How hard is the water in Golden Valley, MN?

Tap water hardness
90mg/L
5.2gpg
Moderately hard

Reported by Golden Valley · July 2025

MN typical
160 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Softener for 3 people
24k grain
Data
Utility report

Golden Valley water measures 90 mg/L (5.2 gpg) of hardness, moderately hard by USGS standards. The number comes from Golden Valley, dated July 2025.

Golden Valley on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+MN typical 160Brooklyn Center: 79 mg/LBrooklyn Center 79Minneapolis: 89 mg/LMinneapolis 89St. Louis Park: 112 mg/LSt. Louis Park 112Brooklyn Park: 120 mg/LBrooklyn Park 120Edina: 146 mg/LEdina 146Hopkins: 163 mg/LHopkins 163Minnetonka: 186 mg/LMinnetonka 186Robbinsdale: 201 mg/LRobbinsdale 201New Brighton: 230 mg/LNew Brighton 230St. Anthony: 254 mg/LSt. Anthony 254Golden Valley 90mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+MN 160Brooklyn Center: 79 mg/LBrooklyn C. 79Minneapolis: 89 mg/LMinneapolis 89St. Louis Park: 112 mg/LSt. Louis. 112Hopkins: 163 mg/LHopkins 163Minnetonka: 186 mg/LMinnetonka 186Robbinsdale: 201 mg/LRobbinsdale 20190 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Golden Valley sits 70 mg/L below the typical Minnesota figure of 160. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 2 have softer water and 8 have harder. The range nearby runs from 79 mg/L in Brooklyn Center to 254 in St. Anthony.

What 90 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.

Softener size for Golden Valley

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 5.2 gpg = 1,179 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 20 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for Golden Valley's water system

Golden Valley · PWSID MN1270014

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 23,000 people from surface water.

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 Golden Valley water hard?

Somewhat. It measures about 90 mg/L (5.2 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.

What is the water hardness in Golden Valley in grains per gallon?

About 5.2 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 90 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 5.2.

What size water softener do I need in Golden Valley?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 5.2 gpg works out to about 1,179 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 20 days.

Has the Golden Valley water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Golden Valley since 2016.

Nearby cities

All 57 cities in Minnesota

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, July 21, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.