https://www.costco.com/ScaleBlast...85057.html
This is tricky to recommend broadly, but easy to recommend if you've been looking for a good deal on the SB-Elite model. I start off with tricky, because the stated model (SB-30) is not listed on the manufacturer's website, and the Costco product page is lacking on the product specifications. After much research and close inspection, the SB-30 listed and the SB-Elite appear to be exactly the same, with the name on the label being the only difference; dimensions and appearance are otherwise identical. This is definitely the larger residential model (home size up to 4000 SF), when compared to the cheaper / smaller SB-75. The nearly identical SB-Elite runs almost $400; the normal Costco price for this SB-30 is $260, so for $209.99 this is a no-brainer. Am I 100% sure there is no mechanical / performance difference between the SB-30 and SB-Elite? No. But all the research I've done points to this being a rebranding effort, and the price difference is enough for me to take the leap.
More info on the SB-Elite, for comparison purposes, is here:
https://www.scaleblaster.com/homeowner/
Another reason why this is tricky to recommend? I have no idea if it really works. Read the product page above for the sales pitch, but essentially it uses electrical currents to alter minerals in your water in such a way that it cuts down on mineral deposits in your pipes. I've held off buying this for years because my phony-baloney radar goes off, and reviews are quite mixed, but I've seen enough good reviews and testimonials with photos, and my home issue with this problem is relevant enough, to where I've been willing to try it for the right price. My suspicion is that it works, but the effectiveness varies a lot by individual home characteristics, like water supply mineral composition/concentration, pipes, proper installation, time in use, etc.
One other interesting note is that the company won't honor the warranty to their products if you buy it from Amazon or eBay, so I feel a little better that I'm getting it from Costco.
11 Comments
Your comment cannot be blank.
Sign up for a Slickdeals account to remove this ad.
Well of course it does. Those pipes don't get any buildup on them. Galvanized is the crappy stuff that you have to worry about. If you have galvanized in your house it's time to do some upgrades anyway.
Well of course it does. Those pipes don't get any buildup on them. Galvanized is the crappy stuff that you have to worry about. If you have galvanized in your house it's time to do some upgrades anyway.
I think all you need is a few feet of copper or pvc, but the current should remove build up from galvinaized pipes in the rest of house
Well of course it does. Those pipes don't get any buildup on them. Galvanized is the crappy stuff that you have to worry about. If you have galvanized in your house it's time to do some upgrades anyway.
Here's one discussion about ScaleBlaster it on Reddit. There's two self-proclaimed experts in the thread:
https://old.reddit.com/r/HomeImpr...ter_
This deal is long dead the SB-30 is 290 at costco but thats still cheaper than the elite elsewhere. The weird part is there is no difference in the spec sheet between the elite/sb-30/sb-75 in this part where you might expect to see some difference:
OUTPUT VOLTAGE: No more than 5 Volts DC (open circuit). DESCALING METHOD: The control box supplies a square wave signal to a coil of wire that is wrapped externally around the incoming pipeline entering the home. The signal sweeps all the frequencies from 1,000 to 20,000 Hz at a rate of 20 times a second. This produces a modulating frequency waveform that hits the resonant frequency of the calcium molecules causing them to lose its adhesiveness. SIGNAL CABLE: A special 18 AWG stranded wire, 52 feet long (not available in hardware stores), is included with the unit.
Well of course it does. Those pipes don't get any buildup on them. Galvanized is the crappy stuff that you have to worry about. If you have galvanized in your house it's time to do some upgrades anyway.
The only "buildup" on copper pipes I know of is the thin copper oxide that forms after the copper is in operation for a while and that's normal.
Sign up for a Slickdeals account to remove this ad.
The only "buildup" on copper pipes I know of is the thin copper oxide that forms after the copper is in operation for a while and that's normal.