Controlling scale deposits in the home

Scalewizard treated water will remove existing hard scale from the water system, eventually leaving it virtually clear.

Michael Burrows, Managing Director, Fast Systems explores how Scalewizard controls scale deposits.

By Limescale within a hot water cylinder will build-up over time when hard water is heated - especially in the case of a combination boiler.

Approximately two-thirds of all consumers in England, Wales and Ireland have source water that is hard or moderately hard.

The consumer can treat this problem by purchasing proprietary acid cleaners and soaking the element until all the scale is removed.

Other options include the use of in-line water softeners (ion-exchange), or a water conditioner, which come in a variety of forms, electronic, catalytic, magnetic and electromagnetic.

What can go wrong?.

Deposits are an insulating layer on heat transfer surfaces.

This leads to more power being consumed or the need to install heavier duty equipment to compensate.

It is estimated that 40% more energy is needed to heat water in a cylinder containing just 6mm of limescale.

Scale in water pipes reduces the bore and eventually the pipework will become completely blocked.

Electronic Water Conditions/How the Scalewizard works.

A conventional salt-based water softener removes calcium by an ion exchange process, exchanging sodium for calcium.

The result is soft water, i.e.water without calcium.

However, due to the size of the installation, the necessity to buy and carry large quantities of salt together with the capital cost, result in only a very small percentage of households having water softeners.

Water conditioners are available in a variety of forms and they all treat the water in a similar way, by changing the structure of the calcium in such a way that it does not form hard scale.

Electronic conditions have an advantage over all others in that the power of the treatment is such, that the water will stay treated for approximately 5 - 7 days and, therefore, in most households one unit is sufficient to treat the whole house as the water is usually used within two or three days.

If the unit is adequately designed with the appropriate waveform and suitable power output, the electric signal will encourage the formation of nucleation clusters - so that when water is heated and scale forms, the precipitation will occur in the water on these clusters, rather than on the heat exchanger.

This way, any precipitate is carried away with the flowing water and no scale accumulation occurs.

This is achieved because calcium is present in hard water in two forms - dissolved-free calcium (in solution) or particulate calcium (in suspension).

It is only the dissolved-free calcium, which causes problems associated with hard water.

The Scalewizard electronic water conditioner utilises a powerful modulated square wave audio frequency signal using a rapidly changing variety of frequencies.

This creates an electric field at either end of the signal coil and as the water passes this electric field the crystalline structure of the calcium is affected and changed into a stable form.

As the water is stabilised it can effectively absorb existing calcium in microscopic traces and, over a period of time, Scalewizard treated water will remove existing hard scale from the water system, eventually leaving it virtually clear.

This demonstrates that it is not necessary to remove all calcium from hard water to prevent limescale forming as conventional salt softeners do, but simply to change its physical state from dissolved to particulate form.

Chemically, the water is unchanged and is, therefore, perfectly suitable for drinking.

As the calcium is stable, it also does not easily stick to clothes, skin, etc.

There is generally a modest improvement in water quality so that soap lasts longer, less washing powder is used and dishwashers perform more effectively.

However, a water conditioner does not give and cannot give the same effect as soft water.

Water conditioners are a low cost method of controlling scale and removing existing scale.

The typical annual running cost is around GBP3 and good quality conditions have a life expectancy of around 20 years.

Scalewizard, market leader in the development of electronic descaling for domestic, commercial and industrial applications has, over the past thirteen years, developed its products for the domestic and commercial market through field trials and research carried out at major universities in the UK and USA.

The system provides a cost effective, environmentally friendly way of treating scale in all types of dwellings ranging from one-bedroom flats to large mansions.

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