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24.02.2015, 08:42
|  | Roastbeef & Yorkshire mod | | Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Neuchâtel
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| | Re: Ironing water | Quote: |  | | | Absolutely ... and I love good quality cotton sheets and bedding- and even though I hate ironing, getting into a fresh bed of properly ironed linen is just bliss. I have one daughter who irons everything, and another who irons nothing
My dad trained as a tailor, and he used a damp cloth and a wooden board to press a crisp fold in suit trousers. Still got his old iron, cloth and board- and his fabulous Singer sewing machine. | | | | | My mother was a trained tailor(ess) too and she taught me how to press suits. I had her board until very recently when it finally gave in as the wood had rotted gradually over the years.
She used to make all my dad's suits and trousers and all mine and my brother's clothes when we we little. He worked in the textile industry and would bring home the most fantastic worsted cloth.
I went through a stage of not liking it very much and wanting to buy my clothes like everyone else but then as I got older was really happy as my mother could see something that was fashionable and make it for me. I had a fantastic selection of hot pants as a teenager much to the envy of all my friends. | The following 6 users would like to thank Belgianmum for this useful post: | | 
24.02.2015, 10:22
|  | Forum Veteran | | Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: AG
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| | Re: Ironing water
My mother in law has the best tool for ironing - an Aga! It's quick and easy and needs minimum effort! And no water needed | 
25.02.2015, 07:44
| Senior Member | | Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Baden area
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| | Re: Ironing water | Quote: | |  | | | Having been the officially delegated "ironer" for the past 10 years in CH, and not yet damaged any irons - I offer my advice here 
I fill an old 2ltr pet bottle with tap water and use this to fill the iron, because I find that most of the kalk seems to settle/stick to the sides over time.
Then regularly de-kalk the iron too, using vinegar - but NOT in a hot iron (if there`s heavy kalk build-up can be dangerous to the iron). Wait till the iron has cooled off, fill it with the diluted vinegar, shake around and empty.
Sometimes I treat the iron to some Durgal de-kalker, the same as one uses in a coffee machine. Except now I buy the Landi product de-kalker as its a fraction of the price.
For smellies fragrance I use the spray from DM - "Sprühstärke" - takes out any ironed-in creases excellently - nice on shirt fronts, pillow cases, small fancy cloths. One can also buy a heavier starch spray that has a pleasant smell too. | | | | | Our iron clogs up with calc too - despite having a water softener in the house! You can buy distilled water, but it's actually cheaper to boil the kettle (about 1 rappen electricity cost as compared to 1 CHF for distilled water). Also, as most irons are aluminium, normal decalc fluid will not have such a nice effect on the aluminium.
| This user would like to thank chrisIDS for this useful post: | | 
25.02.2015, 10:18
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: May 2008 Location: Kt. Zürich
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| | Re: Ironing water | Quote: | |  | | | Our iron clogs up with calc too - despite having a water softener in the house! You can buy distilled water, but it's actually cheaper to boil the kettle (about 1 rappen electricity cost as compared to 1 CHF for distilled water). Also, as most irons are aluminium, normal decalc fluid will not have such a nice effect on the aluminium. | | | | | Boiling water does not remove the calc.
| The following 3 users would like to thank marton for this useful post: | | 
25.02.2015, 15:03
| Senior Member | | Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Baden area
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| | Re: Ironing water [distilled water]
Boiling (or evaporation, or Calgon, or normal washing-machine powder) will remove the temporary hardeness (from hydrogencarbonates) (as you will see inside your kettle), but not the permanent hardness (from sulfates), for which you will ion-exchange equipment (as a dishwasher has)
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25.02.2015, 15:10
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Basel
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| | Re: Ironing water [distilled water]
Due to the cost of dry cleaning in Switzerland, I find it cheaper to buy 52 suits in bulk at the beginning of the year and dispose of them on a weekly basis.
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25.02.2015, 15:53
| | Re: Ironing water [distilled water] | Quote: | |  | | | Due to the cost of dry cleaning in Switzerland, I find it cheaper to buy 52 suits in bulk at the beginning of the year and dispose of them on a weekly basis. | | | | | Good thing it's way past lunchtime  | 
25.02.2015, 17:38
| Member | | Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Oberlunkhofen
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| | Re: Ironing water | Quote: | |  | | | Boiling water does not remove the calc. | | | | | boiling and decanting will remove most of it. Boil a pot of water, whirlpool it and observe the sediment cone in the center.
As ChrisIDS mentions it will lower the temporary hardness.
you could also add lactic acid to remove temporary hardness.
you could also add calcium oxide and decant off of the sediment, but be care doing this, it can get warm.
Last edited by surfmase; 25.02.2015 at 18:31.
Reason: I miffed the ions up
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25.02.2015, 19:50
|  | Forum Veteran | | Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: SZ
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| | Re: Ironing water | Quote: | |  | | | boiling and decanting will remove most of it. Boil a pot of water, whirlpool it and observe the sediment cone in the center.
As ChrisIDS mentions it will lower the temporary hardness.
you could also add lactic acid to remove temporary hardness.
you could also add calcium oxide and decant off of the sediment, but be care doing this, it can get warm. | | | | | Thanks for the info, but I'm far too lazy to do all that just to save 2 francs on a bottle of distilled water | 
25.02.2015, 20:20
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: May 2008 Location: Kt. Zürich
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| | Re: Ironing water | Quote: | |  | | | boiling and decanting will remove most of it. Boil a pot of water, whirlpool it and observe the sediment cone in the center.
As ChrisIDS mentions it will lower the temporary hardness.
you could also add lactic acid to remove temporary hardness.
you could also add calcium oxide and decant off of the sediment, but be care doing this, it can get warm. | | | | | About "As ChrisIDS mentions it (boiling) will lower the temporary hardness." Indeed, depending on the hardness of the water you need to boil it for between 10 minutes and 30 minutes; this will not reduce the so called "permanent" hardness.
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25.02.2015, 22:48
| Member | | Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Oberlunkhofen
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| | Re: Ironing water | Quote: | |  | | | About "As ChrisIDS mentions it (boiling) will lower the temporary hardness." Indeed, depending on the hardness of the water you need to boil it for between 10 minutes and 30 minutes; this will not reduce the so called "permanent" hardness. | | | | | I believe the calc you referred to is a calcium carbonate. The temporary hardness is due to Ca and Mg ions. So i think we all agree that boiling helps. Also boiling is not even necessary, you could raise it over 80 and introduce CO2 to start the reaction. I pulled out a mounded Tsp of sediment from 10l by boiling and stirring for 10 minutes once. Of course this is all moot because distilled water is commercially available. I personally do not iron, i mix the water with malted barley, and I use the acid because its cheaper and easier.
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