How hard is the water in Old, ME?
Reported by Old Town Water District · June 2022
- ME typical
- 16 mg/L
- EPA health violations since 2016
- 0
- Softener for 3 people
- 24k grain
- Data
- Utility report
The water in Old carries roughly 68 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 4.0 grains per gallon. That is moderately hard water. The number comes from Old Town Water District, dated June 2022. Reports for this system disagree, with values from 56 to 68 mg/L.
Old sits 52 mg/L above the typical Maine figure of 16. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 6 have softer water and 4 have harder. The range nearby runs from 6 mg/L in Bangor to 136 in Augusta.
What 68 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 × 4.0 gpg = 889 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 27 days.
EPA record for Old's water system
No health-based violations since 2016
Serves about 7,648 people from groundwater.
- Health-based
- 0
- Monitoring or reporting
- 2
- 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 Old water hard?
Somewhat. It measures about 68 mg/L (4.0 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.
What is the water hardness in Old in grains per gallon?
About 4.0 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 68 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 4.0.
What size water softener do I need in Old?
For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 4.0 gpg works out to about 889 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 27 days.
Has the Old water system had EPA violations?
EPA records show no health-based violations for Old Town Water District since 2016. There were also 2 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.
Nearby cities
- Orono44 mg/LSoft
- Bangor6 mg/LSoft
- Brewer6 mg/LSoft
- Ellsworth74 mg/LModerately hard
- Winslow28 mg/LSoft
- Waterville102 mg/LModerately hard
- Augusta136 mg/LHard
- Gardiner96 mg/LModerately hard
- Bath9 mg/LSoft
- Topsham39 mg/LSoft
Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, June 21, 2022), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.