“…Bartolini et al (2004) have shown that although quatbased biocides have a high extraction capacity for pigments, such as green chlorophyll a, orange β-carotene, and the brown scytonemin contained in dark cyanobacteria biofilms, these pigments can remain embedded in stone even after the organisms have been eliminated (Delgado Rodrigues and Valero, 2003). The effectiveness of quats as a biocide was found to be reduced by more than 90% when mixed with hard water, that is, with concentrations of calcium and magnesium ions greater than about 10 ppm (Ridenour and Armbruster, 1948). As a reference, moderately hard water, such as the tap water in Washington, D.C., contains between 70 and 120 ppm of calcium and magnesium ions, hard water contains between 120 and 180 ppm, and very hard water contains over 180 ppm.…”