How to Descale a Kettle?

A large proportion of the population in the UK live in an area that experiences hard water through their water supply and this is because of the limestone or chalk bed rock that the water is sourced from, either directly from the river network or from under ground aquifers which act like large underwater storage tanks.

Limestone or chalk is largely made up of calcium carbonate which is highly dissolve-able by acids and as rainwater is slightly acidic, which is why ones hair always feels soft after being in the rain, the acid is able to dissolve the calcium ions into solution; other elements such as magnesium ions can also be dissolved by the acidic rainwater.

 We can see the results of the calcium and magnesium ions being dissolved into rainwater when they naturally precipitate out to form stalactite and stalagmites in caves, gradually building up or down over time and when one leaves a tap dripping, limescale will gradually form on a sink surface.

Boiling Water!!!

So, now we know how and why calcium and magnesium ions end-up in our water supply via a little bit of chemistry, and as a result, when water boils, those same calcium and magnesium ions precipitate out of the water. This then cause the build-up of limescale inside ones kettle over time.

Allowing the limescale to build-up inside a kettle will then require more and more electricity to heat the same amount of water until such time, in extreme circumstances, the element of the kettle actually burns out because it has become too hot, and so using more and more energy will cost more and more money.

Therefore, one needs to descale a kettle on a regular basis to keep the kettle working at its optimum efficiency. So how does one go about this?

Chemical Descalers

 

There are a number of different chemical descalers on the market that use different chemicals as there mode of action to react with the calcium and magnesium ions, such as citric acid, glycolic acid, hyrdochloric acid, phosphoric acid and sulfamic acid.

Natural Descaler

 

For a more natural approach one can use white vinegar, simply boil the kettle and add enough white vinegar until the water starts to fizz. Do this on a regular basis and the kettle will be free of limescale.

EM Ceramic Descaler

 

Kagen EM Ceramic Kettle Descaler

A third solution, is a piece of EM Ceramic, which when used with a water filter jug, will stop limescale from forming altogether. 

The piece of EM Ceramic is simply submerged in the filtered water and when left for half an hour or more, the piece of EM Ceramic has an affect on the water, preventing the calcium and magnesium ions from precipitating out, thus no more limescale forms inside the kettle. 

Even, if your kettle already has limescale, the affect the EM Ceramic has on the water, will soften existing water until all the limescale is removed.

Having used one of these pieces of EM Ceramic for a while now, I would recommend one of these to anyone, because it will stop the limescale, save you money on descaler and electricity, and is simple to use, plus it is good for the environment.

Simple, but effective.