Is Redwood City, CA tap water safe?
The short answer
Neither of the 2 utilities serving Redwood City has a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and California’s records.
City of Redwood City, which serves the most people here, has nothing above a health goal in EPA’s and California’s records. That data covers what its report lists, not everything.
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 Redwood City’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.
- Open report
City of Redwood City
California · serves 90,043 people · about 65,000 in Redwood City
Nothing in its records is above a health goal.
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
California Water Service - Bear Gulch
California · serves 60,382 people · about 11,100 in Redwood City
2 results above the health goal. The worst: Lead at 4.0 ppb, above the health goal. Hardness: moderately hard to very hard depending on the source, 65 to 281 mg/L (3.8 to 16.4 grains per gallon).
No health-based violations since 2016
Water testing near Redwood City
The 3 labs California certifies closest to Redwood City, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
San Mateo County Public Health Laboratory
San Mateo, CA · about 5 miles
Certified for bacteria
Eurofins Built Environment Testing West-Burlingame
Burlingame, CA · about 10 miles
Certified for bacteria
Garratt-Callahan Laboratory
Burlingame, CA · about 11 miles
Certified for nitrate, metals, minerals and other inorganics
Which ZIP codes are in Redwood City: 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 Redwood City
Other towns in San Mateo County with a page of their own.
What to do next
- Read City of Redwood City’s full reportEvery result with its dates, the violations, and the certification claim that handles each finding.Open the report
- Decide if you want a filter at allA filter for taste or chlorine is a preference, not a need. The standards say what each kind can do.NSF/ANSI standards, decoded
- On a private well?No utility tests a well. A certified lab test is the first step.How to test well water