What hard water really costs a West Midlands household

Hard water is not a health problem, but it does cost money. Most of that cost is hidden, because it arrives as slightly higher bills and appliances that give up a little earlier. Here is where it goes and how to judge what it means for your home.

How hard is your water?

Hardness varies a lot across the West Midlands, even between neighbouring towns, because it depends on where each area’s water comes from. Water drawn from underground sources tends to be harder than water from upland reservoirs.

Do not rely on what a neighbour in another town tells you. Your water supplier publishes hardness by postcode on its website, so that is the place to check. Most homes in this region are served by Severn Trent or South Staffs Water.

Your heating and hot water

Limescale forms fastest where water is heated. A layer on a boiler’s heat exchanger or a hot water cylinder’s element acts as insulation, so more energy is needed to heat the same water. The effect builds up over time, which is why it is easy to miss.

Appliances

Washing machines, dishwashers, kettles and coffee machines all heat water, so they all collect scale. It clogs small pipes and valves and coats heating elements, and that tends to shorten their working life. A service or a descale can help, but it treats the symptom.

Soap and detergent

Hard water reacts with soap and stops it lathering properly, which leaves that familiar scum on shower screens. To get the same result you tend to use more washing powder, dishwasher tablets, shampoo and cleaning products, and a lot more limescale remover.

Working out your own numbers

No two households are the same, so we would rather show you how to estimate it than quote a single figure. Add up the following for a year:

• What you spend on limescale removers, descalers and dishwasher salt.
• The share of your detergent and cleaning spend you think you could save.
• Any repairs or replacements caused by scale, such as a failed element or a descaled boiler.
• A small allowance for the extra energy used to heat water.

Compare that with what a softener would cost you, spread across the years you expect to have it, plus the salt it uses each year.

What you can do about it

A water softener removes the minerals that cause scale, so it deals with all of the above at the source. It is worth looking at if your water is hard, you own your home and you plan to stay for a while. Smaller options, such as a scale inhibitor or a filter jug for the kettle, cost less but do less.

Not sure if it would pay for itself? Call us on 0121 557 5532 and we will help you work it through.