What is the White Crust Around My Shower Head?
The white crust that builds up around showerheads and faucet spouts is hard water mineral deposits.
What is Hard Water?
Hard water is simply water with a high content of mineral deposits, mainly calcium and magnesium. The deposits are suspended in water and can cause buildup on various plumbing system components. The built-up mineral deposits can cause failures in appliances, plumbing materials, and equipment.
How To Deal With Hard Water
The most common solution to combat hard water is the use of a water softening system. Water conditioners and descalers also help reverse the negative effects of hard water.
Water Softeners
Water softeners use an ion exchange process to trade hardness ions with soft ions. The calcium and magnesium ions are removed from the water in exchange for sodium or potassium ions. This process happens with an ion exchange resin inside the water softener system.
Water softeners help protect appliances, plumbing materials, and equipment by eliminating scale buildup. They reduce dry skin, hair, and nails and increase the performance of soaps and shampoos. Softeners can leave shower glass, plumbing fixtures, and dishes spot-free.
Water Conditioners & Descaling Systems
Water conditioners and descaling systems provide similar benefits to water softening systems. These systems significantly reduce or eliminate scale build-up by binding hard water ions together. When the ions are bound together they do not build upon various plumbing system components. Systems typically consist of multiple stages of water treatment.
It is important to know the chemistry of your local water supply when considering any type of water treatment for your home. In most cases, it is beneficial to have some kind of water treatment system installed at your home’s main water supply.
How to Remove Calcium From Your Showerhead
If you are looking for ways to remove excess buildup from your showerheads, there are a couple of steps that you can take.
Here is a step-by-step approach:
- Disconnect the showerhead: Disconnect the showerhead by unscrewing the shower arm nut. A wrench might be the best tool to use for this.
- Rinse the showerhead: Next, you want to rinse the debris mineral deposits by running blasting water over the showerhead.
- Dismantle and clean: You may use a toothpick to safely clean out additional deposits on the showerhead. This will help to break down the calcium deposits.
- Use distilled vinegar: The last step is to soak the showerhead parts in distilled vinegar overnight. Distilled white vinegar is a great home remedy to help remove excess scale buildup on showerheads, faucet sprayers, and faucet spouts.
Showerheads may spray unevenly because the tiny holes have become plugged up with hard water mineral deposits. To remove these deposits you can soak the showerhead in white vinegar.
Securing a plastic bag with distilled white vinegar around the showerhead and leaving it to soak will help break down these mineral deposits for easy cleaning. You can take an old toothbrush or sponge to scrub away the mineral deposits to allow better water flow.
At Focus Plumbing, we can help take care of any plumbing issue that you are faced with. Take a look at our plumbing services today!
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