Tap water hardness may be something that you're concerned about for your home's water quality. Here is a guide to understanding the how and why of water hardness.
What is Hard Water?
Hard water is a term that refers to the amount of minerals in your tap water. Minerals can leak into the water when your groundwater source passes over a natural mineral deposit, such as limestone, and some mineral ions are attracted to the water and pulled along with it. Your local government should test for mineral content before the tap water reaches your door to make sure that the water is safe to drink (in other words, the mineral content is not too high). However, minerals can get into your water even after it leaves the local water treatment facility. If your plumbing is old or the pipes leading to your home need to be replaced, they may leach additional minerals into your water.
What Are Some of the Effects of Water Hardness?
Water hardness can be a problem for several reasons. Some people simply don't want to consume extra minerals through their water intake, and the taste can be bothersome in some areas. Water hardness can also affect the lifespan of your appliances. The minerals in the water can start to coat the inside of appliances, such as your dishwasher, and cause corrosion or make them run less efficiently.
How Do You Know Your Water Hardness?
Since there are so many variables that can affect the quality of water at your tap, the best thing to do is to invest in a home water testing kit. You can order one online and figure out the methods through the kit's instructions, or you could have a water treatment professional come to your home to do testing. This way, you will find an accurate reading of water hardness for your taps, and you may also discover other contaminants in your water that you wish to treat at the same time.
Treating Water Hardness
The most common solution for water hardness is installing a water softener system to treat your tap water. The most common water softener method uses salts to remove mineral ions from water. Water softener systems require only a little bit of upkeep, since you'll need to refill the salt levels on a regular basis and perhaps test the water to make sure the kit is doing its job. Water softeners are an elegant solution for a problem that can greatly affect water quality. Contact a company like Hague Water Conditioning for more information.
Share30 August 2016
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