Understanding How Calcium and Magnesium Affect Your Water Hardness
Hard water can be a fact of life for many water customers, whether they use municipal water systems or their own private water well systems. Hard water is usually marked by a feeling of “residue” after using it. You might wash your hands in the kitchen sink or wash your hair in the shower and still feel that “something” is left over. When your water is hard, soap reacts with calcium to form a type of “soap scum,” which leads to needing to use more detergent and soap to get things clean. This can carry over into dishwashers as well—spots or film on glasses is another tell-tale sign of water hardness. Fortunately, learning about some water hardness facts in Scottsdale, AZ can help prepare you for how to deal with water hardness.
Why is my water hard?
Simply put, water hardness is the result of excess calcium and magnesium in your water supply. Many times, this is something that is just a fact of life—it can’t really be helped, so the best way to address it is through treatment options. Water hardness facts in Scottsdale, AZ tell us that hard water is not all bad, though—these are actually vital minerals for humans to consume, so it could be that hard water is actually healthier for us.
What can hard water do?
As discussed earlier, water hardness can make it harder to get anything—your clothes, your dishes and even your skin—cleaner. The buildup known as soap scum just makes it more difficult to get things clean, and you need to spend more money on detergent as a result.
Another way that water hardness can affect you is through the buildup that can occur in appliances. This is calcium carbonate, and it’s a residue that can cause you a lot of headaches down the road. It can build up in appliances like water heaters, which reduces their lifespan and can cause a need for more expensive repairs. It can even lead to buildup in coffee makers, requiring regular cleaning with vinegar to keep them running clean. Calcium and magnesium in water in Scottsdale, AZ can lead to all of these problems and more.
What can I do about hard water?
Something to consider when contemplating water hardness facts in Scottsdale, AZ is the use of a water softener. They remove the calcium and magnesium ions and replace them with salt using a harmless chemical process called ion exchange. A water conditioner is another option—it actually changes the way these minerals behave and makes it much harder for them to bond to surfaces. Both are options to consider if you’re experiencing hard water in your home.
Hard water is typically harmless to humans, but it can do a number on your appliances. There are some choices to consider to help mitigate it, and you’d be well served by looking into them if you want to maintain the lifespan of your expensive home water appliances. Our team at WES Water knows the ins and outs of hard water and how it affects systems—give us a call anytime to set up a consultation!
Categorised in: Water Purification System