Hard water in Pittsburg, KS
Reported by Pittsburg, City of · June 2022
- KS typical
- 138 mg/L
- EPA health violations since 2016
- 0
- Softener for 3 people
- 24k grain
- Data
- Utility report
The water in Pittsburg carries roughly 131 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 7.7 grains per gallon. That is hard water. The number comes from Pittsburg, City of, dated June 2022.
Pittsburg sits close to the typical Kansas figure of 138 mg/L. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 1 has softer water and 9 have harder. The range nearby runs from 129 mg/L in Parsons to 180 in Coffeyville.
What 131 mg/L means at home
Expect white crust on faucets and showerheads, plus spots on dishes that come out of the dishwasher.
Kettles collect scale quickly. Water heaters build up sediment at the bottom of the tank, which makes them work harder over time.
Soap and detergent need a little more to lather, and soap scum shows up in the tub.
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
At 131 mg/L most of the trouble is scale, and only a few things deal with it.
Ion-exchange water softener
The standard whole-house fix. It swaps calcium and magnesium for sodium or potassium and needs salt plus a drain. Size it with the calculator below.
Salt-free conditioner
No salt and no drain line. It changes how minerals form scale instead of removing them, so water still tests hard.
Reverse osmosis or carbon filter
Under-sink reverse osmosis removes minerals from drinking water only. Plain carbon filters improve taste but do not soften.
3 people × 75 gallons a day × 7.7 gpg = 1,721 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 13 days.
EPA record for Pittsburg's water system
No health-based violations since 2016
Serves about 20,738 people from groundwater.
- Health-based
- 0
- Monitoring or reporting
- 1
- 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 Pittsburg water hard?
Yes. It measures about 131 mg/L (7.7 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as hard.
What is the water hardness in Pittsburg in grains per gallon?
About 7.7 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 131 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 7.7.
What size water softener do I need in Pittsburg?
For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 7.7 gpg works out to about 1,721 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 13 days.
Has the Pittsburg water system had EPA violations?
EPA records show no health-based violations for Pittsburg, City of since 2016. There were also 1 monitoring or reporting violation, which are about late or missing tests and notices.
Nearby cities
- Parsons129 mg/LHard
- Coffeyville180 mg/LHard
- Paola133 mg/LHard
- Louisburg133 mg/LHard
- Ottawa144 mg/LHard
- Spring Hill135 mg/LHard
- Gardner135 mg/LHard
- Olathe140 mg/LHard
- Overland Park135 mg/LHard
- Leawood135 mg/LHard
Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, June 14, 2022), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.