Tap water contains various minerals and salts dissolved in it. While some of these minerals are essential for us, if the content is too high, it could cause various problems and affect our daily activities. Water hardness describes the concentration of minerals dissolved in water and is mainly concerned with the content of calcium and magnesium. While in most cases the mineral content is below the acceptable thresholds, it becomes a concern if the water supply system primarily relies on groundwater as a source. As water passes through the soil and rocks, it absorbs various minerals that could make its composition undesirable.

Water hardness can however be overcome by installing a water softener at your home. These devices can reduce the hardness of water by absorbing the excess salts and replacing them with sodium. In addition, the amount of sodium introduced in the water is very low and is not a health concern. Here are six great benefits of having a water softener at home.

1. Long-Lasting Appliances

Due to hard water, the formation of scaling can take place in your appliances. This scaling, in turn, can clog pipes leading to leakages and result in a lower life of your appliances. Appliances like washing machines, dishwashers, and coffee machines can get affected. Using a water softener would prevent scaling, extending the life of your appliances and resulting in less frequent repairs. This would also help you save some money.

2. Cleaner Clothes

Hard water has a higher tendency to strip the color off your clothes in comparison to soft water. This results in your clothes appearing faded after a few washes. Further, it is difficult to create lather using soap with hard water. As a result, you would need to use a larger amount of detergent and you would still end up with stained clothes. Further, the excess amount of detergent would also harm your clothes. Soft water on the other hand would result in cleaner-looking clothes and also reduce the consumption of detergent.

3. Better Looking Skin and a Healthier Body

Hard water can leave your skin scratchy and dry. Further, it can make your skin more prone to pimples and can cause inflammation and dandruff, and it can also dry out your hair. At the same time, due to the excess amount of salt content, consuming hard water can also irritate your throat lining and result in the yellowing of your teeth. On the other hand, soft water is easier on the skin. Showering with soft water is, on the whole, a more pleasurable experience as it is also easier to generate lather.

4. Lower Utility Bills

Installing a water softening system can help reduce your utility bills. This is because the scaling caused due to hard water in the plumbing of your house can result in blockages and leakages. This can lead to additional expenses in terms of water utility bills and repeated plumbing repair work. Furthermore, your house heating system is less efficient when it uses hard water and can also contribute to increased heating utility bills.

Installing a water softener may cost a little in terms of the initial investment, increased energy consumption, and periodic filter replacements, however, on the whole, it will lead to significant savings. By looking at nuvo water softener reviews you can decide on what would be the right size of water softener for you. This is important as the energy consumption of the water softener will depend on its size.

5. Spot Free Utensils

Unless you wipe your utensils after washing them, if your water is hard, they will end up getting stained as the water dries out. This is because when the water evaporates, the salt gets left behind. These stains are however not permanent and can easily be cleaned. However, switching to soft water will help avoid these entirely and make your utensils cleaner.

6. Better Tasting Water

The taste of hard water is easily noticeable. Due to the higher content of salts and minerals, the water tastes salty and sour and also has a stale smell. The in turn also affects the taste of food. Further, the mineral content of hard water also results in bitter coffee. Installing a water softener would help negate these effects.

Installing a water softener at home can be very beneficial. However, before you invest in a water softener, you must make sure that you definitely need it. While there are various visual everyday cues, it is advisable to properly test the quality of water before making the investment. This can be done by using a water hardness testing kit and a rough estimation can also be made by performing a Total Dissolved Particles (TDP) test.