At WaterBird Home Water Solutions, we have a core belief: water is life; treat it right. One of our main missions is to educate homeowners about water quality in Central Ohio. Even if your tap water looks crystal clear, sediment is likely present. Sediment is often harmless, but some forms of it can negatively affect your household’s health and plumbing.
Sediment Types
Water sediment refers to solid particles that originate from natural processes, such as erosion and human activities. Organic sediment doesn’t generally pose a direct health threat, but it can damage your plumbing system and appliances.
Minerals
Minerals occur naturally in water. Humans need minerals in our water for a healthy balance. Those minerals get there as water flows over rocks and through soil, and they’re present in both well and municipal systems. Too many dissolved minerals in your water cause hardness, which can damage your home over time.
Rust
Rust can be present in any water supply. This can occur when water has a high level of iron, which can then oxidize and form rust. Public and private water systems can have corroded components that add rust to the water. Rust can also originate within a home. Pipes and fixtures can corrode over time due to exposure to water, air, electricity, and even bacteria.
Debris
Some debris in your drinking water is normal, including dirt, silt, clay, and heavy metals. Public systems usually eliminate much of this debris before the water reaches you. High levels are more common in well systems and can impact clarity, texture, taste, and smell. Elevated levels of certain debris can have a negative health effect.
Pathogens
Pathogens can be present in your water as well. That includes viruses and bacteria, which other types of sediment can harbor. A common problem in drinking water is cysts, which are one-celled organisms. Cryptosporidium, for instance, can cause diarrheal illness while giardia lamblia can cause more serious intestinal infections.
Chemicals and Gases
Sediment can trap chemicals and gas within your water. Hydrogen sulfide may be present in your water heater due to bacteria. It is generally harmless but gives water a rotten egg smell and taste. There are also chemicals and gases, such as volatile organic compounds, that are potentially toxic. High levels of certain chemicals, such as chlorine, can accelerate the process of pipes and fixtures corroding.
Regular Water Quality Testing
Our team encourages all homeowners, whether they have a well or municipal water, to schedule annual water quality testing. We provide comprehensive testing at no charge and without obligation. It can reveal any potential issues that could affect your health or plumbing. We also recommend ongoing testing. That’s because your water quality can change over the years due to both external and internal factors.
Water Hardness and Limescale
A common issue in Central Ohio is water hardness. This occurs due to the local geography, which results in abundant calcium, magnesium, and other chemicals. The soluble calcium bicarbonate in water can transform into insoluble calcium carbonate deposits, commonly called limescale. Over time, scale affects appliances, pipes, and fixtures in various ways. It costs the average household hundreds annually, which is why the Department of Energy recommends a water softener for all homes.
The hardness of your water depends on numerous factors, including whether you have a well system. Our team will provide you with an exact measurement during your water quality test. The U.S. Geological Survey classifies water hardness as follows:
- Soft: 0-60 milligrams per liter (mg/L) as calcium carbonate
- Moderately hard: 61-120 mg/L
- Hard: 121-180 mg/L
- Very hard: More than 180 mg/L
Even moderately hard water is a concern. You’ll at least want to provide added protection for your water-using appliances, such as water heaters, dishwashers, and washing machines. With higher levels, a whole-house water softener is highly recommended. Otherwise, limescale can build up in pipes, lowering water pressure and promoting corrosion.
Soap Scum
Scale can adhere to drain pipe walls as well. It will chemically react with the detergents that flow down your drain and lead to soap scum. That scum can harden and exacerbate the buildup within the drain. This can make you more prone to drain and sewer clogs.
Anti-Scale Devices
There are two core approaches to water softening in the home: salt-based and template-assisted crystallization (TAC). What TAC does is change the calcium carbonate chemically so it can transition as easily from soluble to insoluble. The industry often uses this technique for local anti-scale devices that protect water heaters, boilers, and other appliances.
Whole-Home Water Softeners
A salt-based approach is often more practical for home-wide solutions. This is the best way to protect all your pipes, fixtures, and appliances. It works by exchanging the calcium and magnesium in your water with either sodium or potassium chloride. These systems achieve this exchange with a tank filled with salt-saturated resin beads. We install both single- and dual-tank systems. Single-tank systems must go offline to recharge the beads, typically for a couple of hours in the middle of the night. Dual-tank systems never have to go offline. They can regenerate one tank while they continue to soften with the other.
Point-of-Use and Point-of-Entry Water Filters
If you want to eliminate sediment from the water you drink and cook with, we recommend a water filter. There are two notable types: point-of-use (POU) and point-of-entry (POE). POU systems, such as countertop canister filters, provide filtered water from a particular tap or a series of taps. POE systems operate between the main water line and the home’s plumbing system. That allows them to provide clean water throughout the home.
Traditional water filters tend to provide both mechanical and adsorptive filtration. Prefilters trap the largest particles and are often imperative for well systems. Sediment filters can trap over 99% of particulates. Absolute minimum pore size is an excellent gauge of a sediment filter. The smaller that size, the more it can filter, including cysts. Most filters use activated carbon to improve taste and smell and to neutralize gases and chemicals.
Whole-House Water Purifiers
We also install water treatment systems that clean water in ways beyond mechanical and adsorptive filtration. There are systems with germicidal lights that neutralize over 99% of pathogens. Some systems also have conditioning stages, such as to increase or decrease pH.
Reverse Osmosis Systems
Reverse osmosis (RO) systems are a specialized type of water purifier that reverses natural water movement. This allows it to force water through a semi-permeable membrane that removes over 99% of all substances. That includes sediment, water hardness, and pathogens. RO is a highly effective option for single- and multi-tap POU installations. Systems for the home generally don’t provide enough water volume for whole-house configurations.
Improve Your Water Quality in Central Ohio
WaterBird Home Water Solutions is a family-owned and -operated company located in Bellville, OH. Our team values high-quality water solutions, integrity, honest communication, and exceptional service. We provide free water testing to educate our customers, not to upsell them. Our experts install and service many water quality solutions, including water softeners, water purifiers, and RO systems. We even offer a 24/7 emergency answering service because we know that water quality issues don’t wait for business hours. Call today or contact us online with any questions and to schedule your free water quality test.
