Plymouth, MA water hardness

Tap water hardness
26mg/L
1.5gpg
SoftReports range 14–26

Reported by Plymouth Water Department · December 2023

MA typical
38 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Data
Utility report

The water in Plymouth carries roughly 26 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 1.5 grains per gallon. That is soft water. The number comes from Plymouth Water Department, dated December 2023. Reports for this system disagree, with values from 14 to 26 mg/L.

Plymouth on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+MA typical 38Weymouth: 28 mg/LWeymouth 28North Scituate: 35 mg/LNorth Scituate 35Kingston: 39 mg/LKingston 39Middleborough Center: 42 mg/LMiddleborough Center 42Brockton: 49 mg/LBrockton 49Bridgewater: 62 mg/LBridgewater 62Abington: 67 mg/LAbington 67Scituate: 68 mg/LScituate 68Holbrook: 74 mg/LHolbrook 74Hingham: 123 mg/LHingham 123Plymouth 26mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+MA 38North Scituate: 35 mg/LNorth Scit. 35Kingston: 39 mg/LKingston 39Middleborough Center: 42 mg/LMiddleboro. 42Bridgewater: 62 mg/LBridgewater 62Abington: 67 mg/LAbington 67Scituate: 68 mg/LScituate 6826 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 26 mg/L, Plymouth is 12 mg/L below the typical Massachusetts figure of 38. None of the 10 nearest cities we track has softer water. The range nearby runs from 28 mg/L in Weymouth to 123 in Hingham.

What 26 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 26 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 Plymouth's water system

Plymouth Water Department · PWSID MA4239000

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 47,100 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 Plymouth water hard?

No. It measures about 26 mg/L (1.5 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 1.5 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 26 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 1.5.

Has the Plymouth water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Plymouth Water Department since 2016. There were also 2 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 104 cities in Massachusetts

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, December 21, 2023), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.