New York water hardness, by utility.
The short answer
Soft water reaches the most people here: 1 utility serving 8.3 million. One more utility, serving 350,000, has water in more than one band.
The largest, New York City System, is soft on average, 32 mg/L (1.9 grains per gallon), ranging from 18 to 100 mg/L.
Moderately hard
61 to 120 mg/L (3.6 to 7 grains per gallon). 1 utility serving 525,262 people, largest first.
| Utility | Based in | Serves | Hardness, mg/L | Grains per gallon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCWA | Victor (V) | 525,262 | 93 to 120 | 5.4 to 7 |
Soft
Up to 60 mg/L (3.5 grains per gallon). 1 utility serving 8.3 million people, largest first.
| Utility | Based in | Serves | Hardness, mg/L | Grains per gallon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York City System | New York (C) | 8,271,000 | 32 | 1.9 |
Varies
Water in more than one band, depending on where or when it was sampled: each is given as its range, softest to hardest, and its report says more. 1 utility serving 350,000 people, largest first.
| Utility | Based in | Serves | Hardness, mg/L | Grains per gallon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OCWA | Syracuse (C) | 350,000 | 115 to 190 | 6.7 to 11.1 |
Source: 3 utilities’ own water quality reports, read by hand, each named on the utility’s page.
Bands are the U.S. Geological Survey’s, at 17.1 mg/L to the grain. People served is what each utility reports; where one sells water to another, the same people can be counted twice. How hardness is measured here.
Where to go next
- Softeners comparedCertified softeners and what each costs over five years, salt included, at your water’s hardness.Softeners, salt included
- Softener or conditioner?What each does about scale, what it costs to run, and the certification to look for.Softener or salt-free conditioner
- Hardness across the USEvery state with hardness results, and the hardest and softest large utilities.US water hardness
- New York utilitiesEvery utility with a full report: what its results show, and its violations.New York tap water