It is not so much a risk as a certainty that there will be trouble ahead for any piece of equipment with internal pipes through which mains water travels without proper safeguards. Such equipment includes combi-ovens, beverage machines, glasswashers and dishwashers, steamers and convection ovens. If proper steps are not taken to remove dissolved salts from mains water, then servicing costs will balloon.
Water is commonly classified as hard or soft depending on the type and amount of minerals and salts dissolved in it. Water with a relatively high content of dissolved minerals is described as hard. When mains water is heated it causes the dissolved salts to attach themselves to any metal they come into contact with, forming a creamy-coloured, hard crust which is called limescale.
Where limescale build-up occurs in internal pipework it restricts the flow of water, causing serious and expensive damage to equipment. A reduced flow of water does not just affect cooking performance, it can lead to overworking and overheating of other parts of the equipment. Where scale build-up occurs on heating elements it will insulate the elements, forcing them to use more energy to heat the water and leading to early burn-out.
The fact that a catering business is in an area of the UK officially classified as a soft-water region is not an excuse for not fitting water treatment. There are dissolved salts in all water, and scale build-up will occur eventually.
Even in soft-water areas, in times of drought water can be drawn from deep boreholes and its hardness level will change. Also, water companies move water around from region to region through underground pipework, which will also change the hardness level.
A water treatment system will not only soften the supply but will also remove contaminants that can affect the taste.
There are several different water treatment systems. A hotel might choose to have a system which treats all water coming in at a central point. This will give purified, soft water not just for the kitchen but for all other parts of the hotel. A single system can be installed to serve all kitchen equipment, or individual items of equipment can be fitted with their own filters.
These are the different systems designed to cut down on service costs:
- Water softeners. These add a small amount of salt to the water, which has the effect of reducing the amount of dissolved limescale released when the water is heated. They are suitable where the water is not for consumption, such as in dishwashing or laundry.
- Carbon filters. These will remove chlorine and discoloration, but not hardness. So if the business is located in a soft-water area but there is a wish to make the water taste better for drinking, carbon filters are an option.
- De-alkalising units. Sometimes called calcium treatment units, these are suitable for combi-ovens, steamers, ice-makers, beverage machines and vending machines.
- Demineralisation. This removes almost all the dissolved minerals and hardness in the water and is an option where the water is very hard.
- Reverse osmosis. The water is forced under pressure through a very thin filtering membrane, like a sieve, which removes not just the harmful limescale but many other trace elements, giving water which is very pure.