Understanding water hardness
and how it affects cleaning performance

The quality of water can have a marked influence on cleaning performance. Knowing your water hardness will help you dose our cleaning products right to get the best results as well as to keep your washing appliances scale free.

Facts on Water Hardness

Water hardness refers to the presence of calcium and magnesium carbonate in water, the origin of which is related to geological characteristics of the water’s source. Dissolved calcium and magnesium is present in water that has run over limestone. Water hardness can be measured in mg/L (expressed as milligrams of calcium carbonate per litre). It is also expressed as ppm (parts per million) 1ppm=1mg/L.

Water with hardness in the range 60 mg/L to 200 mg/L is considered good quality, although water from around 130mg/L is considered as hard, above 200mg/L very hard, while below 50mg/L soft. See below analysis of water hardness in major Australian cities by the Australian Water Association:

Water hardness is not visible; your water can be crystal clear and still have high level of hardness.

The harder your water is, cleaning products become less effective as hard water causes difficulty in creating a soapy lather. Hard water also creates crusty deposits – known as scale – in your washing machine or dishwasher. Softer water lathers well when detergent is added.

Effective Cleaning

If you live in an area where water is medium to hard, you may find cleaning harder than areas with soft water. As Dominant is located in Adelaide, where water is considered hard, our products are developed in ‘tougher’ water conditions which makes them even more effective and economical in areas with soft water. Dominant Laundry Powders and Dishwasher Powder also contain a descaling agent to keep your washing machine and dishwasher clean.

If your water is very hard, we recommend using Descaler once a month to keep your dishwasher scale free.

For effective use of your cleaning products (getting the dose right) it is good to know the accurate level of your water hardness.

Use Dominant Water Hardness Test Strip to measure your water hardness.