Hard water is an issue that just about every home-owner should be concerned about. Hard water can cause damage to appliances and waste energy. This can result in hundreds of dollars a year being wasted, due to hard water.

Atlanta plumbers explain that hard water is the name given to water that contains high amounts of magnesium and calcium ions. These two minerals, present as sulfates, chlorides, carbonates and bicarbonates, are added to water as it moves through stone and picks up minerals. Water tests are performed to find out the ppm, or parts per million, ratio of these minerals in the water. It is also measured in grains per gallon. The later measurement is easier for most people to visualize. If the minerals were to be concentrated to the size of a grain of wheat, it would represent one grain of mineral content. Houston plumbers explain the different categories of water hardness; soft water is water that contains up to 1 grain per gallon, slightly hard water contains 1 to 3.5 grains per gallon, moderately hard water contains 3.5 to 7 grains, hard water contains 7 to 10.5 grains and very hard water contains more than 10.5 grains per gallon of water. People that use municipal water can request test results from their water company. If you use well water, you will want to have water tests made to verify the hardness level of your water.

Hard water affects the efficiency of many household appliances. On gas and electric water heaters, hard water builds up around the heating elements. The minerals do not conduct heat well and forces the water heater to work harder to heat the water. This not only wastes money on utilities, it also shortens the lifespan of the appliance. Hard water also impacts how effective some detergents work. Detergents and soaps do not work as effectively and can cause clothes to look dingy. Dishes may have spotting when they are dried, and mineral deposits can clog showers and build up in bathtubs and shower doors.

There are many reported solutions for hard water installed by Dallas plumbers. Some are specially designed detergents for appliances that help to minimize the impact of hard water. These are more expensive than standard detergents, and they do not address drinking water or appliances that do not use detergents. A new, emerging option is using magnetic filters. Professionals warn though that these have not been fully tested to prove their effectiveness. The most common hard water solution uses a water softening tank that is connected to the main water supply. The tank uses ion exchange to remove the minerals from the water. Softener material, typically beads of sulfonated plystyrene, are saturated with sodium. As water passes through the softening material the minerals bond to the softener material and are replaced by the sodium.

Understanding how hard water can impact your home is important. Knowing your options is also important. Professional plumbers are able to provide home-owners with different solutions to help combat potential problems with hard water. They can fully evaluate your needs and install any equipment required. Professionals can also help you with routine maintenance of water softeners and even help bypass plumbing that may not need to have softened water.