Hard water is the root of all evil here. A water softener replaces calcium with sodium (salt). It’s like giving your pipes a spa day, every day.
No softener? Install a scale inhibitor or a cheap magnetic descaler. Do they work? Science is mixed, but many swear by them. Worst case, you get a cool little magnet on your pipe for $20.
Quirky detail: Ancient Romans used to store water in lead pipes and thought calcium deposits were a sign of purity. They were wrong about lead, but right that scale is hard to remove.
