You’ve probably heard the term “hard water” at some point, and you may find it confusing. Water is cool and fluid and wet. How can it be hard? Well, anyone who’s ever done a belly flop in a swimming pool might disagree with you there. But in all seriousness, the “softness” or “hardness” of water doesn’t refer to its texture but to its mineral content. And since this can factor into your home cleaning routine, it’s an important topic to understand.
Depending on your local water source, the water that comes out of the taps in your home passes through a variety of substances underground before it flows through the pipes to end up in your drinking glass. When water filters through deposits of limestone and chalk, it picks up positively charged particles of calcium and magnesium, which stay in the water unless it is subsequently treated to remove them. The more calcium and/or magnesium are present in your water, the harder it is considered.
Fortunately, there are no known negative health effects from drinking hard water or cooking, bathing, or brushing your teeth with it. In fact, some studies suggest that hard water may even provide a few health benefits. Unfortunately, though, hard water can definitely be annoying to live with for other reasons. It can leave unsightly stains in sinks, tubs, and toilet bowls. It can leave a chalky, white residue on your dishes when they come out of the dishwasher. It can keep soap and shampoo from foaming, and they may not wash away completely, leading to dry skin and flat hair. It can cause clothes, towels, and sheets to fade and lose their softness as they are washed again and again. It can cause scale to build up around faucets, which doesn’t look very nice, and scale can also build up inside pipes, clogging them over time and leading to low water pressure and high water bills.
Clearly, hard water can seriously affect your home cleaning routine. Because the hardness of your water depends on the source where it originates, this quality can vary widely from state to state and even community to community. Hardness is measured in grains per gallon (GPG), and 85% of American households have water that is naturally measured at 7 GPG or higher, the point at which negative effects tend to become apparent.
Fortunately, if you have hard water at your home, there are a number of ways to deal with the issue. Check out this blog post, which offers helpful solutions! In the meantime, remember that It’s Cleaning Time is committed to helping you keep your home neat and clean in a way that fits your needs. We serve Austin area households as often as they need us, whether that means every week or just occasionally.
