In many parts of Canada, the water coming out of our taps contains a significant concentration of dissolved minerals such as calcium and magnesium. These compounds are absorbed the water passes through earth on its perpetual journey known as the water cycle. The level of concentration determines the relative hardness or softness of the water we use for drinking, bathing, washing our clothes and cooking.
Water is considered “hard” if it has between 120 and 180 milligrams per liter of dissolved minerals (see Table 1). Based upon this standard, the populations of several Canadian urban centres use hard and in some cases very hard water every day.
How does using hard water affect the household budget? In other words, can installing a water treatment system save money? These days one budget item seems to be on everyone’s mind: energy. Whether it is the rising price of gasoline, electricity or natural gas, saving energy means saving money.
Take the water heater as an example. Research has demonstrated that using hard water causes calcium deposits to accumulate inside the water heater. The U. S. Bureau of Standards reports that a build up of ¼” of scale inside of the water heater can waste a significant amount of energy. A study conducted by New Mexico State University found that in electric water heaters, using soft water resulted in a 21.7% savings in energy. With gas-fired units, the energy saving was 29.5%. Given that water heaters account for approximately 20% of energy usage in the average household, the use of a water softener could reduce energy costs significantly.
There are many firms that market water softeners or whole house water treatment systems. They will be happy to do a free test of your drinking water and provide you with an analysis of the results.
