Winchester, MA water hardness

Tap water hardness
20mg/L
1.2gpg
Soft

Reported by Winchester Water Dept · May 2025

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

Tap water in Winchester has about 20 mg/L of hardness, which is 1.2 grains per gallon. On the USGS scale that counts as soft. The number comes from Winchester Water Dept, dated May 2025.

Winchester on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+MA typical 38Stoneham: 16 mg/LStoneham 16Belmont: 16 mg/LBelmont 16Arlington: 17 mg/LArlington 17Melrose: 18 mg/LMelrose 18Somerville: 20 mg/LSomerville 20Medford: 21 mg/LMedford 21Malden: 25 mg/LMalden 25Lexington: 33 mg/LLexington 33Woburn: 99 mg/LWoburn 99Burlington: 104 mg/LBurlington 104Winchester 20mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+MA 38Stoneham: 16 mg/LStoneham 16Belmont: 16 mg/LBelmont 16Arlington: 17 mg/LArlington 17Melrose: 18 mg/LMelrose 18Medford: 21 mg/LMedford 21Woburn: 99 mg/LWoburn 9920 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Winchester sits 18 mg/L below the typical Massachusetts figure of 38. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 4 have softer water and 5 have harder. The range nearby runs from 16 mg/L in Stoneham to 104 in Burlington.

What 20 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 20 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 Winchester's water system

Winchester Water Dept · PWSID MA3344000

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 22,970 people from surface water.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
12
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 Winchester water hard?

No. It measures about 20 mg/L (1.2 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 1.2 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 20 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 1.2.

Has the Winchester water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Winchester Water Dept since 2016. There were also 12 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, May 13, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.