Hard water in Pikeville, KY
Reported by Pikeville Water Department · August 2023
- KY typical
- 134 mg/L
- EPA health violations since 2016
- 12
- Softener for 3 people
- 24k grain
- Data
- Utility report
Pikeville water measures 184 mg/L (10.8 gpg) of hardness, very hard by USGS standards. The number comes from Pikeville Water Department, dated August 2023.
Pikeville sits 50 mg/L above the typical Kentucky figure of 134. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 8 have softer water and 2 have harder. The range nearby runs from 110 mg/L in Alexandria to 199 in Frankfort.
What 184 mg/L means at home
Scale forms fast here. Kettles and coffee makers need regular descaling, and showerheads clog unless you clean them.
Tank water heaters collect mineral sediment that insulates the water from the burner, so flushing the tank matters more than usual.
Dishes and glass shower doors spot easily. Soap scum and a dull film on hair or laundry are common complaints.
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 184 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 × 10.8 gpg = 2,421 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 9 days.
EPA record for Pikeville's water system
12 health-based violations since 2016
Serves about 9,638 people from surface water.
- Health-based
- 12
- Monitoring or reporting
- 6
- Open now
- 0
| Contaminant or rule | Violations | Period | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)a disinfection byproduct | 12 | 2016–2020 | Resolved |
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 Pikeville water hard?
Yes. It measures about 184 mg/L (10.8 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as very hard.
What is the water hardness in Pikeville in grains per gallon?
About 10.8 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 184 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 10.8.
What size water softener do I need in Pikeville?
For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 10.8 gpg works out to about 2,421 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 9 days.
Has the Pikeville water system had EPA violations?
EPA records show 12 health-based violations for Pikeville Water Department since 2016, involving Total trihalomethanes (TTHM). There were also 6 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.
Nearby cities
- Ashland161 mg/LHard
- Richmond186 mg/LVery hard
- Paris144 mg/LHard
- Lexington158 mg/LHard
- Nicholasville160 mg/LHard
- Frankfort199 mg/LVery hard
- Alexandria110 mg/LModerately hard
- Cold Spring110 mg/LModerately hard
- Walton110 mg/LModerately hard
- Independence110 mg/LModerately hard
Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, August 15, 2023), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.