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The water on new place looks very clean, but has a 'soapy' feel.

If I wet my left hand and hold a soap bar for a while, and my right hand I just wet, the sensation if I rub my fingers on each hand is almost the same. What is it? I will call the water department to get a water analysis Monday.

What drives me crazy is that I get the same sensation with the water coming out of the faucet Brita filter (I know those are no good, but still).

DMoore
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gcb
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    You have "soft" water. It tends to feel slippery. I would not be surprised if you have a water softener, or if you just previously have very hard water in your old abode. –  Jul 14 '13 at 21:48
  • @woodchips right you are... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_softening#Soap_scum what i am experiencing now is 'soap scum'... – gcb Jul 14 '13 at 23:11

2 Answers2

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You have "soft" water. It tends to feel slippery. I would not be surprised if you have a water softener, or if you just previously have very hard water in your old abode. – woodchips

More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_softening#Soap_scum

gcb
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  • I'd add that there are some water 'filters' for 'hard' water that employ EDTA, those could exacerbate the problem (and the product is usually only meant for dishwashers et al, not human consumption). – bukwyrm Jul 30 '18 at 05:15
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As others have said, you have soft water. "Hard water" is so called because it's "hard" to get soap to lather because of the minerals. "Soft water" is just the term for "not hard" water.

The solution is to use less soap than you're used to using with hard water. What you're feeling is soap binding to your skin and not washing away. You will also probably want to decrease the amount of detergent you use in your laundry, dishwasher, use less shampoo etc.

Hank
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