Tea drinkers across the UK are familiar with the sight of limescale on a kettle. This scale not only reduces efficiency of the kettle, but will eventually make it unusable. Not to mention the scum that this often produces on the tea itself. In this article we’ll take a look at why limescale is so prevalent on kettles and how the Halcyan can help.
Why are kettles affected by limescale?
Why is limescale on the kettle so prevalent? This has everything to do with the properties of hard water minerals and how they form scale. You can read about this in more detail in our blogs What is Hard Water and What is Limescale tackling these topics. The short answer is that high temperatures increase the rate at which limescale forms. As such the heating element of the kettle is a perfect spot for limescale deposition to occur. As the layers build the efficiency of the heating element is decreased. This means more energy is required to provide the same amount of heat. Eventually the level of scale renders the kettle inoperable and a replacement is needed. As you can imagine this same process occurs in other appliances and equipment which use heat to operate, some far more costly than a kettle, like a boiler.
How does the Halcyan Water Conditioner deal with limescale on a kettle?
The Halcyan approaches the limescale problem by treating the hard water minerals and altering their behaviour. You can read more about how our system works here.
What does this mean for appliances such as the kettle, if the minerals are still present? For starters the heat based reaction still occurs and scale is still deposited. However, the physical properties of the scale will be different to what you would normally find in an untreated home. The scale will manifest as a hard, thin and brittle layer on the heating element. It will not form as hard crusty, uneven clumps. This scale will not grow beyond the heating element and this thin layer will have a minimal impact on the function of the kettle.
One of the other key aspects of the Halcyan is that treated water is that it will remove existing scale. So when the kettle is left to sit with treated water it will begin to break down the thin scale in the kettle. Essentially the process is the scale forming due to the heat and then being brought back into solution due to the surrounding treated water, keeping the scale at a much reduced level and increasing the lifespan and functionality of the kettle. Occasional pieces of the scale will flake off due to the treated water wearing it down, these can simply be swilled out when necessary.
So, whilst the Halcyan won’t remove all the limescale on the kettle it will reduce it and do its bit to ensure the kettle remains fighting fit for much longer than it would in a normal hard water home. Thus, saving you money, time and frequent headaches when trying to brew your next round of tea! For more detail on what to expect with Halcyan check out our article below!
