As water travels through rocks and sediment, it picks up hard-to-delete minerals like calcium and magnesium from these surfaces, often reaching high concentrations that negatively impact household plumbing, appliances, and daily life.
When these concentrations reach dangerously high levels, this can have serious repercussions for plumbing systems, appliances, and daily living activities.
Hard water may pose no health risk; however, it can create many issues in your home and must not be taken for granted. Here are a few reasons why it shouldn’t be ignored:
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1. Increased water bills
Water hardness poses many problems that can have detrimental impacts on both your home and health, most visibly leaving mineral residue behind on skin and hair that can result in abrasions, dryness, difficulty with lathering soap or shampoo, and difficulty lathering soap or shampoo properly.
Hard water leaves scale behind on surfaces, clogs pipes and reduces appliance performance – leading to higher utility and energy bills. A water softener can help mitigate these costs by extracting minerals that contribute to hard water sources – leading to lower bills and longer lifespans for essential appliances.
2. Scale buildup
Hard water carries calcium and magnesium ions that dissolve, leaving behind mineral deposits on your pipes, appliances and fixtures – often in white-scale deposits – which build up over time, restricting water flow while looking unsightly. This buildup is known as scale.
Mineral deposits often appear as hard, water-spotted rings on your sink or stubborn soap scum that’s difficult to clear away. Unfortunately, their presence also reduces appliance efficiency and causes clogs that require expensive repairs – plus, their presence can leave hair and skin feeling dry and itchy.
3. Soap scum
Soap scum is that filmy substance that collects on bathtubs, shower doors and enclosures, faucets and handles of shower enclosures. It is unsightly, and its presence can lead to dull-looking hair and irritated skin.
Soap scum is not directly caused by soap; it forms due to minerals in your water supply. To eliminate it, try using commercial cleaning products or white vinegar with water in a spray bottle or switching over to liquid body soap, making curd less likely to form on its surface.
4. Dishes that don’t come out clean
Have you noticed that your dishes come from the dishwasher with white spots from hard water stains? These blemishes are caused by hard water.
Calcium and magnesium minerals don’t mix well with soap, leading to curdling that cannot be easily washed away and visible deposits on sinks and shower heads. This process causes unattractive soap scum deposits on both surfaces.
Use an at-home test kit or reach out to your municipality to gain more insight into the hardness of the water in your area, or invest in a water softener as the most cost-effective solution to address this issue.
5. Skin dryness
Hard water could be blamed if your skin feels itchy, flaky or irritated after bathing. Excess minerals in hard water make soap less likely to dissolve completely, disrupting natural oils within your skin’s structure and leading to dry skin or clogged pores that aggravate pre-existing dermatitis conditions.
Call your plumber for a water test if you suspect your water is hard. They can provide color-coded strips that indicate its hardness level. A water softener will also help ease any associated difficulties caused by hard water.
6. Reduced lifespan of appliances
Hard water’s minerals cause an adverse reaction with soaps and detergents, making lathering difficult – leading to less efficient cleaning results and shorter appliance lifespans.
Problematic groundwater often contains high levels of calcium and magnesium. To mitigate this issue and save money on repair and replacement costs, installing a water softener could help eliminate your problems by reducing calcium and magnesium buildup that wreaks havoc with appliances and systems.
Water softeners work by softening hard water so it passes more freely through pipes while removing buildup that harms appliances and components.
7. Reduced water pressure
Hard water may cause your shower water pressure to decrease due to minerals clogging your pipes and reducing pressure throughout your home.
Buildup in the pipes is not only unsightly; it can also lead to other problems. For instance, it makes soap scum harder to rinse away and may clog showerheads and faucet aerators, making bathing less enjoyable or leading to emergency plumbing repairs. A water softener may be the best way to treat low water pressure issues.
8. Dishes that are spotty
Hard water leaves dishes looking chalky white with spots of what resembles soap scum; those are mineral deposits, such as calcium and magnesium, that don’t wash away with detergent and soap.
Installing a home water softener that replaces minerals with sodium is the most reliable long-term solution for hard water stains; it also helps laundry by eliminating soapy residue, which dulls colors quickly and accelerates their fading, while making showering simpler by eliminating soapy buildup that clings onto the skin.
9. Poor dishwasher performance
Hard water entering a dishwasher can wreak havoc and leave it not thoroughly cleaned when its cycle ends, leading to costly repair bills and potentially shortening its lifespan.
Soap and hard water do not mix well, leading to unpleasant soap scum or using extra detergent when washing dishes with hard water.
Hard water holds dissolved minerals like calcium and magnesium that can clog pipes and diminish appliance efficiency.
10. Water heater issues
Though minerals like magnesium and calcium may not always be harmful, too much can damage appliances, clog pipes and cause stains in your water supply. Therefore, any signs of hard water deposits must be addressed to preserve quality water for everyday use.
Installing a water softener in your household water supply can remove calcium and magnesium to help avoid potential issues before they even arise. Not only that, but this investment could extend the lifespan of appliances while saving money. Contact us to learn more!
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