Burlingame, CA water hardness

Tap water hardness
31mg/L
1.8gpg
Soft

Reported by City of Burlingame · September 2025

CA typical
121 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Data
Utility report

Burlingame water measures 31 mg/L (1.8 gpg) of hardness, soft by USGS standards. The number comes from City of Burlingame, dated September 2025.

Burlingame on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+CA typical 121Foster City: 33 mg/LFoster City 33San Carlos: 33 mg/LSan Carlos 33San Mateo: 35 mg/LSan Mateo 35Hillsborough: 36 mg/LHillsborough 36Belmont: 37 mg/LBelmont 37Millbrae: 44 mg/LMillbrae 44San Bruno: 44 mg/LSan Bruno 44El Granada: 46 mg/LEl Granada 46South San Francisco: 64 mg/LSouth San Francisco 64Pacifica: 70 mg/LPacifica 70Burlingame 31mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+CA 121San Mateo: 35 mg/LSan Mateo 35Hillsborough: 36 mg/LHillsborou. 36Millbrae: 44 mg/LMillbrae 44San Bruno: 44 mg/LSan Bruno 44South San Francisco: 64 mg/LSouth San. 64Pacifica: 70 mg/LPacifica 7031 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Burlingame sits 90 mg/L below the typical California figure of 121. None of the 10 nearest cities we track has softer water. The range nearby runs from 33 mg/L in Foster City to 70 in Pacifica.

What 31 mg/L means at home

Soap and shampoo lather with very little product. Kettles and showerheads stay mostly free of white crust.

Some people notice that soap feels slow to rinse off in soft water. That slippery feel is normal and harmless.

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

Nothing, as far as hardness goes. At 31 mg/L a softener would have almost nothing to remove.

Carbon filter

If the water tastes of chlorine, a pitcher or faucet carbon filter takes care of that. It does not change hardness.

EPA record for Burlingame's water system

City of Burlingame · PWSID CA4110003

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 32,453 people from surface water.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
0
Open now
0

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 Burlingame water hard?

No. It measures about 31 mg/L (1.8 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 1.8 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 31 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 1.8.

Has the Burlingame water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for City of Burlingame since 2016.

Nearby cities

All 515 cities in California

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, September 15, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.