Limescale. We see it almost every day in our lives, from the bottom of the kettle, in our home boilers, or even in central heating systems.

But the annoying pestilence can also be commonly found in your washing machine.

As a consequence of hard water use, limescale is the result of this hard water evaporating on inner surfaces of where it has been in contact, thus leaving a very chalky, almost white buildup.

This buildup occurs every time hard water travels through any pipe, appliance, or surface. Repeated hard water travel can even result in such a large accumulation as to cause a blockage.

Having this buildup present in your washing machine is not only detrimental to the machine itself, but also for the clothes you wear.

The most often seen effect of limescale development in your washing machine is the shortening of life on the machine itself. Early machine breakdowns, or even the death of the machine, can be extremely costly to repair or replace. The homeowner with foresight will do everything in his power to diminish limescale development and prevent this.

But not only the machine is affected, the tubes and hosing attached are also at risk of damage and the need for eventual replacement due to rotting.

These aren’t the only costly consequences, the risk of flooding from machine breakdown is amongst them.

Each month you might be spending two or three times the average amount on laundry detergent due to limescale buildup in your washing machine. The most tell-tale sign of this is the continual “dirty” appearance of your clothes despite the use of more detergent, or no matter how many times you wash your clothes.

Another common sign is if your detergent does not produce foam at all, or it foams in a very reduced form.

In studies, it has been found that those who use hard water and have limescale development in their washing machine appliances spend on average up to twenty-five percent more money on laundry detergent than those who use softened water or take limescale prevention measures.

Washing your clothes more than needed because of limescale development causing low washing machine performance is not just a strain on energy resources, but it is also detrimental to the condition of the clothes themselves. Repeated, otherwise unnecessary, clothes washing damages the fibers of the clothing fabric, shortening their lifespan considerably.

The most effective way of eliminating stains from your clothes, according to a 2010 Scientific Service Laboratories experiment, is simply the reduction of hard water use and consequent limescale accumulation from your washing machine.

The use of hard water in your washing machine is the proven cause of limescale development within the appliance and its attachments.

Some anti-limescale preventive measures have been found to be just as damaging as the limescale accumulation itself.

The best prevention of this buildup is the use of a water softener to increase washing machine effectiveness and longevity.