5 Home Water Problems You Need to Fix

<![CDATA[Your home’s water affects nearly every aspect of your daily living. Sure, we all know we need drinking water and water to bathe or shower in, but a home’s water goes way beyond that. From a home’s plumbing and fixtures to how your clothes and bedding look and feel, water has a significant impact. Let’s look at 5 different ways your water can have a negative impact on your home and how it can be fixed.

1. Laundry: Hard water can be damaging to your clothing and bedding. Soap scum is created when the calcium or magnesium ions in hard water react with the fatty component of soap. This soap scum attaches itself to fabric fibers which not only give a grey or yellow appearance to fabrics, it also causes the fabric fibers to become brittle, shortening their durability and lifespan. A water softener will remove the mineral deposits in your water therefore not allowing the formation of damaging soap scum.
2. Kitchen: Water is a solvent and as such can easily pick up impurities. When we use water for drinking or cooking, we are ingesting not only the water, but any contaminants it contains as well. Water can, and often does, contain Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) which includes minerals, salts or metals dissolved in it. TDS’s can affect the taste and appearance of water as well as cause some serious health concerns if it contains nitrates, arsenic, lead or chlorine to name a few. Drinking water systems such as a RO system or a LINX® Drinking Water System can filter out TDS’s in your drinking water, making it safe and healthy to drink and cook with.
3. Bathroom: Do you notice that gray ring around your bath? How about the discoloration in your toilet? Does your sink constantly have white spots on the faucet or counter? Odds are, you have hard water. The minerals in hard water can cling to surfaces, causing them to become stained over time; iron especially can cause some really nasty staining. When hard water comes in contact with soap it creates soap scum (remember from the laundry) which clings to the tub and shower and requires a serious scrubbing to remove. A water softener or salt free water conditioner can help with this problem.
4. Skin and Hair: Studies have shown that eczema can be triggered by hard water. The magnesium and calcium in the water causes the skin to dry out leading to irritation. In order to get a nice rich lather going in hard water, more soap and shampoo is necessary which can also aggravate eczema. Hard water can play havoc on your hair as well, causing it to become dry, frizzy, easily damaged and can even change the color. Installing a water softener or salt free water conditioner can help alleviate these issues.
5. Plumbing and Appliances: Pipes, hot water heaters, washing machines, dishwashers and icemakers are in constant contact with water. When a home has hard water, scale is produced inside the pipes, hoses and even the appliance itself which can cause a host of problems. Pipes and hoses become clogged, which significantly decreases water pressure and can even cause them to burst. Heating elements can fail if there is an excess scale buildup and can cause leaks or breakage if valves and gaskets are damaged. Overall, hard water has been proven to decrease efficiency in appliances and shorten their lifespan. A water softener or salt free water conditioner can prevent scale buildup and lengthen the life of your appliances while keeping them running at full efficiency