Hard water contains an excessive amount of minerals, namely calcium and magnesium. While using hard water for drinking, cooking, and washing is not exactly bad, it does have some negative effects.
If you still don’t have a water softener in your home, here’s why you should discontinue your household’s hard water use as soon as possible:
- Soap scum
When combined with hard water, soap does not lather as well as it should and instead produces a sticky precipitate. As a result, the effectivity of the soap decreases and you would end up having to use more soap to clean, wash, and bathe.
- Stains
The minerals present in hard water can cause discoloration on your sinks, bathtubs, and showers over time. Although mineral stains are not difficult to remove, you would have to clean your sinks and showers more often, which, of course, leads to increased expenses for water and cleaning materials.
- Spotting
Dishes and utensils that are washed in hard water typically end mottled with white spots. These white spots are mineral deposits and can be very difficult to remove unless you install a water softener. Although they don’t really cause damage to dishware, these white spots are unsightly and can make you feel like you’re eating from dirty dishes.
- Scale buildup
The accumulation of mineral deposits is also referred to as scale. Scale can end up in every water-dependent appliance and fixture that you own, such as pipes, washing machines, dishwashers, coffee makers, faucets, and showerheads.
As long as your household uses hard water, mineral deposits can build up in these appliances and fixtures, slowly attaching to the insides of pipes and causing the opening to narrow down. In turn, the constriction causes lower water pressure, which can result in higher water bills.
Moreover, when the scale is ignored for too long, it can eventually cause serious damage to your plumbing system. Since the scale is almost impossible to remove after it has attached to an object, it can lead to complete blockage of pipes, which can cause leaks or eventually burst.
- Increased repairs
As mentioned above, mineral buildup due to hard water can affect the health of your plumbing system, especially if you have steel pipes. When you continue to use hard water, your pipes will likely become clogged and corroded, thus causing more frequent repairs over time.
- Clothes damage
Hard water can also fade the color of your clothes and have them feeling hard and scratchy after washing.
- Dry skin and hair
Due to the abundance of calcium and magnesium in hard water, bathing or showering can dry out your skin and make your hair feel slimy. Moreover, hard water can also make your hair and skin very brittle, leading to more frequent breakage.
Hard water may not have negative effects on your health, but the same cannot be said for the quality of your home life. As made apparent by the points mentioned above, hard water is a huge inconvenience for your everyday tasks (e.g. washing, bathing, cleaning), and can add a ton of unnecessary expenses every month. If you are still using hard water at home, consider installing a water softener today.