Hardwater is inescapable in the western United States, which is why a water softener is so helpful.
According to the United State Geological Survey, water in the western states and northern midwest has some of the highest concentrations of calcium carbonate, one of the most problematic minerals for water usage. Residents in these states can expect to have more residual problems from hard water — and this is not regarding its drinkability.
Excluding rare circumstances stemming from extraordinary events, municipal water — or water provided by cities and regional facilities — is safe to drink. The excess calcium in the water doesn’t harm the human body.
If anything, our bodies use calcium in their routine functions, although your body doesn’t typically absorb calcium in this way.
Most of the reasons hard water is so inconvenient is because of its effect on everything surrounding us. We typically use water for everything: cooking, bathing, washing, etc. It’s in these circumstances that we need to soften water.
Soft water is much easier on our skin, appliance, and everyday objects. Minerals in hard water tend to linger on surfaces, react poorly with soaps and shampoos, and degrade the efficacy of our laundry detergent.
Here are some ways adding a water softener to your home can save you time, money, and energy for years to come.
1.Better Skin and Haircare
Your body needs minerals to function properly. Different minerals support your nervous system; others support your heart and circulatory system. Our bodies typically use calcium to help maintain our bones.
Skin and hair don’t respond as positively to minerals as the rest of the body. Excessive minerals in water can cause skin irritation, resulting in larger pores and damaged hair follicles.
Softer water is easier to rinse off the body with and leaves your pores and skin generally less irritated. Proper washing with softer water creates a difference you can see in the mirror.
2.Easier to Clean
After rinsing a cup with water, have you ever seen phantom shapes of water drops on the glass? Is the faucet on your sink or bathtub a patchy milky white? This happens because small deposits of minerals are left behind whenever hard water dries.
The immediate concerns are about how something looks when it is dried. So long as your pipes are spewing out hard water from your faucets, no amount of washing will get your dishes and appliances completely clean. In addition to wiping and rinsing with water, you will need chemicals that can break down the rocky buildup of minerals and remove them completely from the surface of an object.
Extended periods without cleaning allow scale, a hardened mineral material, to start accumulating around faucets and in locations with a lot of water traffic. Scale is not as easy to take care of as common water stains. If you allow too much scale to build up in your appliances, using a hammer or file may be more beneficial for cleaning than any storebought chemical.
Adding a water softener to the arsenal of in-home appliances will save you an extra cleaning step for however long your water softener lasts.
3.Better Appliance Care
Almost every appliance uses water in some way. Even a microwave needs to be wiped down with a moist towel every once in a while. Hard water damages appliances, especially appliances that use water often.
Your coffee maker, blender, and pressure cooker all depend on water for at least some part of their function or maintenance. The calcium in water accumulates over time. It usually starts by looking like a white film that doesn’t rinse off.
As time progresses and more hard water is used for preparing your food or otherwise using your appliances, the white filmy layer starts becoming rockier and getting in the way of the appliances’ normal function.
4.Better Experiences With Soaps
The minerals in hard water prevent soaps, shampoos, and detergents from lathering – an integral part of their cleaning function. This anti-lathering feature of hard water is responsible for some of the skin problems mentioned above that can come with hard water usage.
Another significant factor in hard water use is that the mineral deposits found in it will stop laundry detergents from working properly. After months and years of washing in hard water, you may notice your clothes losing their color or taking on a grayish tinge.
If ruining your clothes and skin isn’t bad enough, because soap doesn’t lather as well with hard water, it becomes harder to clean off surfaces. In areas with significant hard water problems, soap scum is a common sight. Those actively trying to remove soap scum and hard water stains from bathrooms know firsthand how much work this is!
5.Better Long-term Pipe Care
Debris carried through your house’s plumbing can start building up in the interior of your pipes. Like many of the other issues discussed, this isn’t one that immediately impacts your home but worsens over the years.
Typically, your pipes should last a couple of decades or more. However, when hard water gets mixed into the longevity equation, the likelihood of your plumbing surviving to or after its typical lifespan reduces significantly.
You cannot clean mineral buildup in your plumbing like you can clean your sink or tub. The best way to deal with debris buildup in your pipes is to replace them altogether.
Easy Water with Quick Quality Plumbing
Getting soft water for your home is very simple. You don’t need any additional waterlines coming from a separate treatment facility; you just need a water softener, an appliance that will sit in your basement, filtering out excessive mineral deposits in your water.
A water softener can bring you big long-term rewards. Your home will be cleaner, your skin will look younger, and your clothes will be as vibrant as ever.
Contact Quick Quality Plumbing today for a quote on installing a water softener. Prices vary, and the results can be seen and enjoyed for decades to come.
