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The Facts about Hard and Soft Water

HardvsSoftWhat do you know about the water that runs through your pipes? Is it healthy enough to drink, wash up, or take a shower? Or maybe you don’t bother much about the quality of your water, thinking that it’s the secondary issue that doesn’t require much attention. If so, you do need to read the following article.

First of all, you should know the difference between hard water and soft water. Hard water is the reason of many health conditions and technology malfunctions. Generally speaking, the difference is in health state and current costs.

The truth is that not many homeowners know which type of water they use. But there are facts that can help determine the water type. These small tests don’t require much time or special equipment; we will provide the details. As soon as you know the results you can decide whether you need a water softening system or not.

How to know the difference between Hard and Soft Water?

The lather on your soup will help you determine the type of water. You have hard water if the soap:

  • Creates a film instead of foamy lather
  • Remains on your skin instead of rinsing off

Or just look at your bath/shower surround. If you see the white mineral scale on the surface, it is also a trace of hard water. These buildups are made up of magnesium and calcium. Such formations can even clog your pipes in a course of time. The fact is that most people don’t realize there is already a build-up inside the pipes, until they need a help of a plumber.

Water hardness can be temporal

If your soaps/shampoos lather well it doesn’t mean the water you use can’t become temporally hard. There are bicarbonate minerals that may cause a so-called ‘temporal hardness’. You can make it soft by boiling of course, but that’s another question that requires extra time and spends, as you know. While you can still drink hard water, it is not healthy for the skin and hair. You won’t see any consequences at first, but sooner or later they will appear if no measures were taken.

Here are the facts why hard water is not preferred:

  • Your hair never feels clean and loses its shinetreat hard water
  • The hair dries out and causes dandruff
  • Your skin dries out quickly
  • Skin feels sticky

The hard water can also ruin the fabric if you wash clothes in it. Meanwhile, extremely soft water may leave a residue of detergent between the fibers. As we already mentioned, both problems are easy to avoid with a proper softening system installed in your home.