Beat hard water...

We've all had those appliances that seem to work less well, and ultimately get replaced before their time. For many of us it seems that our household appliances just aren't made as well as they used to be. That might be true, but a lot of the time there's another reason appliances don't fare so well; and that reason would be hard water. Hard water can halve the the lifespan of your appliances, large or small.Calcium and magnesium are the culprit minerals which make water hard. They’re also responsible for what’s known as limescale, scale buildup, hard water stains or mineral deposits. In addition to creating nasty stains around faucets, sinks and faucets, hard water scaling can clog up plumbing, and jam up water using appliances, wearing them down over time. This makes your appliances less and less effective until eventually they break down.What most homeowners don't realize is that running appliances with hard water makes them less and less effective. Tests show that washing machines run with softer water can run with a far lower water temperature and still be effective in removing stains. Depending on the stain, eliminating the hardness in water could improve removal by 100%.Today, many homeowners purchase high efficiency appliances, to save money and cut back on energy. However, high efficiency appliances also require a significant initial investment. However, if hard water is being run through those appliances, the efficiency will decrease dramatically time goes by.If you don't treat your water with water softeners, it's important to de-scale your appliances to get the best life AND use from them. Everything from your dishwasher, washing machine to your Keurig (or any other coffee maker). There are many good products on the market.  For your  coffee maker, we recommend simply using 50:50 blend of white wine vinegar and water, to avoid any unwanted chemical residue.