How to soften water for domestic needs?

Tap water is often too hard, which causes a lot of problems, starting with an unpleasant taste and ending with the failure of household appliances and utensils, in which such a liquid is heated. What to do in such cases? How to soften water at home?

First of all, it is necessary to understand what the hard water is and why it needs to be softened. It is characterized by a high content of magnesium and calcium salts. Groundwater is abundant in them during the passage through layers of calcareous rocks. Of course, such water does not pose any particular problems to the health of the body, but it causes a lot of inconveniences in the everyday plan:

• Significantly shortens the life of clothing, as it violates its color and adversely affects the structure of tissues.
• Reduces the effectiveness of soaps and detergents.
• Droplets of hard water leave behind whitish circles on glassware.
• Hair, washed in hard water, acquire excessive fragility and become like a haystack.
• It is unpleasant to swim and wash in it.
• On heating elements of household appliances and on the walls of the kettle and pots, a thick layer of scale is formed over time.

In order to prevent such problems, it is necessary to know how to soften water for domestic needs. There are several basic ways to combat this problem.

Devices on a magnetic basis. Manufacturers of such devices assure that this is a wonderful non-chemical method, which allows to soften to a considerable extent hard water. For the impact, a magnetic field is used, for which an installation of a pair of magnets is made. It is understood that this helps to remove various impurities from the liquid, as well as magnesium and calcium ions. Magnets should be located outside on the water pipe.

In fact, such softeners can hardly be considered an effective remedy. The only place where they are appropriate are the pipes located in the boiler rooms, since under the influence of the magnetic field the deposits in them become more friable and they are easier to remove.

Nozzles for shower. Producers argue that they saturate the water with vitamin C, flavor it, remove residual chlorine and soften it. They also attribute to their devices a truly fantastic property, in particular - a reduction in the water flow by half due to the fact that the design provides for a reduction in spatter. They also promise to increase the speed and pressure of water almost twofold.

It is clear that such a tool is unlikely to cope with the task, but at least it does not hurt.

Jug filters. They are a plastic container. Inside the filter element is placed. This method of cleaning and softening water is the simplest and cheapest. The only "but" is that you need to periodically change the cartridge for more efficient filter operation. Specially for softening water, devices based on activated carbon have been developed.

Ion-exchange softeners. As many people know, because of hard water, washing machines and dishwashers most often fail. How to soften the water for them? It is recommended to use ion-exchange devices. Devices of this type are two tanks. In one there is an ion-exchange resin, and in the second a salt solution. First, water passes through the first tank with resin, whereupon the resin ions react with the magnesium and calcium salts, removing them. Then the water is run through the second (with saline solution), where the lack of ions is replaced by sodium ions. Such a magnetic exchange makes it possible to soften the hardness of water.

Osmosis reverse action. It is considered the most reliable way to solve the problem of "how to soften water?". This method is based on the property of water, through which it passes through a semipermeable membrane from a concentrated solution to a less concentrated one under the influence of pressure, which exceeds the osmotic difference for each solution. This allows to trap impurities in the solution. The quality of the water obtained is high enough and approaches as much as possible to clean water.

The disadvantage of this system is that it removes not only harmful impurities, but also useful ones.

Soothing salts. The use of such a tool is an indispensable condition for using many dishwashers. It does not allow scum to spoil the mechanism of the dishwasher and is released in the form of tablets. The amount of the product is directly dependent on the hardness of the water. Most devices have a built-in indicator that tells when it's time to add salt.

The last way to solve the question "how to soften hard water?" Is thermal. It involves distillation, heating or freezing of water. It is believed that the optimal means in the struggle for the purity and usefulness of the liquid is thawed water. Make it very easy. To do this, you need to take water and pour into a wide container, for example, in a pan. Put it in the cold or put it in the freezer. When a small layer of ice forms on top, it is removed, since "solid" harmful substances are concentrated in it. The remaining water is continued to be frozen. When most of it freezes, you need to remove the ice, and pour out the remainders. Then the mass gradually melts and pure, soft water is obtained.

Now that you know how to soften the water, you will only have to choose the optimum remedy for yourself, and never again suffer from its increased rigidity.