Your mixer lacks pressure? Do you notice a malfunction in the hot/cold water adjustment? Do you observe a whitish deposit on and around your mixer? This accumulation of signs suggests a problem related to limescale! In this article, we give you all the keys to understand and quickly descale your shower mixer.
What are the signs of a scaled-up mixer?
There are generally 3 major signs indicative of a scaled-up mixer. These signs are exactly the same whether it is a kitchen faucet, a shower mixer, or any other water inlet in your home.
Sign #1: loss of pressure
When limescale deposits on your water inlet, it leaves small white crystals that can block the outlet of a faucet, the inside of a small pipe, or even accumulate around a seal.
Loss of pressure is generally the first sign of limescale deposit on a water inlet. You feel it immediately, whether it is a faucet or a mixer.
Sign #2: the hot/cold imbalance
It is also a sign of limescale buildup in your mixer or faucet. When you want to increase the temperature of your water, and your mixer is scaled up, it is not uncommon to have more difficulty obtaining the desired temperature.
Sign #3: leaks and whitish deposits
Another visible sign related to the limescale in your water, leaks and whitish deposits.
All around your mixer, faucet, or showerhead, a slight white layer settles on your devices. This is limescale. With too much accumulation, you can also see water leaks at your joints.
What are the causes of limescale deposits on your mixer?
The limescale that deposits on your shower mixer comes directly from the quality of your water. This obviously does not depend on you, but on the city or region where you are located.
This hard water is characterized by a high concentration of calcium and magnesium. This is called limescale or hard water.
Hard water does not initially pose dangers to your devices if they are regularly cleaned and maintained.
However, if you let limescale accumulate in your plumbing, you risk having malfunctioning devices, major water leaks, or devices that will prematurely reach the end of their lifespan.
How to descale your mixer? 3 simple and immediate tips!
It is perfectly possible to descale your shower mixer or your faucet with chemical descalers point you will find all kinds in all supermarkets or online. Among them, it should be noted that there are two main types: alkalines and acids.
On our side, we will not use any chemical products, but rather natural and ecological solutions, approaching the good grandmother's tips.
Attention, it is not because these solutions are natural that they do not work, quite the opposite.
Tip #1: white vinegar
When you have hard water, white vinegar will be your most faithful ally. Inexpensive, available in all supermarkets, it is ultra effective to temporarily fight against any form of limescale. You can use it for almost everything:
- Run a washing machine empty, with white vinegar, same for your dishwasher.
- Soak your shower head in white vinegar, it will come out like new and completely descaled.
- Do the same with your faucets and mixer taps (you can even disassemble them and place the cartridges/filters in vinegar)
Even with chemical and more expensive cleaning solutions, it is hard to do better than white vinegar!
Tip #2: baking soda
Like white vinegar, it is an inexpensive product, available almost everywhere, that can be used for many household tasks.
This alkaline, slightly abrasive substance will provide a gentle and non-aggressive cleaning solution.
You can even combine the actions of baking soda and white vinegar for even better results!
Last tip: lemon
Just like the first two tips, lemon will be your ally in the house! Acidic, it will provide an ecological and inexpensive solution to help you descale your filters, mixer taps, and faucet tips, among others.
How to limit the appearance of limescale?
Unfortunately, if you live in a region of France where the water is hard, such as in Gironde (the water is very limescale-rich in this region), you will need to use one of these solutions (or several) to limit the appearance of limescale on your mixer tap, and more generally around all your water inlets.
- Buy and install a water softener in your home. It is quite costly, potentially bulky, but it is the best solution for hard water.
- Remember to do descaling regularly. Every month, note on a paper or on your smartphone, with an alarm, to descale all your faucets, mixer taps, shower heads, etc.
- Use a water filter/distiller to limit the appearance of limescale.
You are now familiar with the main tips to remove all traces of limescale from your shower mixer tap, and from your kitchen and bathroom faucets, for example.
Remember that regular maintenance will save you many surprises, especially when it comes to limescale buildup, which can cause long-term damage.
