Why do I still have mineral buildup?

[Subrosa]

Originally Posted by Leafmite

No, everything here runs through the water softener. The main waterline goes directly to the water softener before branching off. With the water we have, that is actually a good idea. :|

Theoretically, the salt and calcium combine and you shouldn't be consuming that much salt. Still, yes, that is something that we do worry about. However, I grew up getting my water from the Ohio river and that water was pretty bad (though it wouldn't hurt the plants, I think, just killed off my fish now and then) so I see this as an improvement.

That's not how a softener works. A more technical and explanatory name for them is "ion exchange unit". The device uses salt to provide sodium ions to replace magnesium and calcium ions. The more calcium and magnesium the tap water going in contains, the more sodium the product water contains.