Americans have endured the effects of hard water in their homes, afraid to give up what they perceived to be the health benefits of the minerals in the water. However, recent studies done by the Water Quality Association, show that calcium and magnesium—the two minerals which make water “hard’—might actually have some adverse effects on the foods we eat and the beverages we drink. First, hardness minerals can detract from the taste of the water, as well as any beverage or food made with water, such ascoffee, concentrated juice, soup or even gelatin. Second, some foods, especially fresh vegetables, don’t cook as well or taste as good when prepared with hard water, because the calcium combines with a protein in vegetable skins, making them tough and sometimes shriveled. Third, hard water can be hard on your skin and hair, making them dry and unhealthy looking. That’s because a sticky residue forms on skin and hair when hardness minerals in the water combine with soap. Yet another issue is the corrosive nature of water. In the past, many believed that hard water was less corrosive than soft water, meaning that it was less likely to corrode plumbing and leach contaminants like copper and lead into the water. However, in the summer of 1996, the Environmental Protection Agency concluded that softened water “does not increase lead or copper leaching in household plumbing systems.” “Soft” cell: Removing minerals from a home’s water supply can help improve the taste of food and makeappliances last longer. In addition, leading manufacturers of water treatment equipment, such as Kinetico Incorporated, point out that soft water will actually increase the service life of household plumbing, as well as major home appliances, because it keeps lime curd and scale from building up inside pipes and around moving parts. Kinetico’s water softeners provide around-the-clock protection since they’re non-electric and feature a twin-tank design. There are no electrical components to malfunction from humidity or power outages. These softeners also clean themselves on demand—rather than at a pre-set interval—so the systems use as much as 50 percent less water and regenerant. For more information about the water in your home, call Kinetico at 1-800-944-WATER to request the free Consumer’s Guide to Better Water. Or visit the Web site at www.kinetico.com.
