If your water comes from a well, you want to make sure the water that comes from your well is clean, and you might be curious about whether you have hard water or soft water in your well. If you decide to test your well water on your own, there are a few key points you need to remember.
Well water is likely to be hard if it has not gone through any sort of cleaning process, but it is possible for the water coming from your well to be naturally soft. Where you are located, how far underground your well is located, and local geology can all have an impact on whether your well produces hard water or soft water.
What should you expect to come from your well, and how can you soften your water if you have hard water coming from your well?
Well Water Is Usually Hard
As a rule of thumb, you should expect your well water to be hard. In fact, the water source your city uses is probably hard as well.
Of course, there is no guarantee that the water that comes from your well is hard. There is a chance that it might be soft, which is why you might want to get a test kit that can give you some more information about what is present in the water that comes from your well. Use a water test kit to test the water coming from your water table.
What Determines Whether My Well Water Is Hard or Soft?
There are lots of factors that determine whether your well water is hard or soft, but these factors generally fall into two categories. They include where your water comes from and the geology in your local area.
The Water Source
The first factor is your water source. This is where your well has been dug. In general, if your well is relatively deep, you should expect your water to be hard. On the other hand, if your well is pretty shallow, your water may be softer.
If you get your water from a source that is deep underground, the water has gone through many layers of rocks and sediment before it gets deposited in the aquifer. Along the way, the water is going to pick up a lot of minerals, such as calcium and magnesium, that will increase its hardness level. Then, when you pull it out of the aquifer, you pull mineral dense water, so the water is pretty hard.
Again, it is important for you to test your water to see if it is hard. Just because your well is deep doesn’t necessarily mean it will be filled with hard water, and just because your well as shallow doesn’t mean that the water will be soft.
The Local Geology
When we are talking about the geology in your local area, we are referring to the rocks you can find in your region. For example, if you have a lot of sedimentary rocks in your area, including limestone and sandstone, you have rocks that contain a lot of water-soluble minerals. This means that the water will pick up a lot more calcium and magnesium as it goes through the earth into the aquifer below. This means that the water will be relatively hard.
On the other hand, you may have a lot of igneous rocks in the area, such as granite. These types of rocks have relatively low mineral content levels, meaning that your water is more likely to be softer in comparison.
These two factors will work together to determine whether you have hard or soft water in your well. While you can use many of the factors above as a rule of thumb, it is always a good idea to get a test kit to see exactly what your hardness level is.
How Do You Know if Your Well Has Hard Water?
So, how can you figure out if your well has hard water? There are a few signs you might notice throughout your house that could tell you that your well has hard water in it. Some of the most common signs include:
- You Have Soap Scum: If you find that you have a lot of soap scum building up on your body during a shower, it could be a sign that you have hard water. You may also notice that your skin is a bit dry, your hair is a bit crinkly, and you have more dandruff than usual.
- You Have Mineral Deposits: You may also notice that you have mineral deposits scattered throughout your water fixtures and plumbing. This is typically called limescale, and it may leave behind some streets and white stains on your various faucets and appliances.
- Odd Taste: If you notice that your water has an odd taste, it could be a sign that you have hard water in your well. Some people even say that their drinking water tastes a bit metallic when the water is hard.
- Lack of Water Pressure: Are you frustrated because your water pressure is a bit low? This could be coming from excessive scale build-up inside your pipes. This scale can lead to obstructions throughout your plumbing system, so you do not get as much water coming through your pipes as you usually do (there could also be a problem with your pump that is unrelated).
- A Lack of Lather: You may even have a hard time washing your body, dishes, and laundry because your soap does not lather the way it usually does. All of the extra minerals in your water supply can get in the way of the detergent, meaning that your dishes, body, and clothes might stay dirty.
If you want to fix this problem, you need to find a water softener. You should always start by getting a test kit to figure out exactly how hard your water is.
Use a Water Softener To Soften Your Well Water
Once you have a good understanding of your hardness level, you can get a water softener to soften your well water. A water softener is an efficient device that will remove excess calcium and magnesium from your water supply, replacing it with sodium instead.
A water softener is generally installed at the point where water enters your home. Then, by the time your well water reaches any of the appliances in your home, it has gone through a water softener, where excess calcium and magnesium have been removed, giving you soft water. If you are looking for the best water softener on the market, look no further than DROP.
Remove Dissolved Minerals With the Best Water Softeners From DROP
At DROP, we have plenty of choices if you are looking for the best water softener to meet your needs, and our team would be happy to help you find the right filtration system as well. We have plenty of water filtration systems from which to choose, and we can help you find the right water filtration system to meet your needs. Reach out to us today to learn more about the products we have available to improve your water quality.
