How hard is the water in Gardiner, ME?

Tap water hardness
96mg/L
5.6gpg
Moderately hard

Reported by Gardiner Water District · May 2022

ME typical
16 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Softener for 3 people
24k grain
Data
Utility report

The water in Gardiner carries roughly 96 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 5.6 grains per gallon. That is moderately hard water. The number comes from Gardiner Water District, dated May 2022.

Gardiner on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+ME typical 16Portland: 8 mg/LPortland 8Bath: 9 mg/LBath 9Brunswick: 14 mg/LBrunswick 14Lewiston: 16 mg/LLewiston 16Winslow: 28 mg/LWinslow 28Topsham: 39 mg/LTopsham 39Yarmouth: 76 mg/LYarmouth 76Auburn: 89 mg/LAuburn 89Waterville: 102 mg/LWaterville 102Augusta: 136 mg/LAugusta 136Gardiner 96mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+ME 16Bath: 9 mg/LBath 9Brunswick: 14 mg/LBrunswick 14Lewiston: 16 mg/LLewiston 16Topsham: 39 mg/LTopsham 39Auburn: 89 mg/LAuburn 89Augusta: 136 mg/LAugusta 13696 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Gardiner sits 80 mg/L above the typical Maine figure of 16. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 8 have softer water and 2 have harder. The range nearby runs from 8 mg/L in Portland to 136 in Augusta.

What 96 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.

Softener size for Gardiner

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 5.6 gpg = 1,262 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 19 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for Gardiner's water system

Gardiner Water District · PWSID ME0090610

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 9,000 people from groundwater.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
16
Open now
1

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 Gardiner water hard?

Somewhat. It measures about 96 mg/L (5.6 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.

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

About 5.6 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 96 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 5.6.

What size water softener do I need in Gardiner?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 5.6 gpg works out to about 1,262 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 19 days.

Has the Gardiner water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Gardiner Water District since 2016. There were also 16 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 23 cities in Maine

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, May 16, 2022), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.