How hard is the water in Tracy, CA?
Reported by Tracy, City of · October 2025
- CA typical
- 121 mg/L
- EPA health violations since 2016
- 0
- Softener for 3 people
- 24k grain
- Data
- Utility report
The water in Tracy carries roughly 67 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 3.9 grains per gallon. That is moderately hard water. The number comes from Tracy, City of, dated October 2025. Reports for this system disagree, with values from 67 to 84 mg/L.
At 67 mg/L, Tracy is 54 mg/L below the typical California figure of 121. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 4 have softer water and 6 have harder. The range nearby runs from 10 mg/L in Country Club to 161 in Pleasanton.
What 67 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.
3 people × 75 gallons a day × 3.9 gpg = 884 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 27 days.
EPA record for Tracy's water system
No health-based violations since 2016
Serves about 98,215 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 Tracy water hard?
Somewhat. It measures about 67 mg/L (3.9 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.
What is the water hardness in Tracy in grains per gallon?
About 3.9 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 67 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 3.9.
What size water softener do I need in Tracy?
For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 3.9 gpg works out to about 884 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 27 days.
Has the Tracy water system had EPA violations?
EPA records show no health-based violations for Tracy, City of since 2016.
Nearby cities
- Mountain House61 mg/LModerately hard
- Manteca75 mg/LModerately hard
- Discovery Bay137 mg/LHard
- Livermore94 mg/LModerately hard
- Ripon28 mg/LSoft
- Country Club10 mg/LSoft
- Salida44 mg/LSoft
- Brentwood86 mg/LModerately hard
- Oakley89 mg/LModerately hard
- Pleasanton161 mg/LHard
Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, October 7, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.