We just moved to a neighborhood in southwest Plano that has really hard water. When we moved in, the tub faucets were all insanely corroded.

I just had a plumber come out to quote on a softener, and he mentioned he has a conditioner at his house. It's the Halo 5 system which apparently removes / neutralizes chemicals and deionizes the minerals, so they don't adhere and build up in your fixtures. Pretty mixed reviews in Googling.

Sounds like marketing / sales BS to me, but given my layout and placement, a full softener in the garage would be totally cost prohibitive. My garage is on the far corner of the house from the main, would need a new drain run, plus power, etc.

Would a conditioner be a waste of money if my primary goal is really just to reduce scaling?

Edit: I'm not married to the Halo as a conditioner. Just need something to reduce scaling

One alternative to consider is a filter system that adds polyphoshates to the water. Polyphosphates bind with calcium and magnesium ions to help reduce scale buildup. Much easier system to install and maintain.... but it won't reduce Ca ions like a salt-based softer system will. It is just something different which might work for your situation/application.

Here's an example: Link

Ask him for an in home demo and hard water test. At his house of course

I'm in SW Plano too.
Call Roger at DFW Water Softeners at 469-679-1788.
He repaired my softener valve and we talked quite a bit about systems.