What Can I Use to Reduce Scale in the Dishwasher?

How Hard Water is Softened

• The standard process for converting mineral-rich hard water to soft water is ion-exchange filtration. Water passes through a filter containing resin beads coated with salts and charged to attract the mineral ions most responsible for hard water: calcium and magnesium. As these ions are removed by the charged beads, they are replaced by sodium or potassium ions.

Attacking the Whole Water Problem

• In some houses, hard water is so chemically laden that it makes cleaning, cooking and laundry difficult in addition to dishwashing. In such a situation, installing a whole-house softening system may be the best solution. This usually involves the expense of hiring a professional.

A Mid-Sized Solution

• Some homeowners prefer to attach ion-exchange softeners only to water lines used for cooking and drinking. Isolating the water treatment plan to your kitchen should help resolve scale issues with the dishwasher. Resin beads must be recharged when fully loaded. Automatic and semi-automatic units need only occasional monitoring to be certain they are functioning correctly.

Tips for Success

• Knowing that you have hard water is only part of the information you need to make an educated decision about a water softener. Contact your local water department or district to find out how to get your water chemically tested. Other minerals, such as iron and manganese, can affect water quality and performance. Reducing their presence in water requires different technology. You will also learn whether you need to be concerned about bacterial or heavy-metal content when you have your water tested. Further, when choosing a water-softener, remember that sodium-ion-exchange units may be a poor choice if a member of your household is on a sodium-restricted diet. Search out units using potassium-ion-exchange instead.