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Hard water - what is it? How does it affect devices used at home?
What does it mean when water is hard?
✅ The term "hard water" means that the water contains an excess of magnesium and calcium, as well as iron and manganese. These elements, though sounding healthy, when present in excessive concentrations in water, indicate hard water.
☑️ Going into details, there are two types of water hardness: carbonate (temporary - which can be relatively easily removed) and non-carbonate (permanent, which is more difficult to deal with), but for the purpose of our brief analysis, let's leave it at that.
In essence, hard water is a natural phenomenon in nature, as it originates from the Earth's interior and can be saturated with various minerals.
Of course, the degree of water hardness can be determined, as it is a characteristic that can vary in intensity.
Water hardness and standards adopted in Europe
European standards stipulate that the hardness of water in water supply systems should be maintained within the range of 60 to 500 mg CaCO3 per liter. This means that such is the recommendation for water used in our country, but it does not mean that these standards are not exceeded. Often, water hardness limits are exceeded both in water from private sources and in water from public water supplies.
✅ Moreover, according to many, even a lower hardness than the upper limit, i.e., 500 mg CaCO3/l, significantly affects household appliances and water installation components in homes. We are talking here more about the economic significance of hard water in terms of its impact on the aging of appliances, as in terms of health, hard water is most likely not very harmful, although it may cause dry skin and hair in some sensitive individuals (generally, while it is not considered ideal for hygiene, it is not considered harmful).
☑️ In commercial circulation in Europe and in the UK too, water hardness testers can be purchased. They are quite readily available online and are not very expensive. A more expensive but more reliable option is to test the water in a specialized laboratory.
✅ Water Hardness in the UK and Ireland
In the UK and Ireland, hard water is prevalent across much of the area, particularly in densely populated regions, although there are areas with water resources that fall within acceptable limits and are therefore classified as having no hard water issues. However, the majority of British and Irish people use hard water because they reside in areas where no other option is available.
✅ Map of Water Hardness in the UK and Ireland
✔️ Dark blue indicates very hard water, light blue indicates moderately hard water
✔️ Green indicates no significant issues with hard water
The map of water hardness for the UK and Ireland is quite unfavorable, one might even say exceptionally unfavorable. However, this is not entirely accurate, as similar or worse situations can be found in other European countries. Over 80% of European territories have issues with hard water.
What problems arise from the presence of hard water?
Our analysis will be subjective and focus on the issue of heating or hot water installations, as well as its impact on water-related household appliances. The biggest problem here is the formation of limescale. This phenomenon is familiar to everyone, not just plumbers. Chemically speaking, it is calcium and magnesium carbonate, which cause the formation of specific deposits. We have encountered it more than once.
We all remember the old advertisements for laundry detergents that claimed to protect washing machines from limescale. In these ads, a professional would show how washing machine components looked with limescale deposited on them, suggesting the purchase of Calgon. Unfortunately, the ad is partly true, as limescale can indeed build up significantly on the washing machine drum and eventually damage it. The same applies to other appliances.
✅ Similarly, hard water has a very detrimental effect on the lifespan of dishwashers, irons, coffee makers, or any other device with regular or constant contact with water. In particular, limescale is often found at the bottom of an electric kettle.
Which elements of a plumbing installation are susceptible to limescale resulting from hard water?
In fact, every component of the installation ages over time, and the rate of limescale buildup often determines the rate at which components of central heating and hot water deteriorate.
✅ The most important device that should be protected from limescale is the heating boiler. Deposits can accumulate on its walls, of which most of us are unaware. The problem only becomes apparent after some time, usually when there is a failure of the heat source. It's not too bad if it happens in summer, but the biggest problem occurs when it happens in the middle of a severe winter. It would actually be reasonable in our country (considering the water hardness) to recommend, which many boiler manufacturers already do, softening the water to increase the lifespan of the boiler.
☑️ It is worth adding that installations where boilers operate at higher temperatures are more susceptible to limescale buildup. Hard water tends to precipitate more scale when heated. It is generally accepted that the phenomenon of limescale buildup increases significantly when the water in the installation reaches a temperature of 35 or 40 degrees Celsius, practically exposing every heating installation to this risk (except for underfloor heating systems operating below 30-35°C). However, the higher the temperature at which the heat source operates, the faster the problem progresses.
✅ The problem of hard water and limescale can affect heat pumps in the same way. They are theoretically as susceptible to limescale as boilers, with the difference that they often operate with underfloor heating systems at lower temperatures, which is significant in the context of what we have written above.
Hard water and boiler scale reduce the efficiency of the entire heating and water system
Another problem is the scaling of the installation itself - i.e., the accumulation of scale on the pipes, reducing their diameter and flow capacity. Such scaled installations are characterized by higher thermal energy consumption, directly translating into heating costs.
✅ It is estimated that heating costs can be up to 30-40% higher compared to a fully healthy installation, although this effect may take several seasons to manifest.
✅ Particularly dangerous is the scaling of underfloor heating systems. Because underfloor heating systems rely on narrow PEX pipes, scaling significantly reduces their efficiency. This can result in parts of the house being underheated or certain areas of the floor not being warm. This is another reason to design underfloor heating systems to allow for the use of a medium at a temperature of 28-35°C (in line with common practice) - as this reduces scale formation.
❌ Using temperatures of 40-45°C on underfloor heating systems, as some still prefer, may not only be inappropriate for human health but also for the health of the installation itself.
☑️ Underfloor heating, due to the need to protect it from limescale deposits, should always be in a sealed, pressurized system. It should never be in an open system where water is exposed to oxidation (and limescale formation).
Scale in water filters - it weakens their effectiveness
✅ Another relatively expensive device that definitely loses a significant portion of its efficiency, and we would certainly prefer the opposite, is the increasingly common UV sterilizer for disinfecting drinking water found in British and Irish households. This device often appears in homes with private water sources (where water disinfection is necessary due to a higher risk of E-Coli contamination), as well as in households using municipal water supplies. Over the years, scale can even damage, in extreme cases, the stainless-steel reaction chamber of the sterilizer (though let's be honest - we're mostly talking about critical areas like welds, welded protrusions, valves, or areas where the layer of steel is thinner). Such problems may only manifest after years (unless we're talking about a device made of poor-quality steel). It's more important to note that scale also accumulates on the quartz tube, which directly encases the UV-C lamp emitting ultraviolet rays. In this way, we cannot count on 100% efficiency of the device, even though we've invested in it for a specific reason. Check out UV lamps for sterilization available in our offer.
Hard water and heat exchangers / storage tanks / boilers
✅ Heat exchangers - both boilers, storage tanks, and plate heat exchangers are products that are highly susceptible to scale buildup. This particularly applies to boilers and storage tanks, but especially to flow-through plate heat exchangers (if such a device is present in the system). They are constructed of extremely thin plates (as thin as 0.25mm), so it's easy to imagine what can happen to such material when it starts to be corroded by scale. The efficiency of heat exchangers in heat transfer depends on the specific heat exchange surface area of the exchanger (created precisely by the plates). The device's performance directly depends on how large this surface area is.
✅ It's important to remember that even if the heat exchanger doesn't leak, the part of the plate surface covered with scale does not participate in heat transfer. It's as if the exchanger's surface area decreases over time, hence its efficiency drops due to scaling. In the final phase, it can, of course, lead to leakage inside the device or from the external part. It's worth installing water softeners before the heat exchanger, but of course, this does not fully protect the exchanger - especially if we live in an area with hard water. A scaled heat exchanger often operates very inefficiently, which can result in insufficiently heated rooms and/or increased heating costs during the season (as the heat source, e.g., the boiler or heat pump, must work more intensively). Manufacturers of heat exchangers for gas boilers usually exclude damage caused by scaling from warranty coverage, considering it as operational faults not subject to warranty claims.
☑️ To prolong the life of a plate heat exchanger in a central heating installation, sometimes cleaning the exchanger is necessary - i.e., descaling it. This is usually done using descaling agents. Their effectiveness is not always satisfactory if the buildup of scale is already significant.
How to combat hard water in the water system
✅ If you live in an area with hard water (the vast majority of our country falls into zones with hard or very hard water), this may concern you. Only less than 10% of our area has water soft enough that it doesn't have a real impact on the aging of our installation or our household appliances using water.
✅ You can install a device called a flow water softener at the water inlet. It works on the principle of a resin bed that replaces calcium and magnesium ions - which cause scale buildup. These devices are essentially maintenance-free. By installing them at the entrance to the house, you can treat the water and protect the entire installation - but there are also smaller versions available that can be installed before a specific appliance, such as a coffee machine.
Is it worth fighting against hard water?
✅ Naturally, purchasing a traditional water softener of older type is a cost, still a significant expense for many - around 600-700 €. The cost of a flow-through filter against hard water using IPSE technology is lower - around 140-180 € with excellent results in preventing scale buildup. The question then arises whether it is worth it since hard water is not a direct threat to health. It is difficult to provide reliable numbers.
Of course, it's impossible to determine how quickly our devices age naturally and how many seasons longer they could function if we had soft water. However, it seems rational that in areas with hard and very hard water, it is advisable. In areas with neutral water, the question remains open, although it is not excluded. In summary, what do we gain:
- ✔️ Certainly lower heating bills or less fuel consumption, over the years, savings in the heating season can amount to between 20-40%. Although if we're talking about a new home, such spectacular savings won't appear in the first or second season.
- ✔️ Savings on the longer lifespan of devices such as washing machines, coffee makers, or electric kettles, but also on plumbing fixtures such as showerheads or shower panels
- ✔️ Savings on the longer lifespan of the heating boiler or heat pump - in this case, if our heating device avoids failure after years and lasts several seasons longer, it can indeed be enticing
- ✔️ Savings on the longer lifespan of the water heater / tank or its coil
- ✔️ Avoidance of the risk of heating source failure at an inconvenient time or heating elements that prevent the operation of the installation (e.g., plate heat exchanger).
This is our subjective assessment. We leave the opinion to you.