Hard water affects millions of households and can impact your skin, hair, and daily comfort. Although it’s generally considered safe to drink, it often doesn’t taste as good as water that has been softened.
What Is Hard Water?
Hard water is water that contains high levels of dissolved minerals. Most often, it’s high levels of calcium and magnesium. These minerals are picked up as water moves through rocks and soil on the way to its destination.
And while drinking hard water won’t harm you, it does cause problems with your hair and skin. It can also taste “off” or unpleasant, and many people spend a lot of money to soften their water to avoid these problems.
If you’re concerned about hard water and the problems it can cause, here’s what you need to know.
What Makes Hard Water “Hard”?
Water is considered “hard” when it contains high levels of minerals like calcium and magnesium. Although “hard” and “soft” are used to describe water quality, it is possible to feel a difference in the water. Softened water actually feels softer. Bathing in soft water feels more supple and juicy on your skin. Hard water feels more metallic and sharp.
Hard water isn’t dangerous to touch or consume. However, it is damaging and usually leaves your skin feeling dry and tight. It’s irritating for people with skin conditions like eczema, and it’s likely to worsen even mild cases. It’s also hard to rinse soap and shampoo from your body when you’re using hard water.
Is Hard Water Bad for Your Health?
The simplest answer to this question is “yes and no.”
Drinking hard water is generally safe. However, most people believe it doesn’t taste as good as softened water, which means you might be less likely to drink enough water and risk dehydration if you’re dealing with hard water.
Some people also have a digestive intolerance to hard water. The heightened mineral content might aggravate their systems, so they’ll experience digestive distress when consuming hard water.
It’s important to remember, “safe” doesn’t necessarily mean ideal for daily use.
How Do You Know You Have Hard Water?
There are several ways you can tell if you have hard water:
- You notice soap scum, scale buildup, and cloudy glassware from residue
- Your skin is dry, or your hair is limp and lifeless
- You see spots or streaks on faucets, showerheads, and dishes, even after cleaning
If you only notice signs of hard water occasionally, it may not seem like a problem at first. Over time, however, those signs can become more noticeable and turn into a greater nuisance.
Improving Water Quality
The good news is that there are ways to alleviate hard water issues without a complete overhaul of your home’s water system.
There are filtration systems that help with hard water and also offer a variety of other benefits. Whole-house filters can improve the quality of water throughout your entire home, including both shower and drinking water.
Improving water quality also offers secondary benefits. This is because high-mineral-content water can damage your home’s plumbing system. Mineral buildup leads to corrosion and can cost you a lot of money. Make sure you consider this when determining whether upgrading and filtering your water supply is a financially sound decision.
Drinking Water
Of course, homes aren’t the only places where hard water can be an issue. Hard water can be problematic in certain regions, potentially affecting the entire water supply. If you’re supplying water to the public or planning an event in an area with hard water, you’ll need to consider this.
Luckily, just as there are home filtration systems, there are ways to improve drinking water quality when you’re responsible for providing water to the public. Portable solutions like mobile water stations offer the same benefits as home filtration but on a larger, more flexible scale, making them ideal for events, workplaces, or community gatherings.
Quench Buggy makes it easy to ensure people have palatable, filtered drinking water wherever they are. If you’d like to learn more about portable water stations or you’re ready to explore options for your next event, book a quick call.