Why the water in Mallorca is so hard, how to measure the hardness at your own property and what your real options are. No sales patter.
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Water hardness is the amount of calcium and magnesium dissolved in it. It depends on the geology of the ground: when water passes through limestone or gypsum rock it picks up carbonates and comes out hard. Much of Mallorca is limestone terrain, which is why the Balearics are among the areas of Spain with the hardest water.
Palma’s own supplier, EMAYA, classifies its water as hard and moderately hard depending on the area and the time of year. That matters: there is no single figure for the whole island or for the whole year. It varies between municipalities, between districts and even by season, because the water may come from a well, a reservoir or a desalination plant.
Let us be clear: hardness is not a health problem. Hard water is perfectly drinkable, and calcium and magnesium are good for you. The problem with limescale is economic and domestic: it eats appliances and pipework.
In Spain it is usually expressed in French degrees (°fH). One French degree is about 10 mg/l of calcium carbonate. The usual scale is:
| French degrees | Classification |
|---|---|
| 0 – 7 °fH | Very soft |
| 7 – 15 °fH | Soft |
| 15 – 30 °fH | Moderately hard |
| 30 – 45 °fH | Hard |
| Over 45 °fH | Very hard |
Across much of Mallorca the readings sit in the hard or very hard band, and in areas on well water they can be higher still. But we insist: the only figure that counts is the one at your own property.
There are three ways, from least to most reliable:
1. Ask your water supplier. Many municipal companies publish analyses by area. It gives you an idea, but it is a network average, not the figure at your tap.
2. A drop test kit. It costs a few euros. You fill a tube with water from your tap and add drops of reagent until it changes colour: the number of drops gives you the degrees. It is the method we use on site.
3. A laboratory analysis. Only needed if you are on a well and also want to know about nitrates, salinity or microbiology.
What we see every day in homes on the island:
Resin water softener. This is the genuine, proven way to remove limescale from the whole property. It exchanges calcium and magnesium for sodium. It needs salt, a drain and servicing, but it works.
Reverse osmosis. For drinking and cooking water. It does not replace the softener: it treats one tap only, but it removes limescale, salts and off-tastes.
Sediment filters. They catch grit and particles. They do not remove limescale, but they protect the rest of the system and are strongly recommended upstream of any other unit.
Magnetic or electronic "anti-limescale" devices. We will be straight with you: their effectiveness has not been conclusively demonstrated and they do not remove limescale from the water; at best they change the way it crystallises. If someone promises you softener results from one of these, be sceptical.
In the south and along the coast of Mallorca — Campos, Sa Ràpita, Ses Salines, Colònia de Sant Jordi and a good many of the country properties in the Pla — supply from a well is common, and there it is not only limescale: there can be salinity from seawater intrusion and, in farming areas, nitrates. A water softener solves neither of those two problems. If you are on a well, the first step is an analysis, and the decision follows from there: filtration, a softener, reverse osmosis or a combination.
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In short: Fontaneros Mallorca provides emergency plumbing in Mallorca 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Average arrival time is 20 to 60 minutes. The main services are drain unblocking with pressure machinery and CCTV camera, leak detection using acoustic equipment and tracer gas, pipe replacement, water heater and boiler installation and repair, and water treatment (softeners and reverse osmosis). We give a fixed price by phone or WhatsApp before the visit, there is no call-out charge if we carry out the repair, and every job carries a 2-year written guarantee. Contact number: 631 290 026.
It varies by municipality, by area within the municipality and even by time of year, because the water can come from a well, a reservoir or a desalination plant. Broadly, the Balearics are among the areas of Spain with the hardest water, and much of the island sits in the hard or very hard range. The only reliable figure is the one measured at your own tap with a drop test kit.
No. Hard water is drinkable and meets the regulations; the calcium and magnesium that cause the hardness are minerals the body needs. The problem with limescale is domestic and economic: it ruins water heaters, boilers, appliances and taps.
Measure the hardness with a drop test kit. From about 30 °fH it starts to pay, and above 45 °fH the savings on appliances and repairs usually cover the cost of the unit within a few years. Clear signs: shower screens that never look clean, blocked tap aerators and water heaters that do not last.
Their effectiveness has not been conclusively demonstrated and they do not remove limescale from the water. They may change how the carbonate crystallises, but they are no substitute for a resin softener. Be sceptical of anyone promising the same results for a fraction of the price.
No. The softener removes limescale by exchanging it for sodium, but it does not reduce salinity or nitrates. For saline well water, the answer for drinking and cooking is a reverse osmosis unit.
A domestic unit uses in the order of 1.5 kg of salt per regeneration, which in a normal home means a 25 kg sack every one or two months. A volumetric unit uses less than a timer-based one, because it regenerates according to the water consumed rather than by the calendar.
Fontaneros Mallorca is a plumbing business based on the island, specialising in emergencies, blocked drains, leak detection and water treatment. We work across the whole island every day: Palma, Manacor, Inca, Calvià, Campos and everywhere else.
15 years working on Mallorcan plumbing: hard water, salt air on the coast and the old installations of village houses.
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We tell you the price by phone or WhatsApp before we set off. No call-out charge if we do the repair.
2-year guarantee on the installation, and first-quality materials with the manufacturer's own warranty.
Fontaneros Mallorca · Tel. 631 290 026 · We come to you anywhere in Mallorca (Balearic Islands) · Company details and legal notice
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