Tap water too hard - what alternative?

[Headhurts]

The car handbook (yes I read it) tells you not to use deionised water, I have no idea why but I suspect if used with the correct washer fluid it should be ok.

It may be something to do with the sensor as I cannot imagine purified water could cause problems.

I always use Mercedes washer fluid rather than mix them as I have read that mixing can cause a reaction that sludges the jets.

Robin

 

[JBell]

Bottled water is full of minerals!

Yes but it is the high quantity of Calcium and Magnesium Salts that makes water "hard"

 

[Yugguy]

I use these:
https://www.pozzani.co.uk/


Fitted into the mains inlet for the house. A 20 inch cartridge last 6 months for a 3 story 5 bedroom house with 4 people in it.

 

[LostKiwi]

The car handbook (yes I read it) tells you not to use deionised water, I have no idea why

Deionised water is highly reactive and when in contact with CO2 in the atmosphere can go acidic (pH5.6).
Distilled water (as obtained from condensing tumble dryers, dehumidifiers and AC units) is not reactive so better suited.

Resin filters work on the deionization principle.

 

[rorywquin]

The car handbook (yes I read it) tells you not to use deionised water, I have no idea why but I suspect if used with the correct washer fluid it should be ok.

It may be something to do with the sensor as I cannot imagine purified water could cause problems.

I always use Mercedes washer fluid rather than mix them as I have read that mixing can cause a reaction that sludges the jets.

Robin

If I recall my sceince lessons correctly, pure water will not conduct electricity - so your 'screen washer empty' light will be permanently on!!

 

[littlebrooklyn]

We've got really hard water here, it's been annoying me for years, I must keep Viakal in business the amount of bottles of that stuff I use for keeping taps and sinks clean.

I have no idea what that Raceglaze filter is, does it filter your whole house or just water for the car?

We decided last month to invest in a home water softener, best decision we ever made. Everything is so now so beautifully limescale free, water comes out of the tap with such a softness it's almost silky. We have 2 outside taps and we have kept one on hard water and one on softened water to use for the car and Keith has been very impressed with it.

We changed our kitchen taps at the same time and got a 3 way tap so that we have filtered drinking water, which meant we could stop having to buy the Brita filters all the time.

 

[rorywquin]

............

I have no idea what that Raceglaze filter is, does it filter your whole house or just water for the car?

.............

Used to give your car a final rinse after you have washed and rinsed it with normal water ------only for cars etc

 

[littlebrooklyn]

Used to give your car a final rinse after you have washed and rinsed it with normal water ------only for cars etc

I'd suggest to all you men out there have no clue how much time us women spend cleaning to think about paying more and getting a water softener and then you will have a happy wife and also endless supplies of soft water for your cars too

 

[Headhurts]

Deionised water is highly reactive and when in contact with CO2 in the atmosphere can go acidic (pH5.6).
Distilled water (as obtained from condensing tumble dryers, dehumidifiers and AC units) is not reactive so better suited.

Resin filters work on the deionization principle.

Thanks Alistair, I’m going to a pub quiz tonight do you want to pop over?
I know you would be an asset to out team.



Robin

 

[LostKiwi]

Thanks Alistair, I’m going to a pub quiz tonight do you want to pop over?
I know you would be an asset to out team.



Robin

As attractive as that thought is Robin it's just a wee bit of a trek!

 

[rorywquin]

It removes the minerals that make the water hard, will also save you a fortune buying bottled water

Why do people buy bottled water? Greatest marketing con ever. Do you recall when Coke were going to sell bottled water in the UK (about 2004) and people found out it was basically Thames Water with a fancy label.

 

[John Laidlaw]

Anyone seen the new Guinness advert ... ‘Guinness clear’?
Highly amusing

 

[keefysher]

Why do people buy bottled water? Greatest marketing con ever. Do you recall when Coke were going to sell bottled water in the UK (about 2004) and people found out it was basically Thames Water with a fancy label.

Londinium water has been peed by 7 people before it becomes Thames Water. Bet that wasn't in the advertising

Reuse recycle reduce has a whole new meaning. You could have returned the bottles full of pee to cut out a stage in the process

 

[rorywquin]

Londinium water has been peed by 7 people before it becomes Thames Water. Bet that wasn't in the advertising

Reuse recycle reduce has a whole new meaning. You could have returned the bottles full of pee to cut out a stage in the process

At least then the plastic bottles would not be littering the oceans.

Recycled sewage has been around for donkeys years - Namibia (when it was SWA) has had it since about the 70s IIRC.

 

[mercmancdi]

Why not use once boiled water to fill your washer bottle? Use a kettle with a filter, or fill from a filtered jug, boil it, then filter through a tea strainer into a container for the screen wash bottle.

Get some de-ionised water, like for topping up batteries. For the washer bottle.

Use pre-diluted screen wash.

In terms of washing the car, can you set up a water butt to collect rainwater. I only use water butt water to rinse the cars using a low pressure power washer. The solar panels generate the electrickery, so a 'green' solution.

BTW did you know the water from your tap in Londinium has been peed through 7 people before it reaches you

There is probably a TED talk, u-tube or some other online resource that fills the educational gap of the entitled/snowflake generation.

When I had my black car I was fed up with water marks , I set up a butt to
collect rain water and my karcher washer could suck from the butt to rinse the car off once washed it worked very well.

 

[JohnArnoldBrown]

There's only a finite amount of water on the planet. It's all recycled. Spring water? Came from rain. Rain? All the water from all the sewage must surely end up as rain eventually.
Reminds me of a conversation I had many years ago, with a woman I know. Somebody mentioned a theory, something along the lines of "if you drink a glass of water, there's a better than evens chance that it contains a molecule that has been passed by Einstein(why pick him? I guess Einstein was a prodigious water drinker). My friend was horrified. It turned out she was blissfully unaware of the water cycle(benefit of a performing arts education). Someone asked her "so where did you think clouds came from, then?". Her reply was "I don't know, I thought God made them".

The amazing think about the Coke bottled water fiasco is that it's still big in other parts of the world. But it's all bullshit anyway, they don't bottle spring water as it springs, they remove the gas, clean the water, clean the gas and recombine the two.

 

[umblecumbuz]

Reminds me of the sign displayed in a hotel:

'All the water in this establishment has been passed by the management'.

 

[AnthonyUK]

Why do people buy bottled water? Greatest marketing con ever. Do you recall when Coke were going to sell bottled water in the UK (about 2004) and people found out it was basically Thames Water with a fancy label.

When I was brewing beer I used a fair amount of Tesco Ashbeck water as it has very low carbonate content whereas my local water, which is drawn from chalk aquifers is ridiculously high so it isn't all a con.

Water chemistry is pretty complex but to solve your issue you are looking for water to have a low 'temporary hardness' e.g. one that is not easily changed by boiling etc or has little overall mineral content.

I have water with both high temporary hardness and very high carbonate levels but can't say it has ever been an issue as far as the car is concerned.

For the amounts involved try some Ashbeck which used to be around £1/5l or boiled filtered water.

 

[Tony Dyson]

Hey guys,

So where I live the tap water is very very hard. It is really annoying when the limescale collects on any surface that has water dry on it.

With that in mind there is no hope I am putting it in my car for the window washers.

Have any of you guys had an alternative? Can I put some some "water softener salt" into the jug before adding to the car (I know that's what some households do at source). I guess it shouldn't be a problem as I don't plan on drinking from the car lol.

On a side now, what does this mean if I want to wash the car? Shall I be drying the car down and not letting it drip dry?

Water, water, every where,
And all the boards did shrink;
Water, water, every where,
Nor any drop to drink.

Big business is water, that's why Johnny Foreigner has bought up all our water utility companies!

'Simple is efficient' is one of my mantra's

I use premixed Screenwash for my windscreens, it's cheap enough.
And finish off a car wash with either a microfibre towel or a polish.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

 

[mercmancdi]

My problem where I live the rds are
stinking and need to wash car sometimes twice a wk.
Becomes a pain drying off with a
cloth.