'Hard' water build up in soft water area

FTB_BTF

I've recently moved into my first home and have noticed that despite cleaning regularly we get build up of hard water marks in the toilets, limescale around taps and in kettle, shower marks etc. This build up occurs quite quickly despite the fact we live in a soft water area? I've only moved 2 mins away from my parents which is where I was before and didn't notice the issue so much there. Is this normal despite being in a soft water area?

I've also noticed a weird feeling on my skin (mostly face) after showering and washing and don't recall feeling this when I was at my parents. Not sure if related though.

The house was left empty before we moved in so not sure if this has had an effect on the water?

Any advice on what we could/should do would be appreciated  

Eldi_Dos

Are both houses of similar age? Could it be your parents property still has lead pipes and yours more modern pipework.

FTB_BTF

Eldi_Dos said:

Are both houses of similar age? Could it be your parents property still has lead pipes and yours more modern pipework.

Hmm maybe, I think theirs was 50's ours is more 70's, so not massively different

casper_gutman

There can be variation in hardness even within the area served by a single water company. The two sides of the town where I live are served from reservoirs in different valleys, for example, and while they're both generally thought of as "soft", the water company actually defines one as "soft" and the other as "slightly hard".

In our "slightly hard" water the mineral levels are still at the level where we don't need salt in the dishwasher, but there's just enough that we notice a little bit of a build up around the taps, or little white marks on shiny surfaces where we've neglected the cleaning. I don't notice an odd feeling, but I used to live in the south east where the water is much harder, plus some people are more sensitive to such things.

Perhaps it would be worth checking with your water company. They usually have the relevant info on their websites somewhere, e.g.:
Thames Water
Severn Trent Water
Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water
United Utilities
etc.

silvercar

You can buy dip sticks to measure how hard the water is.

Grenage

What can you do? Either accept it or install a water softener.  You will likely get used to it. 

I've always lived in a hard water area, so I don't like the taste of softer water (or the feel of it when washing).