Hard water, which is water that has a high mineral content, is a plague on the homes and the clothes of the people who happen to live in a hard water area. Everything that hard water touches can become tainted with horrible, gritty, mineral deposits, which can build up and cause stains.
Fortunately, if you are suffering the horrors of hard water, but you don’t want to use harsh chemical lime scale removers to get rid of hard water stains, there are a number of things you can do.
Perhaps, the most convenient way to rid yourself of the hard water problem is to install a water softener system which will treat all of the hard water coming into your home before it can cause any problem. In the meantime, these natural hard water stain removal remedies may prove useful:
Taps
To remove hard water stains from taps, simply peel a lemon and scrub the faucet with the rind. Once you have done this, soak a few paper towels in white vinegar and place them over the taps. Leave for one hour, remove and rinse. Your taps will look as good as new!
Showers
The shower head can be a particular problem when it comes to limescale build up, but it is actually very easy to clean it using just vinegar and water. Simply take down your showerhead and submerge it in white vinegar for a few hours before rinsing with water. Do this once a week, and you’ll never have a staining issue again.
Shower Doors
If you have a shower with glass doors and you live in a hard water area, you are probably driven crazy by streaks on a regular basis. Again, white vinegar is your friend. Simply pour a little white vinegar into a spray bottle and apply to your shower door before wiping with a cloth. Alternatively, you can apply a glass of white wine to the area.
Dishwashers
If you allow hard water deposits to build up in your dishwasher, it won’t be long until you’re back to washing by hand. To avoid the extra work, simply add a cup of white vinegar to the empty dishwasher and let it run one cycle.
Toilets
If hard water is leaving unsightly marks on your toilet bowl, head to the fridge and pick up a can of cola. Pour the cola into the bowl wait one hour and flush. Of course, you could also use a couple of cup of trusty white vinegar if you prefer.
Kettles and Coffee Makers
There’s nothing worse than making a nice cup of homemade coffee only to find out that the taste has been tainted by the buildup of mineral deposits. In order to avoid such a frustrating situation from developing, empty your kettle or coffee machine after every use and once a week, fill the water reservoir up with vinegar and in the case of a kettle, leave for one hour before rinsing. If you are cleaning a coffee machine, after you put the vinegar in, you should run the machine for one cycle empty and run two further cycles with water.