Need To Know Hard Water Facts And Distribution Of Hard Water In USA

The majority of home experience hard water problems without even knowing about it. You can tell if you have hard water in your home when it increasingly becomes difficult to get soap to form a smooth lather, or when you have to use a lot of washing-up liquid to clean your favorite crockery.Hard water is not all the same and there are systems that you can use to assist you in knowing the degree of hardness.

Hard water levels differ greatly depending on where you live...

What do the map colors mean?

• Dark blue = 0-60

• Light Blue = 61-120

• White = 121-180 

• red (very hard) = 181-250 ppm (see below for meaning and conversions)

Hard water is formed when there is excess magnesium and calcium salts in the water .1 gpg means 1 grain of calcium carbonate per gallon of water in the table.

Soft Water is usually less than 1 gpg  while slightly hard water is in the 1 to 3.5 gpg range. Moderately or medium hard water has 3.5 to 7 gpg and Hard water contains 7 to 10.5 gpg .Water with a gpg from 10.5 onwards is considered Very Hard and it is this hard water which causes serious household problems.

It is perfectly safe to use hard water for rinsing down driveways, watering lawns and irrigating certain plants. Hard water is a great nuisance causing endless hassles and problems ...

Bathing using hard water is inefficient, as is washing clothes and cutlery. Washing your hair with hard water results in the hair becoming dull, with no shine. The hair eventually becomes very rigid and easily falls off.  Hard water has also been linked to blockage in some parts of the US.

Softening water does have benefits...

Soft water tends to save on soap. You will lower dirt "tide-marks" commonly known as 'bathtub ring'. Your dishes and glassware will have that long lasting shine. Soft water has financial benefits through lowering your heating bill due to the fact that heating hard water in the water heater, results in hardness scale which plugs plumbing pipes and vessels and builds up within water heaters.Here is how to determine if you water softener supplier is legitimate

Soft water is gentle on your skin and your hair will look and feel fabulous after bathing or showering. The scum due to hard water clogs the skin pores and coats hair. This normally results in nappy rash. Food cooked using soft water is very delicious.

Where do I get more information about hardness and hard water?

You can get more information about water hardness from the Water Department or the Local City Municipality. These sources will provide the valuable information and he is how to help you understand the jargon... hardness is expressed as parts per million (ppm) or mgs/litre (= ppm) or as seen above grains per gallon (gpg) and even something called epm (equivalents per million).NB: 17.1 PPM (parts per million), equals 1 GPG . If you know this then you can work out the hardeness. Here's an example ....

-You water supply has 300 PPM of calcium. Divide 300 by 17.1 = 17.5 gpg.

By referring to the table above this means your water is very hard. To go from gpg to ppm or mg/litre you do the opposite and multiply by 17.1 Water softening is not the same as water filtering for purer water at home.

There are a wide range ofwater usage articles which cover issues such as water usage in the house, filters, softeners, heaters and water in the garden as well. Links to topics change every time you visit the page