What makes water hard or soft?

by The Brazos River Authority

The mineral content determines whether your elements water is either “hard” or “soft.”  The higher the mineral content, the harder the water. Minerals affecting water hardness can include calcium and magnesium bicarbonate or calcium sulfate, calcium chloride, magnesium sulfate and magnesium chloride.

 

The harder the water, the more soap is needed to make foam or lather. Hard water also produces scale in hot water pipes, heaters, boilers and other places where the water is kept at higher temperatures.

 

Soft water is considered to have no more than 60 milligrams of minerals per liter (mg/l). Moderately hard has 61 to 120 mg/l; hard has 121 to 180mg/l and very hard has more than 180 mg/l.

 

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| Environmental | Water Treatment
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About us

The Brazos River Authority was created by the Texas Legislature in 1929 as the first state agency in the country with the purpose of developing and managing the water resources of an entire river basin. Today, the Authority develops and distributes water supplies, provides water and wastewater treatment, monitors water quality, and pursues water conservation through public education programs. Although the Authority is an agency of the state, it does not levy or collect taxes and is entirely self-supporting.

 

The information provided on this site is intended as background on water within the Brazos River basin. There should be no expectation that this information is all encompassing, complete or in any way examines every aspect of this very complex natural resource. 

 

We invite you to post comments and expect they will be made in good taste. The Authority reserves the right to reject or remove any comment that is not constructive in the education of the general public on issues regarding water in the Brazos basin.