Brockton, MA water hardness

Tap water hardness
49mg/L
2.9gpg
SoftReports range 49–78

Reported by Stoughton Water Department · August 2025

MA typical
38 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
1
Data
Utility report

Brockton water measures 49 mg/L (2.9 gpg) of hardness, soft by USGS standards. The number comes from Stoughton Water Department, dated August 2025. Reports for this system disagree, with values from 49 to 78 mg/L.

Brockton on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+MA typical 38Weymouth: 28 mg/LWeymouth 28Milton: 44 mg/LMilton 44Norwood: 46 mg/LNorwood 46Sharon: 47 mg/LSharon 47Mansfield Center: 50 mg/LMansfield Center 50Braintree: 55 mg/LBraintree 55Bridgewater: 62 mg/LBridgewater 62Abington: 67 mg/LAbington 67Randolph: 68 mg/LRandolph 68Holbrook: 74 mg/LHolbrook 74Brockton 49mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+MA 38Sharon: 47 mg/LSharon 47Braintree: 55 mg/LBraintree 55Bridgewater: 62 mg/LBridgewater 62Abington: 67 mg/LAbington 67Randolph: 68 mg/LRandolph 68Holbrook: 74 mg/LHolbrook 7449 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Brockton sits 11 mg/L above the typical Massachusetts figure of 38. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 4 have softer water and 6 have harder. The range nearby runs from 28 mg/L in Weymouth to 74 in Holbrook.

What 49 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 49 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 Brockton's water system

Brockton Water Department · PWSID MA4044000

1 health-based violation since 2016

Serves about 105,788 people from surface water.

Health-based
1
Monitoring or reporting
1
Open now
0

EPA lists Brockton Water Department as the system serving Brockton. The hardness figure above comes from a different system's report, which TapWaterData uses for Brockton.

20162017201820192020202120222023202420252026Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)'16'18'20'22'24'26Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)
Each dot is one health-based violation, placed at the start of its compliance period.
Contaminant or ruleViolationsPeriodStatus
Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)a disinfection byproduct12018Resolved

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 Brockton water hard?

No. It measures about 49 mg/L (2.9 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 2.9 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 49 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 2.9.

Has the Brockton water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show 1 health-based violation for Brockton Water Department since 2016, involving Total trihalomethanes (TTHM). There were also 1 monitoring or reporting violation, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 104 cities in Massachusetts

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, August 1, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.