Does anyone know what causes hard water to etch itself into glass? I understand the deposits being left on the surface but what causes them to actually etch the glass? Is it because they are slightly basic and do a sort of acid etch over time? Any info on this would be great.
Most hard water stains are on relief on the surface of the glass. When you have silica stains they can actually bond w/ the glass since glass is mostly silica. That’s why you have to use a hydrofluoric acid (like CC550) or scratch removal system <a href=“Shopwindowcleaner.com” target=“_top”><img src=“http://www.shopwindowcleaner.com/affiliate/accounts/default1/banners/scratch-removal.jpg” alt=“” title=“” width=“468” height=“60” /></a><img style=“border:0” src=“Shopwindowcleaner.com” width=“1” height=“1” alt=“” />on silica. The acid eats the silica off the glass and the scratch system grinds it off. Other stains can be removed w/ the other stain removal products. <a href=“Shopwindowcleaner.com” target=“_top”><img src=“http://www.shopwindowcleaner.com/affiliate/accounts/default1/banners/stain-removal.jpg” alt=“” title=“” width=“468” height=“60” /></a><img style=“border:0” src=“Shopwindowcleaner.com” width=“1” height=“1” alt=“” />
You can also get etching of the glass from acid rain or oxidation from other environmental pollutants. These can also be removed w/ CC550 or scratch removal systems.
What’s your tds on a out side bib ?? Inside is diff. Some times a person can just tell by drinking. Go to city hall and they should have a water report. Once the outside water hits the glass 3-4 x a week for the summer and sits there that’s where the staining is on the glass and buld. Mine here is 800-900 tds and lots of mag !! We get our water from sand points beside the river. Yours is gray to white in color. If u sofen the water for washing u have a higher tds !! Stains on whites!! This tds changes from well to well and out side of town. There is more to this water tds thing !! But this should answer your question on this ! Stan ,pro window kleening , 27 years and pruser
I’m not sure what the TDS is here. I know it’s going to be sky high. The Hill Country has HORRIBLE water with tons of minerals and lime.
TDS is not the issue. It’s what makes up the TDS and how long it’s been on the window that is the issue. You can get a water report but I’ve found that each area of a town can vary from the report. Sometimes people use cisterns to supply their sprinkler system and then it also could be what the cistern is leeching into the water that can also cause issues. The bottom line is that any serious hard water staining is a restoration job and should cost them more. You should also get a waiver for glass clearing. It should spell out that you can’t guarantee the window will be 100%. To many variables to make that kind of promise.
The break down of the molecular structure of the glass. When the glass is in stage 2 corrosion is usally when the glass is damanged and needs more than a cleaner to restore the window. When the glass is in stage 1 the cleaners will work.
This is a common misconception. Corrosion happens inside an IG unit as it needs a stagnant, moist environment to develop. The corrosion is the result of the change in pH when the moisture inside the unit becomes more acidic and begins to corrode the surface. Stage 1 corrosion can only be seen when the window fogs up inside whereas Stage 2 is clearly visible at all times.
Staining happens outside the IG unit or on single pane glass and is the result of minerals being repeatedly deposited on the surface.
Close up pics of corrosion and stains look very different.
Most hard water stains are actually simply the presence of calcium carbonate dissolved in the ground water, which is present in about 85% of US households. The most common source is limestone.
When you run into calcium silica etching it’s an ingredient in mortar, cement, bricks, and other building products.
I use a food-based phosphoric acid called “Power” to get the lime deposits off of the glass, and a paste (think hydrated Slayer Powder) with a buffer to get the etching off, when necessary. It’s basically sanding the glass on a microscopic level.
Sort of like a scaled down scratch removal system.
Thank you for the education.
It is, only with a lot less labor hours. A window that has had scratch removal done on it will actually have a distortion in it around where the scratch was previously, because of the process.
Just FYI, for everyone; In a pinch, Turtle Wax works as a paste/powder substitute, though it tends to take a bit longer to get the job done. It must have smaller, or lesser amounts of the abrasive in it.
