How to remove hard water stains from windows Mason, Ohio

If you’ve been cleaning dishes to put them away into the dishwasher, you may have noticed that the windows by your sink have a white hard chalky residue on them.

You may have even tried to clean them off with a little water and a paper towel but that still doesn’t work.

You are dealing with hard water stains.

 After looking around your home you may have noticed that there are other windows on the outside that have this annoying cloudy residue.


What causes hard water stains on windows?

 

Water travels from the little Miami to the Richard A. Renneker Water Treatment Plants, and then to your home. During the water’s travel it picks up minerals like calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate.

Then when water from your (or your neighbors) lawn sprinkler or fountain reaches your windows. Then the water carrying the minerals evaporates, leaving the minerals on your windows.

Below is a table that shows water hardness. Most homes have water that is considered moderately hard.


 

 Measurement (mg/L)

 Hardness
0 - 60 Soft
61 - 120 Moderately hard
121 - 180 Hard
180 - above Very hard
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Source: USGS | Hardness of water | by Water science school

 

Now that you know how water gets onto your windows, let’s see how you can effectively remove these stains.

 

 

 

 How to get rid of hard water stains

The best way to get rid of hardwater stains is to setup an appointment with Gleam Windows. This way is easy and you don’t have to do buy a bunch of gear that only takes up space.

The next best way is to remove the stains yourself. Here’s a picture and a list of all of the items you’ll need to remove the stains.

 

 

List of tools and supplies

  1. Squeegee
  2. Mop
  3. CLR
  4. Mask
  5. googels
  6. Nitrile gloves
  7. Eye protection
  8. Microfiber cloth

Warning


Don’t use paper towels or newspaper. The CLR will eat through them and chemically burn your hands or eyes. Make sure to use nitrile gloves and googels to protect yourself.

 

  1. Wet the glass and frames with your mop. Remember to use soapy water but not too much soap.
  2. Clean the window like normal. This gets rid of any grime, pollen and dust you don’t want on your window.
  3. Apply the CLR to your mop.
  4. Scrub the window with your mop. Watch as the calcium deposits fizz away leaving you with a cleaned off window.
  5. Wipe the chemical off with your squeegee.
  6. Dry the window frame with a microfiber cloth.
  7. Clean the window like normal again with dawn dish soap. This way the CLR is completely off.

 

How to prevent hard water stains on your window

Now that you know how to remove hard water stains and you have gotten rid of them, you probably want to know how to prevent them from getting on your windows again.

  1. Point your sprinklers away from your windows.
  2. Don't spray your house with water from the hose onto your windows.
  3. Move your fountain or add a barrier between your fountain and your home.

 

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