Warning Signs Of Hard Water In Your Home
Posted on: 24 August 2015
Although all water contains some level of naturally occurring minerals, water that's too heavily saturated with minerals is referred to as hard water. It can be destructive to your pipes and appliances, and it can sap the life out of your skin and hair. If you aren't familiar with hard water or don't know how to tell if you have it, it's important to familiarize yourself with some of the common signs. Here are several things to watch for that may indicate the presence of hard water in your house.
Persistent Soap Residue
Take a look at your tub and sinks. If there's a hazy residue left on the surface of each one or you've got soap scum accumulating on them, you might have hard water. If you do, you'll also see film or haze on your glasses when they come out of the dishwasher. The mineral content of the water makes it hard to rinse soap clean away.
Chronic Dry Skin and Hair
If you're using a lot more conditioner these days to battle drying hair, it may be due to hard water. Similarly, if you've found yourself having to invest in a lot more moisturizer, that may be the reason. The minerals can dry your hair and skin out significantly, and the soap residue left behind on your skin can intensify the reaction.
Extensive Buildup on Fixtures
The final place to evaluate if you're looking for signs of hard water is your water fixtures. Since your water flows through these fixtures regularly, the mineral content in it often leads to deposits along all of your water fixtures. If you see any white residue on your shower head, faucets and other water fixtures, it's a likely sign that you've got hard water.
You might also see those same deposits inside your dishwasher. Take a look at the heating element that's inside the dishwasher to see if it is black with a smooth, clean finish. If you're seeing white or brown spots instead, that's a sign of mineral deposits.
You may find that the deposits on your water fixtures become severe enough that you have to actually wash the sprayers to unclog them. Use a mineral deposit remover for this if you want it to be as effective as possible.
If your home is showing any of these indications that you have hard water, you should reach out to a water softener installation contractor like Metro Water Conditioning Inc. He or she can put in a whole-house water softener to help ease the problem.
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