The “specialty waters” market has reached unprecedented levels of popularity, with virtually all the leading soft drink companies promoting various flavored mineral waters, sparkling waters, glacier-sourced or filled under a full moon in a bottle decorated with Swarovski crystals.  Not all commercial waters are worth their exceedingly decorative packaging, however. While it may be a...

You can’t miss the telltale signs of hard water: glasses come out of the dishwasher looking cloudy, shampoo takes forever and a day to wash out of your hair, and the unpleasant presence of chalky, white buildup around faucets and drains is inescapable.  According to the U.S. Geological Survey, nearly 90 percent of homes in...