Modesto, CA water hardness

Tap water hardness
44mg/L
2.6gpg
SoftReports range 14–44

Reported by Modesto, City of · April 2025

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

The water in Modesto carries roughly 44 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 2.6 grains per gallon. That is soft water. The number comes from Modesto, City of, dated April 2025. Reports for this system disagree, with values from 14 to 44 mg/L.

Modesto on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+CA typical 121Waterford: 16 mg/LWaterford 16Ripon: 28 mg/LRipon 28Escalon: 28 mg/LEscalon 28West Modesto: 44 mg/LWest Modesto 44Salida: 44 mg/LSalida 44Ceres: 66 mg/LCeres 66Oakdale: 94 mg/LOakdale 94Turlock: 98 mg/LTurlock 98Denair: 118 mg/LDenair 118Riverbank: 196 mg/LRiverbank 196Modesto 44mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+CA 121Ripon: 28 mg/LRipon 28Escalon: 28 mg/LEscalon 28West Modesto: 44 mg/LWest Modes. 44Salida: 44 mg/LSalida 44Ceres: 66 mg/LCeres 66Riverbank: 196 mg/LRiverbank 19644 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 44 mg/L, Modesto is 77 mg/L below the typical California figure of 121. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 3 have softer water and 5 have harder. The range nearby runs from 16 mg/L in Waterford to 196 in Riverbank.

What 44 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 44 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 Modesto's water system

Modesto, City of · PWSID CA5010010

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 218,915 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 Modesto water hard?

No. It measures about 44 mg/L (2.6 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 2.6 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 44 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 2.6.

Has the Modesto water system had EPA violations?

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

Nearby cities

All 515 cities in California

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, April 21, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.