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Water quality testing and softening is usually associated with drinking water. However, if you manage a manufacturing facility, the quality of the water is just as important for any machines that need to use that water. Even if you aren't drinking it, hard water can still create issues for machines, pipes, and more, leading to more repair costs and downtime for the machinery.

Clogs and Slowdowns

Hard water leaves more of a mineralized residue called scale. This is the same stuff you see deposited on your drinking glasses after you wash them in hard water, but in industrial applications, the scale can build up quickly and clog pipes or constrict water flow. It isn't always easy to clean scale out of pipes or off fragile machinery. It's much easier to add a water softener to your water supply instead and prevent the problem from literally building up in the first place.

Mineral Types

If the water you're using contains a lot of magnesium, calcium, and other minerals, those could interact with other chemicals used in your facility's processes. Whether you're manufacturing something or cleaning/lubricating something, you don't need extra chemical reactions messing things up. Even if all that's happening is a precipitate is forming, that can be less than optimal and contribute to the clogging problem.

Soap Residue

If the water in your facility is hard, it will be more difficult to get rid of soap residue when cleaning off machinery and other items. Items may seem clean at first, but you'll see a layer of soap scum build up and interfere with the machinery.

Installing a water softener is one of the cheaper and faster ways to get soft water into the facility. You'll still have to deal with clogs or slowing in pipes, left over from when the water was still hard. But once you clean those out, you may see your machinery become much more efficient and possibly see your water bills go down because people won't feel the need to try to wash their hands more and more to get rid of that soapy feeling.

Talk to water softener and water testing representatives to see what they look for and how they have dealt with similar problems in the past. The costs of the testing and water softener are much easier to absorb in the long run than the costs of continually repairing pipes and machinery. For more information, contact a business such as Hague Quality Water of Kansas City Inc.