· Michael Blair
Middle Tennessee water is moderately hard, and the calcium it leaves behind bonds to surfaces. It is a mineral deposit rather than dirt, which is why general-purpose cleaners do nothing to it.
Why ordinary cleaner fails
Detergents lift oils and dirt. Scale is a mineral bonded to the surface and needs an acid to dissolve it — citric, acetic or a purpose-made descaler.
Scrubbing harder with the wrong product polishes the deposit rather than removing it, and on glass it can scratch.
What to use where
Glass and chrome: white vinegar or a citric acid descaler, applied and left to dwell, then agitated with a non-scratch pad.
Natural stone: never acid. Vinegar etches marble, travertine and limestone permanently. Use a stone-safe alkaline cleaner and accept slower progress.
- Glass and chrome: acid descaler with dwell time
- Natural stone: stone-safe cleaner only, never vinegar
- Toilets and drains: acid gel, left to work
- Taps: bag the aerator in descaler overnight
- Squeegee shower glass to prevent recurrence
The aerator trick
Tap flow that has weakened is usually a scaled aerator rather than a plumbing problem. Unscrew it, soak in descaler, and flow returns.
The same applies to shower heads, which can be bagged in descaler and tied in place overnight without removal.
Preventing it
A squeegee on shower glass after use is the single most effective habit, because scale forms as water evaporates.
A water softener addresses the cause across the whole house and is worth considering in Middle Tennessee, particularly given what hard water does to water heaters.