Does hard water affect LeakyPipe?
You live in an area with hard water and you are worried about the consequences on your LeakyPipe irrigation system. what hard is water and what does it means? Discover our tips and tricks to maintain and take care of your watering network.
What hard water means?
Hard water means that the water is heavily laden with limestone and magnesium. This is the case in many regions. The rainwater seeps into the soil and doing so the water is charged with various minerals, according to the soil composition. Most of those minerals are very beneficial to the human body. And those are also synonyms of many pleasant activities like thermalism.
What hard water is?
Water has several levels. The hardness is given in degrees. From 1 to 10, the water is very soft, with a low level of limestone. From 10 to 30, the water is hard, with high levels of limestone and magnesium. The levels depend on the geological composition of soils. The more limestone is the soil, the harder the water will be.
Where the water is the hardest?
The water is usually very hard In mountain areas. The reason is that mountains consist of sedimentary layers. The sediments dissolve at water contact and then are transported into the liquid. You can have hard water in Scotland, the Cumberlands, Wales, in examples, but not only.
To know if your water is hard, it is important to know the geological composition of your county. For that, you can look at geological referent sites or request a study.
Your LeakyPipe irrigation hose becomes grey
Your irrigation hose lays on the surface for some time, exposed to rain and sun cycles, and you see it becoming grey. It means that the hose is drying out. The minerals, and of course limestone, aggregate and a kind of film forms on the pipe. The irrigation hose becomes grey.
This can reduce the porosity of your irrigation hose, but rarely stop it. If you notice this kind of changing color or if the irrigation level is less efficient, the trick is to open water and slightly stretch the hose. It will open the pores larger. The water flow will increase and flush away the limestone particles.
How to prevent your irrigation system from limestone deposit?
When you cut grass, when you recycle your food waste, keep part of the mulch and compost for the protection of your irrigation system. Place a good layer of mulch or compost on the irrigation hoses, without packing. All the irrigation hoses should be covered.
With such a protection, the temperature and moisture are constant and the limestone formation on the hoses is slowed down. Covering with mulch and compost also makes your LeakyPipe irrigation system more efficient, as it best works with wicking by contact.
You would like to see how to install your irrigation system, get advice and good ideas? Let’s have a look to our guide.
