How to Get Rid of Hard Water Stains in Your Home

So you’ve been told that your home has hard water, aka a lot of minerals. While this may not mean a whole lot to you right now, aside from your bar of soap not lathering very well, what will ultimately start to happen is that your sinks, showers, tubs, toilets, even the dishwasher will develop hard water stains. These dirty looking stains are build ups of calcium and magnesium in the water so they are not harmful, but boy are they tough to get rid of! Not only do hard water stains make it appear like you have dirty appliances, they are going to keep coming back until you correct the problem by getting a water softener to reduce the mineral content in your water.

One thing that many people have struggled with is finding the best cleaning agent to remove these mineral buildups. People generally start with their regular kitchen or bathroom cleaners and find that even putting a lot of muscle into it is not doing anything. So then they upgrade to cleaners like bleaches or commercial chemicals. And then still, no luck! But sometimes it is not about the strength of the chemical that determines how well it can clean. When it comes to hard water stains, white vinegar has really come to the rescue for many homeowners. And the best part, it’s a chemical free and green approach!

Here is a guide on how some people use vinegar to remove hard to clean mineral build up from their kitchen and bathroom appliances:

• Sinks – Fill a spray bottle with half white vinegar and half water. Spray the areas with hard water buildup and let it sit for a while. Take a sponge and scrub away the residue.
• Shower doors – Soak paper towels in white vinegar and place them on your glass shower doors. Leave the paper towels on the doors to sit. Remove paper towels and rinse well with water.
• Tubs – For really built up hard water stains, you may want to create a paste. Mix white vinegar and baking soda until a paste forms. Apply this paste to the tub and let it sit. Use an abrasive sponge to wipe away the hard water buildup.
• Toilet – Pour 1 or 2 cups of white vinegar into the toilet bowl. Let it sit overnight. Use an abrasive sponge to remove the buildup in the toilet bowl.
• Dishwasher – Start the dishwasher cycle (minus the dishes). Let the dishwasher fill up a bit and then open the door and add 1 or 2 cups of white vinegar. Finish the wash cycle.

As mentioned before, just getting rid of the mineral buildup will not last long until you have the plumbing work done to actually get rid of the hard water. Water softening systems are the way to go for this! What are they? In a nutshell, water softening systems will reverse the hard water. So the calcium and magnesium will will be replaced with sodium or potassium in order to reduce the ‘hardness’ of the water. Soap will lather and hard water stains will no longer be an issue! Just contact your local plumbing professional to ask about the installation of a water softening system. There are options available at home improvement stores, but unless you really know about your home’s plumbing system, why not just leave it to the pros?

If you are ready to have a water softening system installed in your Pennsylvania home, make sure to contact the PA pluming pros at Moyer Indoor | Outdoor today!