also mention a lifetime warranty on the system and financing options, which we are happy to go over during your visit.
The town pumps from two deep Floridan aquifer wells, and the USGS reports that Upper Floridan water is hard across most of Highlands County. Chlorine and phosphate treatment do not remove hardness. Your exact level depends on your tap, which we measure during the free in-home water test.
Check your water bill. Lake Placid Regional Utilities publishes a separate water quality report for each of its systems, and Placid Lakes has its own utility. If you pay no water bill at all, you are most likely on a private well.
Chlorine can wear down softener resin over time. Many Lake Placid homeowners on utility water add a carbon filter, which also takes out the chlorine taste and smell. We will tell you whether it makes sense for your home after the test.
A softener adds some sodium in exchange for the hardness it removes, and the amount depends on how hard your water was to begin with. The town’s 2025 report lists 13 ppm of sodium in the water as delivered. If you want to limit sodium in drinking water, a reverse osmosis system at the kitchen sink is a common add-on.
Yes, scale builds up whenever water runs through your fixtures and water heater. We set the valve so it does not regenerate for an empty house, and we show you what to check before you leave and when you return.
Yes. We test your water, look at your current setup and tell you honestly whether it can be adjusted or should be replaced.
Yes. Wells often need iron or sulfur filtration ahead of the softener, so we test for those too and recommend the setup that matches your results.
Find out what is in your water before you spend anything. A free in-home water test shows your hardness, iron and chlorine, and we explain each number in plain language. Contact Florida Water Management or call (863) 658-1056, Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 5 PM.
