Hard water interferes with almost every cleaning task, from laundering and dishwashing to bathing and personal grooming:

• Clothes laundered in hard water may look dingy and feel harsh and scratchy.
• Dishes and glasses may be spotted when dry.
• Hard water may cause a film on glass shower doors, shower walls, bathtubs, sinks, taps, etc.
• Hair washed in hard water may feel sticky and look dull.
• Heated hard water forms a scale of calcium and magnesium minerals that can contribute to the inefficient operation or failure and replacement of water-using appliances.
• Hard water also contributes to inefficient and costly operation of water-using appliances (i.e. increase in elecricity or gas bills).
• Pipes can become clogged with scale that reduces water flow and ultimately requires pipe replacement.

The amount of hardness minerals in water affects the amount of soap and detergent necessary for cleaning. Soap used in hard water combines with the minerals to form a sticky soap curd. Some synthetic detergents are less effective in hard water because the active ingredient is partially inactivated by hardness, even though it stays dissolved. Bathing with soap in hard water leaves a film of sticky soap curd on the skin. The film may prevent removal of soil and bacteria. Soap curd interferes with the return of skin to its normal, slightly acid condition, and may lead to irritation. Soap curd on hair may make it dull, lifeless and difficult to manage.