How to Fix Hard Water – Tips and Tricks for Cleaner Plumbing

Are you seeing polka-dotted white spots on your dishes or having trouble working soap into a lather? These are classic signs of hard water.

While hard water poses no health risks, it can be a nuisance for your appliances and day-to-day cleaning. The minerals left behind can clog pipes and affect water pressure.

1. Clean the Pipes

Hard water can cause all sorts of problems. Dishes emerge from the dishwasher polka-dotted with hazy white spots, soap leaves a chalky film around your tub and shower, and even your skin can feel like it’s stripped of its natural oils. While these issues don’t harm your body, they can be a nuisance and can make it difficult to use water-using appliances.

Thankfully, the good news is that hard water can be easily fixed. All it takes is a little effort to remove the problem.

Most people will find that their best tool for fighting hard water is vinegar. Vinegar will dissolve the minerals on surfaces, and it will also prevent them from clinging to your clothes during washing. For the laundry, you can add a cup of vinegar along with a scoop of borax to each load. The acid and the borax will scrub away the buildup and rinse it away without damaging your fabric or lowering the washing machine’s efficiency.

2. Remove Scale

If you live in an area with hard water, you know the frustration that can come with it. Dishes emerge from the dishwasher polka-dotted with hazy white spots, stains develop on tile and shower screens, and soap scum leaves a chalky residue. These problems are caused by high levels of dissolved minerals like calcium and magnesium that are absorbed into the water when it passes through mineral-rich soils and rocks.

There are ways to combat the effects of hard water. Try dropping a little dish soap into a container of water. If it creates a good amount of suds, you have soft water; if it creates very few suds or doesn’t look clear, you have hard water. For more serious hard water issues, you can use a commercial descaling product or install a water softener. These methods require some elbow grease and research, but they will help you avoid the many issues hard water can cause.

3. Install a Water Softener

A water softener is a great long-term solution to prevent hard water buildup and reduce strain on plumbing systems. Water softeners help keep your appliances and pipes in good shape by eliminating the negative effects of calcium, magnesium and other minerals.

There are a number of different options for treating hard water including whole-house softening and small ion exchange devices that can attach to your faucets. Most home improvement stores carry a selection of water softeners and will assist you with research and installation, or you can find easy-to-follow instructions for installing a system yourself.

If you’re not sure if your water is hard, purchase a home test kit that can measure the concentration of hardness minerals in your water. If your water is over 7 GPG or 120 PPM, you likely have hard water. While hard water is safe to drink, it can cause problems for your skin, dishes and appliances. Treating hard water can save you money in the long run by reducing the amount of soap, detergent and electricity used to operate your appliances.

4. Install a Water Filter

Water softeners are the best way to eliminate hard water problems. They remove calcium and magnesium ions from the water before it enters your home. These devices are also helpful for preventing scale build-up in pipes, appliances and fixtures. They can be whole-house systems or small units that attach to faucets and work similar to a showerhead filter.

A good way to tell if you have hard water is when soap doesn’t make billowing bubbles but instead creates something more like slime that’s difficult to rinse off. These problems are caused by positive atoms in the minerals that prevent soap molecules from dissolving. A water softener can counter these atoms and eliminate the need for cleaners that can be expensive to use over time.

To install a water softener, turn off your water supply at the main line and drain your plumbing. Remove the old water heater and connect the new water line to the filtration unit. Screw the unit onto the pipe and then connect the hoses to it. Wrap Teflon plumber’s tape clockwise around the threaded fittings to seal them securely.