How hard is the water in Birmingham, AL?

Tap water hardness
77mg/L
4.5gpg
Moderately hardReports range 60–77

Reported by Birmingham Water Works Board · March 2025

AL typical
73 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Softener for 3 people
24k grain
Data
Utility report

The water in Birmingham carries roughly 77 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 4.5 grains per gallon. That is moderately hard water. The number comes from Birmingham Water Works Board, dated March 2025. Reports for this system disagree, with values from 60 to 77 mg/L.

Birmingham on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+AL typical 73Mountain Brook: 77 mg/LMountain Brook 77Homewood: 77 mg/LHomewood 77Forestdale: 77 mg/LForestdale 77Center Point: 77 mg/LCenter Point 77Irondale: 79 mg/LIrondale 79Bessemer: 113 mg/LBessemer 113Hueytown: 113 mg/LHueytown 113Leeds: 147 mg/LLeeds 147Trussville: 155 mg/LTrussville 155Pelham: 169 mg/LPelham 169Birmingham 77mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+AL 73Mountain Brook: 77 mg/LMountain B. 77Homewood: 77 mg/LHomewood 77Forestdale: 77 mg/LForestdale 77Center Point: 77 mg/LCenter Poi. 77Irondale: 79 mg/LIrondale 79Leeds: 147 mg/LLeeds 14777 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

At 77 mg/L, Birmingham is close to the typical Alabama figure of 73 mg/L. None of the 10 nearest cities we track has softer water. The range nearby runs from 77 mg/L in Mountain Brook to 169 in Pelham.

What 77 mg/L means at home

You may see faint white spots on glasses and shower doors after the water dries.

Scale builds up slowly. A kettle or coffee maker needs descaling now and then, maybe every few months.

Hardness is not a health problem, and EPA sets no limit for it. It is a matter of scale and soap.

What to do about it

Optional. Plenty of households at this level live with it and descale the kettle now and then.

Water softener

Worth a look if spots on glass bother you, or if your tankless water heater manual asks for softer water.

Carbon filter

Improves taste and removes chlorine. It leaves calcium and magnesium in place.

Softener size for Birmingham

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 4.5 gpg = 1,010 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 23 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for Birmingham's water system

Central Alabama Water · PWSID AL0000738

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 653,322 people from surface water.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
4
Open now
1

Health-based means a contaminant above its legal limit or a missed treatment step. Monitoring and reporting violations are late or missing tests and notices. Source: EPA ECHO, 2026Q3 export, violations with periods starting 2016 or later. Full EPA record.

Questions

Is Birmingham water hard?

Somewhat. It measures about 77 mg/L (4.5 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.

What is the water hardness in Birmingham in grains per gallon?

About 4.5 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 77 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 4.5.

What size water softener do I need in Birmingham?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 4.5 gpg works out to about 1,010 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 23 days.

Has the Birmingham water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Central Alabama Water since 2016. There were also 4 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 91 cities in Alabama

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, March 3, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.