Salisbury, MD water hardness

Tap water hardness
32mg/L
1.9gpg
Soft

Reported by City of Salisbury · May 2025

MD typical
105 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Data
Utility report

The water in Salisbury carries roughly 32 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 1.9 grains per gallon. That is soft water. The number comes from City of Salisbury, dated May 2025.

Salisbury on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+MD typical 105Fort Meade: 4 mg/LFort Meade 4Easton: 24 mg/LEaston 24Waldorf: 31 mg/LWaldorf 31Severna Park: 35 mg/LSeverna Park 35Crofton: 77 mg/LCrofton 77Odenton: 77 mg/LOdenton 77Bowie: 78 mg/LBowie 78Fairwood: 78 mg/LFairwood 78Chesapeake Beach: 130 mg/LChesapeake Beach 130Baltimore: 169 mg/LBaltimore 169Salisbury 32mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+MD 105Easton: 24 mg/LEaston 24Waldorf: 31 mg/LWaldorf 31Severna Park: 35 mg/LSeverna Pa. 35Crofton: 77 mg/LCrofton 77Bowie: 78 mg/LBowie 78Chesapeake Beach: 130 mg/LChesapeake. 13032 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

At 32 mg/L, Salisbury is 73 mg/L below the typical Maryland figure of 105. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 3 have softer water and 7 have harder. The range nearby runs from 4 mg/L in Fort Meade to 169 in Baltimore.

What 32 mg/L means at home

Soap and shampoo lather with very little product. Kettles and showerheads stay mostly free of white crust.

Some people notice that soap feels slow to rinse off in soft water. That slippery feel is normal and harmless.

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

Nothing, as far as hardness goes. At 32 mg/L a softener would have almost nothing to remove.

Carbon filter

If the water tastes of chlorine, a pitcher or faucet carbon filter takes care of that. It does not change hardness.

EPA record for Salisbury's water system

City of Salisbury · PWSID MD0220004

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 30,343 people from groundwater.

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 Salisbury water hard?

No. It measures about 32 mg/L (1.9 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 1.9 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 32 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 1.9.

Has the Salisbury water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for City of Salisbury since 2016.

Nearby cities

All 24 cities in Maryland

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, May 23, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.