Southern Pines, NC water hardness

Tap water hardness
34mg/L
2.0gpg
Soft

Reported by Southern Pines, Town of · October 2025

NC typical
31 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
1
Data
Utility report

Tap water in Southern Pines has about 34 mg/L of hardness, which is 2.0 grains per gallon. On the USGS scale that counts as soft. The number comes from Southern Pines, Town of, dated October 2025.

Southern Pines on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+NC typical 31Fayetteville: 29 mg/LFayetteville 29Hope Mills: 29 mg/LHope Mills 29Pinehurst: 34 mg/LPinehurst 34Asheboro: 42 mg/LAsheboro 42Sanford: 50 mg/LSanford 50Spout Springs: 51 mg/LSpout Springs 51Barbecue: 51 mg/LBarbecue 51Anderson Creek: 51 mg/LAnderson Creek 51Lillington: 51 mg/LLillington 51Angier: 51 mg/LAngier 51Southern Pines 34mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+NC 31Fayetteville: 29 mg/LFayettevil. 29Pinehurst: 34 mg/LPinehurst 34Sanford: 50 mg/LSanford 50Spout Springs: 51 mg/LSpout Spri. 51Barbecue: 51 mg/LBarbecue 51Anderson Creek: 51 mg/LAnderson C. 5134 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Southern Pines sits close to the typical North Carolina figure of 31 mg/L. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 2 have softer water and 7 have harder. The range nearby runs from 29 mg/L in Fayetteville to 51 in Spout Springs.

What 34 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 34 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 Southern Pines's water system

Southern Pines, Town of · PWSID NC0363010

1 health-based violation since 2016

Serves about 24,102 people from surface water.

Health-based
1
Monitoring or reporting
3
Open now
0
20162017201820192020202120222023202420252026Lead and Copper Rule'16'18'20'22'24'26Lead and Copper Rule
Each dot is one health-based violation, placed at the start of its compliance period.
Contaminant or ruleViolationsPeriodStatus
Lead and Copper Rulecorrosion control and lead sampling12024Resolved

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 Southern Pines water hard?

No. It measures about 34 mg/L (2.0 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

What is the water hardness in Southern Pines in grains per gallon?

About 2.0 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 34 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 2.0.

Has the Southern Pines water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show 1 health-based violation for Southern Pines, Town of since 2016, involving Lead and Copper Rule. There were also 3 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 101 cities in North Carolina

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, October 6, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.