Is Clearlake, CA tap water safe?
The short answer
1 of the 4 utilities serving Clearlake has a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and California’s records: Highlands Mutual Water Company.
Highlands Mutual Water Company, which serves the most people here, has 1 result above the legal limit, 1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Haloacetic acids (HAA5) at 42.6 ppb, above the legal limit.
The water from Highlands Mutual Water Company is hard, typically 140 mg/L (8.2 grains per gallon). How California’s water compares.
A town can be served by more than one utility, and some homes are on private wells. The name on your water bill tells you which is yours, and your ZIP code narrows it down. They are listed by how many people each serves in Clearlake’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.
- Open report
Highlands Mutual Water Company
California · serves 7,772 people · about 2,600 in Clearlake
1 result above the legal limit, 1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Haloacetic acids (HAA5) at 42.6 ppb, above the legal limit. Hardness: hard, typically 140 mg/L (8.2 grains per gallon).
4 health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Golden State Water Co. - Clearlake System
California · serves 4,623 people · about 1,900 in Clearlake
3 results above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 27.5 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark. Hardness: hard to very hard depending on the source, 150 to 225 mg/L (8.8 to 13.1 grains per gallon).
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Konocti County Water District
California · serves 5,928 people · about 1,800 in Clearlake
1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 24 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark. Hardness: hard, 154 mg/L (9 grains per gallon).
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Windflower Point Mutual Water Company
California · serves 25 people · under 100 in Clearlake
Nothing in its records is above a health goal. Hardness: very hard, 191 mg/L (11.2 grains per gallon).
No health-based violations since 2016
What handles it
Each of these is certified, on a certifier’s listing, for a result above a line in Highlands Mutual Water Company’s water, which serves the most people here. Another utility’s report names what handles its own results.
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Countertop reverse osmosis
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 58NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
Certified for: Arsenic
Aquasana SmartFlow Reverse Osmosis (AQ-SFRO2)
Under-sink reverse osmosis
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 58NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 9, 2026
Certified for: Arsenic
Brondell Capella RC250 Reverse Osmosis System
Under-sink reverse osmosis
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 58NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 9, 2026
Certified for: Arsenic
Water testing near Clearlake
The 3 labs California certifies closest to Clearlake, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
K Prime, LLC.
Santa Rosa, CA · about 33 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, PFAS
Alpha Analytical Laboratories, Inc. - Ukiah
Ukiah, CA · about 34 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, organic chemicals, disinfection byproducts, radioactivity
Sonoma County Public Health Laboratory
Santa Rosa, CA · about 35 miles
Certified for bacteria
ZIP codes in Clearlake
Which ZIP codes are in Clearlake: Census 2020 relationship files. Which utilities serve them, and how many people: EPA SDWIS and EPA’s service area map. Each utility’s results: EPA UCMR 5, EPA SDWIS, and EPA’s and the state’s compliance monitoring, as its report lists them. How they are measured: methodology. Certified labs: California State Water Resources Control Board, ELAP accredited laboratories and their fields of accreditation; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer.
Near Clearlake
Other towns in Lake County with a page of their own.
What to do next
- Read Highlands Mutual Water Company’s full reportEvery result with its dates, the violations, and the certification claim that handles each finding.Open the report
- About Haloacetic acids (HAA5)What it does to health, where it comes from, and the certification claim that addresses it.About Haloacetic acids (HAA5)
- On a private well?No utility tests a well. A certified lab test is the first step.How to test well water