What Is Hard Water

Are you familiar with the term “hard water”? It may not be something you think about often, but it’s important to understand what it is and how it can affect your daily life.

Even though water is transparent, it is a fine amalgamation of various minerals and chemicals. Hard water contains a high concentration of minerals, specifically calcium and magnesium. These minerals can positively and negatively affect your home and health.

This blog post will delve into hard water’s details, including its characteristics, benefits, drawbacks, and more. By the end, you will better understand hard water and how it may impact your life.

Evaluating Hard Water

Water that is highly concentrated with minerals is termed hard water. When water passes through limestone or chalk deposits that contain calcium carbonate and magnesium, it causes the formation of hard water.

Since it doesn’t lather well enough with soap, it is not that effective for laundry detergent.

Boilers also run at risk when hard water is heated in them. The concentrates of salt reduce the efficiency of boilers. Though safe for consumption, hard waters are not suitable for your skin. They form scales in the tap lines, the bathroom surfaces, and the pipelines.

One of the basic examples that we can provide is rainwater. However, it is naturally soft as it moves across the ground and percolates through the concentrated forms of limestone, gypsum, or even chalk.

Finally it results in a higher and much more complex concentration of calcium and magnesium compounds, making it hard water.

Thus we can claim that hard water is the excess presence of calcium and magnesium. The increased the amount of these chemicals, the harder the water.

Largely depending on the salts present in hard water, the hardness is further classified into two types. They are discussed below.

Types Of Hard Water

#1 Temporary Hard Water

It’s termed temporary because the hardness of water can be easily removed by boiling or heating it. The water here becomes hard when there are concentrates of magnesium and calcium carbonates in it.

The salts become soluble when water is boiled, and Mg (HCO) is converted to MG (OH). The insoluble particles are precipitated and dissolve easily, making the water soft.

#2 Permanent Hard Water

Water is permanently hard when it is impossible to remove its hardness by boiling. It can never be converted to soft water; when magnesium and calcium are dissolved in water in the form of chloride and sulfide, it is then that permanent hard water is formed.

A negative reaction of washing soap with sulfide, chloride, salts, calcium, and magnesium results in insoluble carbonates, which never dissolve, making the water permanently hard.

The classifications being explained, let us just take a quick glance at the distinctive features that are useful to objectify them.

Features Of Hard Water

• Often, fabrics of linens look old and rough.
• There are visible stains on white porcelain and scale build-up in pipelines.
• Low water pressure in showers can also be experienced due to blocked pipes.
• Dishes and utensils may have a chalky residue build-up.
• White stains can appear on the surface of the shower and windows.
• Galvanic corrosion is also formed through the electrolytes in hard water.

Similar to a coin having two sides, there are both benefits and drawbacks that are associated with hard water.

Some Of The Benefits And Drawbacks Of Hard Water

The Benefits Of Hard Water

• Water usually tastes bland, but hard water is tasty due to the presence of salts and ions.
• The calcium and magnesium concentrations in hard water benefit bone health.
• Constipation and minor digestion-related concerns are also solved with regular consumption of hard water.

The Drawbacks Of Hard Water

• Hardwater often causes dry skin and hair due to the moisture retention quality in it.
• Lather cannot be formed when used with soap or detergents. It can also result in soap scum, resulting in the discard action of the soap.
• Heating of hard water results in the formation of lime scale. Water pipes and boilers can go through furring.
• Boilers and heating devices can be blocked, resulting in a reduced life span of the water heating devices.
• The fabrics can lose color and brightness, leading to a dull grey appearance.

Are There Any Health Risks That Are Associated With Hard Water?

There have been no reports of serious health concerns regarding drinking hard water.

But hard water contributes to dryness and moisture retention of skin and hair. Regular washing of hair can lead to an itchy, dry scalp.

Similarly, regular skin contact with hard water may lead to dryness and minor skin disorders.

The active minerals present in hard water also change the pH balance of your skin, damaging the barrier that protects your skin from harmful bacteria and infection. People affected with eczema and psoriasis are the most vulnerable.

If dry skin and hair are something that has been concerning you of late, then there may be a need to look into the water-softening system that one can install in own home.

If this sounds too much, consulting a dermatologist should solve your concern.

Seek his guidance and get a good moisturizer and moisturizing agents that will treat your hair and skin and combat the adverse effects of hard water.

With the advancement of science and technology, researchers have tested and approved various methods through which hardness can be removed easily.

Effective Ways To Remove Hardness Of Water

There are numerous methods through which you can easily remove the hardness of water and convert it to soft water. In this section of the article, we’ll be explaining a few of them:

• Boiling water can remove temporary hardness from water
• Infusing chemicals (washing soda) act as an active water softener and can be used to remove hardness.
•  Filtration through an Ion exchange process is also effective for hardness removal in water.

These water filters that use the Ion exchange process are considered the best option for converting permanent hard water to soft water. This is an extremely effective water softener. Other effective and advanced water softeners are also used in homes or as bathroom water purifiers.

FAQs

Is it safe to drink hard water?

Hard water doesn’t pose any form of health threat. In fact, according to various reports, it has been suggested that the consumption of hard water is beneficial to the overall human dietary needs in terms of calcium and magnesium requirements. Many doctors have researched the hardness of water and its association with the mortality and cardiovascular health of humans.

Why is hard water undesirable?

Water termed hard implies a high concentration of dissolved calcium and magnesium. It has never caused any health risk, but often, due to the presence of mineral deposits on the pipelines and unsatisfactory soap and detergent results, it causes dissatisfaction among people. Hard water is a strong solvent that has the ability to absorb impurities in seconds.

Why is water containing large amounts of dissolved calcium and magnesium salts referred to as “hard water”?

Hard water is often associated with water that contains dissolved chemical compounds of magnesium and calcium and, at times, a few more trivalent and divalent metallic elements. In the beginning hardness of water was associated with water which was difficult to use for washing due to the soap-wasting quality of hard water.

The Final Verdict

We hope this article on hard water has provided a quick yet profound understanding of hard water. Most people don’t bother much and drink hard water without being concerned. As it contains various mineral concentrates, people often prefer drinking hard water, not only due to its various health benefits but also because of its wonderful taste. So, what are you waiting for? Grab yourself a glass of hard water and enjoy its taste and the various benefits that it offers.