Hard water and your dishwasher, washer and ice maker

Where the hardness comes from

Jacksonville's tap water is drawn from the Floridan aquifer, which runs through limestone and dolomite. Water moving through that rock picks up calcium and magnesium, and most homes here end up with moderate to hard water as a result.

Hard water is safe to drink. The problem is what it leaves behind when it is heated or evaporates: a chalky scale that coats surfaces, narrows openings and insulates heating elements.

Dishwashers: film, spots and clogged arms

In a dishwasher, scale shows up as white film on glasses, spots on dishes and a crust inside the tub. Less obviously, it partly blocks the small holes in the spray arms, so water stops reaching parts of the racks and dishes come out dirty.

Rinse aid helps water sheet off dishes. Many dishwashers have a water hardness setting that adjusts the rinse, and a monthly cleaning cycle with a dishwasher cleaner dissolves buildup. Pulling the spray arms and clearing their holes every few months makes a visible difference.

Ice makers and water dispensers

The refrigerator's water inlet valve has a fine screen and a small seat that close off the flow. Scale on either one slows the fill, so the ice maker gets less water each cycle and makes small or hollow cubes. A valve that does not seal fully drips and can freeze the fill tube.

Changing the refrigerator water filter on schedule protects the valve. When cubes shrink even with a fresh filter, the valve usually needs replacing.

Washers and water heaters

Washers pull water through inlet screens that collect sediment and scale. Slow filling and inlet error codes often trace back to those screens.

Water heaters suffer most. Scale settles on the tank bottom and coats electric elements, which then run hotter and fail sooner. Popping or rumbling sounds while heating are scale. Flushing the tank once a year and replacing the anode rod when it wears out extend the tank's life.

Is a softener worth it here?

A water softener removes hardness for the whole house and slows scale in every appliance at once. It needs salt, periodic service and a working regeneration cycle. A softener that has quietly stopped regenerating gives you hard water again without any obvious warning, so testing the water now and then is worthwhile.