As you watch the water pour out of the spigot on your sink, it may have never crossed your mind to consider whether the water is hard or soft. You might reason that as long as the liquid runs clear and you don't see any visible discolorations or debris, it should be okay. The truth of the matter is that water has differing levels of hardness depending upon how many minerals it contains. Although the minerals will usually be too tiny to see with the naked eye, they could be leaving behind some noticeable effects that you are overlooking. If you find any of the following symptoms to be a problem in your home, you might be in need of a water softening system.
Your Water Heater Doesn't Last As Long As It Should
Depending on which type of water heater you have, the device can be expected to last for approximately ten years. This is a considerable period of time and it allows you to purchase the appliance with a bit of ease. However, when you have hard water the water heater may only make it a fraction of the way through this average life expectancy. You'll have to come up with more money for a replacement and this can be quite frustrating.
The reason why hard water cuts into the life expectancy of your water heater is because as the water is piped into your home, it is separated according to the weight of the liquid. The minerals naturally sink to the bottom of the machine while the pure water rises to the top. If you don't make it a point to clean out your appliance, the excessive amount of minerals could cause the device to work harder to warm the water, and this results in premature deterioration.
You Can't Seem To Get Those Spots Off Of The Dishes
Whether you load your dishwasher after dinner and expect for the appliance to do the dirty work, or if you don't mind putting in a little elbow grease to get the job done, you want your dishes to be sparkling clean after they've been washed. If you find that no matter how thorough you are with the drying the dishes still show mineral spots on them, hard water might be the culprit.
You can test your water by purchasing a water testing kit from a local hardware store. If the results are positive, install a water softening system as soon as possible. Check out sites like http://johnsonwater.com/ for more information.
