Morgan Sulham

April 16, 2015

Lab Report

Hard Water

Purpose:
To find how hard water gets softened and hard waters ability to clean compare to soft
waters ability to clean.
Hypothesis:
That the suds would have more of an effect in the hot water than the soft water because
most people have hard water and it seems to clean well.
Procedure:
Material List:
(5) Large test tubes with stoppers
Test-tube rack
Grease pencil
25-mL graduated cylinder
Distilled water
50-mL of hard water
250-mL beaker
Balance
Filter paper
Washing soda
Dish detergent
Metric ruler
Filter stand
Funnel
Directions:
1. Get materials ready.
2. Let teacher make the hard water or have them help you.
3. Label each test tube. H for hard water. S for soft water. D for distilled water.
4. Use the graduated cylinder and measure out 20-mL of distilled water. Pour into
the test tube labeled D.
5. Place test tube H next to test tube D, and use the grease pencil to make a mark on
test tube H that corresponds with test tube D. Repeat the step with test tube S.
6. Get the 50-mL of hard water from your teacher.
7. Slowly pour the hard water into the test tube labeled H to the marked height.
8. Put the filter paper on the balance and zero it out.
9. Measure out 0.2 g of washing soda.
10. Remove the filter paper and washing soda off the balance and pour into the
remainder of the hard water.
11. Swirl the mixture in order to soften the water. Record any observations.
12. Slowly pour soft water into the test tube labeled S until you reached the marked
height.
13. Add one drop of dish detergent into each test tube. Stopper the three test tubes.
14. Shake each test tube to produce suds.
15. Record measurements with metric ruler.

16. Go outside and get a beaker of puddle water, pond water, any type of water you
can find.
17. After come inside and get tap water.
18. Grab the filter stand and funnel (if needed).
19. Filter the outside water (if needed).
20. Grab the other two test tubes that havent been used.
21. Label T for tap water and the other O for outside water.
22. Mark the test tube as you did before for the hard and soft water.
23. Poor the tap water into the test tube labeled T.
24. Once the water is done filtering or is ready to be put in the test tube, pour the
water into the correctly labeled test tube.
25. Drop one drop of soap into each test tube.
26. Stopper the test tubes and shake the water.
27. Record the measurement of the suds.
28. Record any observations seen throughout this process.
Observations:
During the lab observations made were how the suds looked and how the puddle
water was. In the test tube labeled D the suds were big bubbles, not small bubbles and
there wasnt very many of them. Test tube H the bubbles were more together, a little
smaller but there were more bubbles compared to test tube D. Test tube S the bubbles
were very small and compacted while having more than D and H test tubes. (See Figure
1) The puddle water we used was very muddy and had some leaves in it. We filtered the
puddle water and it took about 15-20 minutes before there was enough water to finish our
lab. Overall, these were the main observations there was.
Data/Results:
The data shows that the puddle water that was brought in and tested was the most
softened water. The puddle water had 7 cm of suds once it was shaken. The least amount
of suds was found in the distilled water. Between the hard water, soft water, and distilled
water which had their own part in the lab, the soft water had the most level of suds, and
distilled water still had the least (See Figure 1). Also, the hard water and tap water had
the same level of suds which tells us that the tap water is hard water. For results see Table
1. As you can see in Table 1, the tap water and hard water both had a 4 cm level of suds
which makes it seem that the tap water is hard water. Overall, the puddle water had the
highest level of suds and the distilled water had the lowest level of suds.
Table 1: Sample Type and Level of Suds
Sample
Distilled water
Hard water
Soft water
Tap water
Puddle water

Level of Suds (cm)

3.5 cm
4 cm
5 cm
4 cm
7 cm

Figure 1:

Image of the hard, distilled and soft water.

Conclusion:
During this lab some possible errors that couldve happened are how the suds
werent measured when they were done right away. It couldve been forgotten about and
gotten measured a few minutes after it was done. Another possible error could be how a
little more than 0.2 grams of washing soda was poured onto the scale and it was evenly
0.2 grams. A third thing would be how you put more than one drop of dish detergent in
one and kept the rest at one drop. All these three errors couldve messed up the overall
results in the lab.
The hypothesis was incorrect. It was incorrect because the thought was that the
suds would have more of an effect in the hot water than the soft water because most
people have hard water and it seems to clean well. The results showed that hard water
doesnt make as many suds as soft water. This being shown says that soft water cleans
better than hard water due to it making more suds than hard water.
The data and results relate to what the class is learning because its about
elements. The elements that are in hard water, calcium and magnesium but the hardness
can also be because of other several metals in the water. For example some of the
elements in your pipes can come out into your water and that could make your water
hard. It shows how different elements can differ how something is, like the water.
If the lab could be redone in this experiment the class would make sure to add
only one drop of dish detergent in each test tube. Another thing that could be done
differently is make sure the test tubes were shaken the same amount of time and that they
were measured after the time limit. Another tool that could be used during this
experiment is a metal hand or a mixer that will do each test tube precisely and the same.
Other than those, there isnt any other equipment that shouldve been used. All the
equipment used worked nicely in the lab. Some mistakes that were made that now have
been learned, is that the results can vary if you dont do some of the steps right away.
This messed up the results a little because the suds had settled down and werent as high
when they were first shaken. One thing that would be interesting to research is what they

put on the roads because the puddle was on the side of the pavement and it was the most
soft water.
Comparing and Contrasting: Which sample produced the most suds? Which sample
produced the least suds? Set up your own water hardness scale based on your data. What
is the relative hardness of the local water samples?
The sample that produced the most was the soft water which was 5 cm. The distilled
water had produced the least amount of suds which was 3.5 cm. The tap water is hard
water and the puddle water produced more suds than the soft water.
Using Numbers: The hard water you used was prepared by adding 1 gram of magnesium
sulfate per liter of distilled water. What is its hardness in grams per gallon?
The hardness in grams per gallon would be 3.7851 because you take 1 gram over 1 liter
and multiply it by 3.7851 liters over 1 gallon which would come out to 3.7851 grams per
gallon.
Drawing a Conclusion: The compound in washing soda is sodium carbonate. How did
the sodium carbonate soften the hard water?
Well, the sodium carbonate is also known as washing soda. The water gets soften because
the washing soda takes away all the calcium and magnesium ions.
Thinking Critically: Remember that most compounds of alkaline earth metals do not
dissolve easily in water. What is the white solid that formed when washing soda was
added to the solution of magnesium sulfate?
The white solid that formed when washing soda was added to the solution of magnesium
sulfate was a precipitate. The compound would be Magnesium Carbonate because you
would take the higher amount electron which is the Magnesium and you would take the
Carbonate from the Sodium.
Error Analysis: Could the procedure be changed to make the results more quantitative?
Explain.
Yes, the procedure could be changed to have it be more quantitative. You could change it
by having more water and more drops of soap. Not just one drop, you could have more
than one. If you have more than one drop you could have more suds and that could
potentially have it be a little more accurate because youll have more of it.
Real-World Chemistry:
Water softeners for washing machines are sold in the detergent section of a store. Look at
some of the packages and compare ingredients. Do packages that have different
ingredients also have different instructions for how the water softener should be used?
Yes, they do, because one is for precipitating and one is non-precipitating and it does
have different instructions depending on which type youre using.

Suppose a family notices that the water pressure in their house is not good enough to
flush a toilet on the second floor. Other than a leak, what could be interfering with the
flow of water?
Other than a leak the water pressure may not be good enough because of how they have
the pipes lined up, or it could even be how hard the water is. Due to all the pipes in
houses thats why most people have hard water because the things in the pipes make the
water harder than it originally was.
Explain why drinking hard water might not be better for your health than drinking soft
water. How could a family have the benefit of hard water for drinking and soft water for
washing?
Hard water isnt as good for you to drink because when it travels through the pipes it
picks up some substances that make it hard water. Soft water doesnt have these
substances. Thats why its better for your health. The benefit of drinking hard water and
having soft water for your laundry is that it cleans your clothes better than the hard water
does, and I mean we arent dying off because were drinking hard water, so its okay to
drink hard water and have soft water for your laundry.