What is Hard Water?
People often talk about hard water, but what exactly is it?
Hard water is most often caused by the geology (rock formation) of the area from which it is sourced.
There are three main types of rock formation.
Igneous - caused by volcanic activity - granite is an igneous rock.
Sedimentary - caused by solid deposits precipitating from large bodies of water such as rivers and seas - clay and limestone are sedimentary rocks.
Metamorphic - rock that has started out as one type and changed into another by immense temperature or pressure. Marble is an example of a metamorphic rock.
Large areas of the UK are formed from sedimentary rocks, and in particular limestone based rocks. These rocks have started life as microscopic creatures and lifeforms and predominantly formed from a chemical compound of calcium (as found in bones), carbon and oxygen. The chemical formula is CaCO3. Calcium carbonate, or CaCO3 is also most commonly known by you and me as "limescale".
It is the dissolved limescale in water that causes all the well known effects of hard water, and is predominantly found in the large areas of the UK that sit on limestone or chalk rocks.
Rain water falls on the ground, and is filtered through the limestone based rocks before running into rivers and reservoirs. As a result, the water has a high limescale content. This is present in the water as very fine, usually invisible, particles of limescale. And herein lies the problem; When we use the water, as it runs over hard surfaces such as pipes, wash basins, baths, toilets and appliances, the limescale settles out and sticks to those hard surfaces. The problem is made worse by heating the water, because to make matters even worse, calcium carbonate has what is known as a "reverse solubility curve". With most solids (salt or sugar for example) if they are dissolved in water, as the water is heated we are able to dissolve more and more of that solid in the water.
Unfortunately for us, calcium carbonate (limescale) works in exactly the reverse way. As the water is heated, it can hold less and less limescale, and so the solid limescale is forced out of solution. That is why the problem of limescale is even worse in areas where water is heated, such as around hot taps, inside water heaters and boilers and most of all, as familiar to so many, inside the kettle.
Luckily, here at HardWater.co.uk, we stock several solutions to your hard water problems.
For a salt and chemical-free solution, effective in the majority of cases in the UK, we have the superb Eddy electronic water descaler. An easy and quick DIY fit requiring no plumbing, this device uses electromagnetic waves to change the form of crystal deposits in your water. The limescale is not removed, simply altered in such a way as to inhibit hard limescale deposits on taps, pipes, appliances and boilers. A cost effective and simple solution with a very high success rate.
For those that demand complete removal of all solids from their water, and for the silky soft feel of completely limescale-free water, we will soon be stocking the Invatec range of salt based water softeners. Just like the Eddy water descaler, our water softeners are made completely in the UK and have an unsurpassed efficiency and reliability record. They can be DIY fitted by anyone with reasonable DIY plumbing skills, or your local plumber will be happy to fit the unit for you.