It is estimated that about 85% of households in the US are affected by hard water. This can be a problem for plenty of reasons.

The good news is that you don’t have to suffer the effects of hard water. If you detect its presence, there are actions you can take to soften your water and experience all the benefits that soft water provides.

What is Hard Water and Why You Need to Test

Hard water tends to occur in areas where there are sedimentary rocks such as limestone, chalk, and sandstone. As rainwater flows through these rock formations, it dissolves chemical compounds, mainly minerals such as calcium and magnesium. These minerals remain in the water that we obtain from our municipal supplier or private wells.

The hardness of water depends on the level of mineral buildup and is normally measured in terms of grains per gallon, although milligrams per liter and parts per million are alternative measurements. One grain per gallon is the equivalent of 17.1 milligrams per liter, and soft water has a grains per gallon measure of 0-1. From there, 1-3.5 is classed as slightly hard, 3.5-7 is moderately hard, 7-10.5 is hard, and anything above that is very hard.

Hard water can provide some of our daily needs for calcium and magnesium, and is not a hazard to health. However, the presence of the minerals has some effects that cause problems:

Soaps and detergents fail to produce the same level of suds as soft water and so are less effective at cleaning. As a result, poor soap lathering causes hair and skin to have a lackluster appearance, and clothes can look dingy and grey, also having a shorter life due to having to be washed more frequently.
Pipes and appliances become clogged with limescale. Because of this, water flow decreases and appliances work less efficiently, eventually requiring replacement or expensive repairs.
Scale formation on faucets and shower heads is unsightly and requires frequent cleaning.
Increased costs result from the need to use more soap and detergent when washing and the additional electricity required by appliances that do not work efficiently.
The heating system may produce lower temperatures due to limescale build-up.
Skin conditions, such as eczema and psoriasis, can be aggravated by hard water.

Although most of these problems are annoying and costly rather than hazardous, action does need to be taken. Pipes and appliances will become increasingly clogged to the point where they do not work at all, and costs will continue to rise, so the sooner you take action, the better the situation.

How to Test Water Hardness

There are several ways to assess and measure calcium and magnesium in water. These range from simple observations and using a hard vs soft water test kit to having the water tested by a laboratory:

A simple observation of what is happening should tell you whether your water is soft or hard. Hard water may have a metallic or acidic taste and soap scum may appear on fittings. Clothes may look dingy after washing, and hair will appear dull. Over time, appliances will work less well, and water flow will decrease. All or any of these will indicate hard water problems, but not necessarily the extent.
Fill a bottle about one-third full with water, add a few drops of liquid soap, and close the cap securely. Then shake the bottle vigorously for fifteen seconds. Soft water will create an obvious foam while hard water will simply be cloudy with no great quantity of bubbles.
If you have municipal water, check your Consumer Confidence Report for water quality. This will give a broad indication of hardness, but not for your household.
Use a home water hardness test kit. These tests are relatively cheap, available, easy to use, and give quick results, but may not be very accurate. Obtain a test that focuses on hardness and test the water with strips that change color depending on the condition of the water. Compare the color to a supplied chart to assess the results.
A laboratory test will provide the most accurate and comprehensive results and will include a full report with recommendations. However, it will be the most costly, and you will need to wait for the results. In some cases, you will receive a test kit through the mail and will mail back your water sample for analysis. Some laboratories will send out a technician to take the sample, which will ensure the sample is not contaminated in any way and that accuracy is assured.

Acting on the Test Results

If the water is hard, then the degree of hardness and the presence of other contaminants will determine the action needed. If your water contains many threats, a whole house water filtration system may be necessary to eradicate them all and produce pure and soft water, with a water softener being part of the system.

Two main types of water softeners are available:

An ion exchange system that uses salt so that the calcium and magnesium ions are replaced with sodium ions. These systems are very efficient at producing soft water, but this does contain a degree of salt and may not be suitable for babies and people with a heart condition. The systems also need a regular supply of salt and produce a lot of waste water that is not considered good for the environment.
A water conditioner that does not use salt and does not remove calcium and magnesium from the water. Instead, it alters their condition, so they simply pass through the water and do not form harmful limescale. The water produced is totally safe to drink, but the system may not be able to deal with very hard water.

If you only want to remove limescale, various anti-scale devices can do this while a reverse osmosis filtration system will prevent limescale scum while also removing other contaminants. We can provide all these solutions at Aqua Clear Water Systems, so contact us for advice.