Gaffney, SC water hardness

Tap water hardness
21mg/L
1.2gpg
Soft

Reported by Grassy Pond Water CO Inc (Sc1120002) · November 2024

SC typical
32 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Data
Utility report

Gaffney water measures 21 mg/L (1.2 gpg) of hardness, soft by USGS standards. The number comes from Grassy Pond Water CO Inc (Sc1120002), dated November 2024.

Gaffney on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+SC typical 32Five Forks: 8 mg/LFive Forks 8Taylors: 8 mg/LTaylors 8Wade Hampton: 8 mg/LWade Hampton 8Fountain Inn: 8 mg/LFountain Inn 8Simpsonville: 8 mg/LSimpsonville 8Greer: 12 mg/LGreer 12Spartanburg: 16 mg/LSpartanburg 16Tega Cay: 28 mg/LTega Cay 28Fort Mill: 31 mg/LFort Mill 31Rock Hill: 33 mg/LRock Hill 33Gaffney 21mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+SC 32Five Forks: 8 mg/LFive Forks 8Taylors: 8 mg/LTaylors 8Greer: 12 mg/LGreer 12Spartanburg: 16 mg/LSpartanburg 16Tega Cay: 28 mg/LTega Cay 28Rock Hill: 33 mg/LRock Hill 3321 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Gaffney sits 11 mg/L below the typical South Carolina figure of 32. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 7 have softer water and 3 have harder. The range nearby runs from 8 mg/L in Five Forks to 33 in Rock Hill.

What 21 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 21 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 Gaffney's water system

Grassy Pond Water CO Inc (Sc1120002) · PWSID SC1120002

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 9,895 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 Gaffney water hard?

No. It measures about 21 mg/L (1.2 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 1.2 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 21 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 1.2.

Has the Gaffney water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Grassy Pond Water CO Inc (Sc1120002) since 2016.

Nearby cities

All 58 cities in South Carolina

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, November 22, 2024), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.