Hard Water Questions

[KelvinAng]

I'm learning about hard water for the first time. I really do miss Christchurch's water which apparently is good/pure/neutral enough for direct use in car radiators and batteries...

Anyway, what's the best way to get rid of limescale that's form at the bottom of the kettle?

Should I be concerned about drinking hard water (had never had hard water all my life), tastes aside?

I live in a rental and I'm not prepared to install a house-wide filtration and water softening system for the landlord, but if there's a kind of filtration and water softening system that is cheap and portable, I'd like to know more about it.

Ta!

[Jo Jo]

IMHO, the best way to clean limescale out of a kettle is to use vinegar. Empty the kettle, then pour a mixture of vinegar and water to cover the limescale (roughly one part vinegar to one part water), leave for a few hours, and the limescale should have dissolved. Then rinse out the kettle well, fill it and boil it and discard that water, then it's okay to use again.

Vinegar's great for cleaning limescale in the bathroom, too.

I don't think there are any health risks associated with hard water.

[ralf-nz]

I am living in Dunedin and the natural water is quite soft. The water is hardened artificially for one reason here: Most of the pipes, manifolds and those in buildings, are pretty old. So most often they contain (heavy) metals. The softer the water the better it these )heavy) metals.

The use of vinegar is supported.

Drinking hard water is generally not an issue as far as I know.

[JandM]

As I've heard it, there is a vague feeling that hard water is good for cardio-vascular health.

[Squiffy]

Having lived in a hard water area all my life in the UK, I can definitely say that there's no adverse health effects of drinking hard water.

One thing you might want to think about though is your washing machine. Can you get a powder water softener that you put in the machine along with your detergent? This will help to keep all the machine heating elements and pipes clear of limescale. I also put a 'bleach block' in my toilet cisterns to keep the flush system clear of limescale.

[BkyMonster]

I think borax in the washer softens the water. I use it as a laundry booster already, but I had heard it's a treatment for hard water. You can get it from Bin Inn these days, but if you don't have one you can sometimes buy it off TradeMe or from a Pool supply store.

[ralf-nz]

I am living in Dunedin and the natural water is quite soft. The water is hardened artificially for one reason here: Most of the pipes, manifolds and those in buildings, are pretty old. So most often they contain (heavy) metals. The softer the water the better it these )heavy) metals.

Of course it should read: ... The softer the water the better it dissolves these (heavy) metals.

[KelvinAng]

Cheers guys

Yea, the washing machine thing did come to my mind and I've been wondering if it's wise to wash clothes with vinegar

It seems hard to find water filters and softeners in Christchurch, presumably since Christchurchers don't need them or I could have been looking at the wrong places! Will be checking out hardware stores today and tomorrow after work to see what I can find.

[James 1077]

We used to use powdered citric acid to clean out the kettle when we in the UK. Just pour in a sachet; fill the kettle and leave it overnight. I used to flick it on the next morning to dissolve the last bits of limescale.

Best thing about citric acid is that it doesn't smell or taste as bad as vinegar!

[ralf-nz]

... it doesn't smell or taste as bad as vinegar!

And I thought that - the fondness for vinegar - is something NZ and England have in common; e.g. on chips, crisps and the like.