Hard water vs soft water: hard = bad, soft = good. This is a very simplistic look at the issue. Hard water is water that contains relatively large concentrations of calcium and magnesium. It results in unsatisfactory showering and hair-washing. Skin and hair can both feel a little rough and dry when they have been bathed in hard water. It’s those elements from the water finding new homes on your body and it’s not exactly harmful but it is, for most people, somewhere between unwanted and unacceptable, perhaps even unbearable. Other signs of hard water are crusty deposits in the coffee pot and white spots on glassware that have been in a dishwasher. These are far from the only places the calcium and magnesium are present, but they are ones you can see. This stuff is everywhere: in your pipes, in your faucets, in the washing machine, and the water heater, and it reduces efficiency, sometimes to the point of making things malfunction. Ignore it at your peril, because getting a new washing machine or water heater is an expense nobody wants.
Hard Water by Zip Code
Are you wondering how to find out if you have hard water? The answer is: probably yes. Most parts of the US have hard water. You can even look it up online. Hard water by zip code will get you results. Hard water in the United States is a fact of life and, of course, it has been defined and units of measurement devised.
So, if you want to know how hard your water is, you can see it measured as milligrams per liter, parts per million, or grains per gallon. All this really tells you, though, is how well or badly off you are in comparison with the rest of the country, and that’s not really the point.
The point is whether this bothers you or not, and if it does, you don’t just have to accept it. You can get a professional water purification company to install a water softener system.
Jargon alert: here is where the explanation gets a little technical. Typically, water softening will involve replacing the calcium and magnesium ions with sodium or potassium. Don’t know what an ion is? You are not alone, and it is not important. You replace the unwanted elements with acceptable ones.
Is Nashville Water Safe to Drink?
This is another question with a simple basic answer. Municipal/government water has to be safe to drink because that is part of the water department’s job. But that is not to say it is perfect. It might not just be the hardness, either. That mainly happens depending on what kind of rock it travels through when it falls to earth and soaks into it. Limestone is a particularly bad offender in this respect but think of what else water must go through and pick up traces of. Manure, fertilizer, pesticides, and simple, old-fashioned dirt. Is it any wonder water contains impurities?
If you have your own supply from a well, the responsibility is yours alone, so you really should do something about it ASAP. In addition to high levels of iron, lead and so on, there could be toxins in there. Nashville water quality in general is not a cause for concern, but water is such a vital commodity that you owe it to yourself, your family, and friends to get your supply tested.
