How do I know if I have hard water?
Hard water is typically pretty easy to diagnose. It leaves signs and symptoms everywhere you use water. Hard water is the term we use for water that has more minerals such as calcium, magnesium carbonate, and manganese than normal. These minerals are, more often than not, introduced at the water source.
Does it seem like your dish washer has a hard time getting your dishes clean? Are you seeing staining in your toilet or tub? Does it seem hard to “lather” your soap in the shower? Does it seem like your coffee maker or other appliances that depend on water seem to malfunction or quit working efficiently?
While these minerals are natural and may not expressly represent any health concerns, they can wreak havoc on your skin, clothes, dishes, plumbing, and appliances. Hard water is HARD on everything it comes in to contact with.
The good news is this, it’s not a new problem. According to the US Geological survey, 85% of homes deal with hard water.
The quickest and easiest way to tell if you have hard water is to do a water test. It’s fairly easy to get a water test, you can even do it yourself. You can buy one, online, here.
However, here are few quick ways to see if you have a problem:
- Inspect your water heating bills. If you have a hard water problem, it could take more energy to heat your water than normal. If your bills seem to keep rising without your use also increasing, this could be a sign of hard water.
- If “clean” dishes from your dishwasher don’t look clean, there might be a hard water problem. One of the easiest ways to tell that there is a problem is if your glasses are spotty or foggy.
- Feel your skin and hair! If your skin and hair are getting dried out more than normal, you probably have hard water. Hard water doesn’t allow soap or shampoo to properly lather. This makes it difficult to actually get clean!
- Do you have fuzzy faucets? Limescale is mineral build up from hard water. It collects around faucets and drains all over the house. This is a really easy way to see if you have a problem!
- Do you seem to be on first name basis with your plumber? Hard water can create more plumbing issues for you than are normal. Clogs and corrosion happen faster and more often with hard water.
- Do you like wearing your clothes? Hard water can damage your clothes and make them difficult to wear. They became harder and scratchier because the fabric gets damages over time. It’s also more difficult to properly clean clothes in hard water. Because proper cleaning can’t happen, your clothes will look dingy and age quickly.
If any or all of these symptoms sound familiar, we should talk. Brenneco Plumbing will do a free water test for you to determine exactly what needs to be done. Give us a call or send us an email, we’d love to help!
