Spilt some irish tap water and when it dried left white mineral behind

armabelle

We have a water softner at home and I accidently spilt some water and never cleaned it right away. When the water evaporated left a white salt-like mineral behind. Is this because of the water softner and why do they say it is safe to drink softened water if that is what is inside it?

whoopsadoodles

chemtrails

pwurple

Do you know what water softening is?
It's adding minerals to water to give it a taste. Calcium and magnesium etc. A quick google will enlighten you.

Pappacharlie

Did you know that people with blood pressure, heart conditions or pregnant ladies are advised not to drink softened water. Softened water should no be used for preparation babies bottles either.For this reason it is good practise to leave the cold water tap at the kitchen sink unsoftened.

whoopsadoodles

Pappacharlie wrote: »

Did you know that people with blood pressure

we're all fcuked so....

gctest50

armabelle wrote: »

We have a water softner at home and I accidently spilt some water and never cleaned it right away. When the water evaporated left a white salt-like mineral behind. Is this because of the water softner and why do they say it is safe to drink softened water if that is what is inside it?

It's salt more or less - the water softener removes calcium, magnesium etc and replaces it with sodium

You'd need to get it tested - too much sodium in yer diet and you'll die prematurely

steddyeddy

The fact you require a water softner indicates that there's a predisposition to hard water in your area. It's most likely calcium or magnesium carbonate.

The Backwards Man

Minerals are good for you




When they're in water.



And aren't lead

biko

Did you taste it OP?
Was it salt?

Maximus Alexander

armabelle wrote: »

We have a water softner at home and I accidently spilt some water and never cleaned it right away. When the water evaporated left a white salt-like mineral behind. Is this because of the water softner and why do they say it is safe to drink softened water if that is what is inside it?

If what is what is inside it? Some undefined substance? Probably because there are lots of substances that are safe to ingest and whatever it is, is one of them.

midnight city

It might also have been a floor cleaner that the water brought out of the floor and left on the surface when it evaporated off.

diomed

Pigeons fly over reservoirs occasionally.

corner of hells

That's where the pregnant ladies come from , after the " we're all ****ed " .

mud

Lime?

Losty Dublin

gctest50 wrote: »

It's salt more or less - the water softener removes calcium, magnesium etc and replaces it with sodium

You'd need to get it tested - too much sodium in yer diet and you'll die prematurely

You'd need to drink around 7-800 litres of water a day to exceed your recommended sodium intake levels. Your bladder would explode before your heart at that rate of intake.

RobertKK

You get what you pay for.

sibergoth

the stink of bleach off the water is what freaks me out.. i run everything through a brita filter and it seems to do the trick.. no more tea tasting like swimming pools...

The flying mouse

Shouldn't mix cocaine with water, everyone knows this or should ...

ScumLord

Losty Dublin wrote: »

You'd need to drink around 7-800 litres of water a day to exceed your recommended sodium intake levels. Your bladder would explode before your heart at that rate of intake.

YOu'd be long dead from water intoxication before your bladder burst. It doesn't take much, drinking too much water in one sitting can cause brain damage, there's probably no reason to drink more than 3 litres in a day.

Omackeral

Stop being a little b*tch and just snort it.

cbyrd

Could be limescale (calcium carbonate) same stuff that builds up in you kettle and pipes.
I live in a hard water area and if you leave water in a glass for a day it'll leave a chalky scum on the glass.. yum, also the chlorine smell is muckscusting! I have a kangen filter for the drinking water but when the shower or bath is used the place smells like a swimming pool.

Little CuChulainn

Losty Dublin wrote: »

You'd need to drink around 7-800 litres of water a day to exceed your recommended sodium intake levels. Your bladder would explode before your heart at that rate of intake.

So you're saying there's a chance

The water is very hard where my parents live, so they have a big watersoftener in the garage. The water is quite soft anyway where I live so I was surprised at the difference it made after a couple of weeks in my parents. I had skin as soft as a babys bottom and hair as shiny and soft as a soft shiny thing.

They still used a filter for drinking water all the same.

Akrasia

ScumLord wrote: »

YOu'd be long dead from water intoxication before your bladder burst. It doesn't take much, drinking too much water in one sitting can cause brain damage, there's probably no reason to drink more than 3 litres in a day.

Unless you're mixing your water with fermented wheat hops or barley

Akrasia

I grew up with water from our own spring. Full of calcium so the kettles and washing machines didn't last, but it tasted amazing.

fred funk }{

RO filter all the way.

XavierBoThang

I live near the city centre in Dublin. Always very sensitive towards the taste of water out of a tap. Have bought bottled water for 2 years, it won't change.

M5

Had same problem with very hard water. Required industrial sized softener and left the water starting salty. Used a 150 euro reverse osmosis system with remineralisation filter to add back taste post reverse osmosis. Pm me if you want links

Pinch Flat

It's the mind control drug that the CIA put in our water. Wouldn't touch it OP. Make sure you get bottled water.

jimmy blevins

Water softeners work by replacing the calcium with sodium ions.

Rgb.ie

armabelle

steddyeddy wrote: »

The fact you require a water softner indicates that there's a predisposition to hard water in your area. It's most likely calcium or magnesium carbonate.

Thanks, it is indeed hard water. Is magnesium what causes limescale?

armabelle

biko wrote: »

Did you taste it OP?
Was it salt?

never tasted it but when I shower the water kinda feels like it did when I swam in salt pools in the Atacama desert so I am guessing that it might be salt and when I fill up the brine tank it is with salt pellets. But I thought it was a bit excessive that a small puddle of the stuff would leave behind such a lot of white salt-like mineral on the counter top.

armabelle

midnight city wrote: »

It might also have been a floor cleaner that the water brought out of the floor and left on the surface when it evaporated off.

isn't life too short to come into forums, think of "clever" lines and then write stuff like this? I can't see the enjoyment personally

armabelle

mud wrote: »

Lime?

well technically softened water should be lime-free shouldn't it?

armabelle

Losty Dublin wrote: »

You'd need to drink around 7-800 litres of water a day to exceed your recommended sodium intake levels. Your bladder would explode before your heart at that rate of intake.

and how do you know how much sodium is in the water in my home?

ScumLord

armabelle wrote: »

Thanks, it is indeed hard water. Is magnesium what causes limescale?

I always figured lime scale is just lime. I don't think you can chemically remove lime from the water, just change it into something else that isn't as obvious.

armabelle

sibergoth wrote: »

the stink of bleach off the water is what freaks me out.. i run everything through a brita filter and it seems to do the trick.. no more tea tasting like swimming pools...

I also have a brita filter and run the hard water into the filter for drinking and making tea. Do those things seriously reduce limescale because I read that they don't even though they claim too.

armabelle

The flying mouse wrote: »

Shouldn't mix cocaine with water, everyone knows this or should ...

it actually looked like cocaine, but so does salt

armabelle

cbyrd wrote: »

Could be limescale (calcium carbonate) same stuff that builds up in you kettle and pipes.
I live in a hard water area and if you leave water in a glass for a day it'll leave a chalky scum on the glass.. yum, also the chlorine smell is muckscusting! I have a kangen filter for the drinking water but when the shower or bath is used the place smells like a swimming pool.

but the softner is supposed to remove that

armabelle

Pinch Flat wrote: »

It's the mind control drug that the CIA put in our water. Wouldn't touch it OP. Make sure you get bottled water.

bottled is bad stuff, you know Tesco sells Ashbeck mineral water in 5 litres and it supposedly comes from the UK. Do you know how much they sell that for in Midlands where I live? 1.20 euro. Does someone else find this rather uncanny and a little bit against the basic economic principles of import export? To transport a big heavy bottle full of water and only charge 1.20 for it? Be afraid, be very afraid of bottled water.
FYI, I did send them an email about it, never heard back.

armabelle

jimmy blevins wrote: »

Water softeners work by replacing the calcium with sodium ions.

so are those sodium ions what got left over from the spill? is this same as salt?

armabelle

ScumLord wrote: »

I always figured lime scale is just lime. I don't think you can chemically remove lime from the water, just change it into something else that isn't as obvious.

The Brita filter jug claims to remove limescale. Is this BS?

railer201

armabelle wrote: »

The Brita filter jug claims to remove limescale. Is this BS?

It does remove limescale ok., not all but the vast majority of it.

railer201

ScumLord wrote: »

I always figured lime scale is just lime. I don't think you can chemically remove lime from the water, just change it into something else that isn't as obvious.

Its basically a salt in solution, but not the normal table salt we think of, but limestone in the same ground up form. It gets dragged up in solution from limestone aquifers which are underground reservoirs and passages in the limestone rock.

railer201

armabelle wrote: »

so are those sodium ions what got left over from the spill? is this same as salt?

From what I understand harmless quantities of sodium (salt) replace the calcium carbonate (limescale) in the tap water. This may be what you're looking at. Limescale is more of a light brown colour.

whoopsadoodles

armabelle wrote: »

bottled is bad stuff, you know Tesco sells Ashbeck mineral water in 5 litres and it supposedly comes from the UK. Do you know how much they sell that for in Midlands where I live? 1.20 euro. Does someone else find this rather uncanny and a little bit against the basic economic principles of import export? To transport a big heavy bottle full of water and only charge 1.20 for it? Be afraid, be very afraid of bottled water.
FYI, I did send them an email about it, never heard back.

sibergoth

armabelle wrote: »

I also have a brita filter and run the hard water into the filter for drinking and making tea. Do those things seriously reduce limescale because I read that they don't even though they claim too.

i don't think I live in a limescale area (kettle isn't full of white flakes) so not sure...

but i wouldn't drink tap water without filtering it now. the change is very noticeable.

Tap water from the tap tastes like sh1te.
Filtered through the Brita and its just normal water.

I buy a 12 pack of filters from amazon for about 30 odd euro.. lasts a whole year. how bad?

armabelle

jimmy blevins wrote: »

Water softeners work by replacing the calcium with sodium ions.

do you know about this stuff or did you copy and paste? I have a question if you don't mind that I can't find the answer to and yours might be the right brain to pick. If I put normal table salt (sodium chloride) into my brine tank it apparently has sodium that removes the magnesium and calcium from the hard water in my area and turns it into soft water. However, I have read that the sodium that ends up in your soft water is not actually sodium chloride but sodium bicarbonate which is where I get confused. Why, if I put table salt in the brine tank, does it leave sodium bicarbonate in my soft water?

could someone smarter than me out there, please chime in on this one?

armabelle

pwurple wrote: »

Do you know what water softening is?
It's adding minerals to water to give it a taste. Calcium and magnesium etc. A quick google will enlighten you.

ehm no

armabelle

gctest50 wrote: »

It's salt more or less - the water softener removes calcium, magnesium etc and replaces it with sodium

You'd need to get it tested - too much sodium in yer diet and you'll die prematurely

Yes! I now realize that it is sodium. Sodium Bicarbonate in fact. But why does it become sodium bicarbonate if the salt I put in is Sodium chloride?