What Hard Water Actually Does to Your Home
How hard water damages plumbing, reduces appliance lifespan, and costs you money. and what the real solutions are.
Hard water is not a health risk. It is an economic one.
The calcium and magnesium in hard water are safe to drink. The problem is what they do to everything the water touches. Scale deposits accumulate inside pipes, reducing flow over time. Water heaters work harder to heat water through a layer of mineral buildup, increasing energy costs by 15-30%. Dishwashers and washing machines fail years earlier than their rated lifespan.
The visual signs. white spots on glass, film on shower doors, stiff laundry. are cosmetic annoyances. The real cost is invisible: the $200 water heater element that fails 3 years early, the $15/month in extra soap and detergent, the plumber visit for a clogged aerator.
How hardness is measured
Water hardness is measured in parts per million (PPM) of calcium carbonate, or in grains per gallon (GPG). One GPG equals 17.1 PPM. The USGS classifies water as follows: Soft (0-60 PPM), Moderately Hard (61-120 PPM), Hard (121-180 PPM), Very Hard (181+ PPM).
What removes hardness
Only two technologies address hard water: salt-based ion exchange softeners (which remove the minerals) and salt-free TAC conditioners (which crystallize the minerals so they can't form scale). These are fundamentally different approaches with different outcomes. See our softener vs filter guide to understand which one fits your situation.