Myrtle Beach, SC water hardness

Tap water hardness
30mg/L
1.8gpg
SoftCounty estimate

County estimate from 489 water samples in Horry County · July 2026

SC typical
32 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Data
County estimate

Water samples from around Myrtle Beach put hardness at about 30 mg/L (1.8 gpg), which would be soft on the USGS scale. Treat this as a rough guide: it is the median of 489 samples taken across Horry County, mostly wells and streams, not a test of Myrtle Beach's treated tap water. One more reason for caution: EPA lists Myrtle Beach's water system as using surface water, which is often softer than the wells behind the county figure.

Myrtle Beach on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+SC typical 32Moncks Corner: 20 mg/LMoncks Corner 20Florence: 21 mg/LFlorence 21North Myrtle Beach: 30 mg/LNorth Myrtle Beach 30Socastee: 31 mg/LSocastee 31Murrells Inlet: 31 mg/LMurrells Inlet 31Little River: 41 mg/LLittle River 41Red Hill: 42 mg/LRed Hill 42Conway: 42 mg/LConway 42Goose Creek: 46 mg/LGoose Creek 46Hanahan: 51 mg/LHanahan 51Myrtle Beach 30mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+SC 32North Myrtle Beach: 30 mg/LNorth Myrt. 30Socastee: 31 mg/LSocastee 31Murrells Inlet: 31 mg/LMurrells I. 31Little River: 41 mg/LLittle Riv. 41Red Hill: 42 mg/LRed Hill 42Conway: 42 mg/LConway 4230 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Myrtle Beach sits close to the typical South Carolina figure of 32 mg/L. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 2 have softer water and 7 have harder. The range nearby runs from 20 mg/L in Moncks Corner to 51 in Hanahan.

What 30 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 30 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 Myrtle Beach's water system

Myrtle Beach City of · PWSID SC2610001

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 49,375 people from surface water.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
4
Open now
0

EPA lists this system as serving Myrtle Beach.

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 Myrtle Beach water hard?

No. It measures about 30 mg/L (1.8 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

What is the water hardness in Myrtle Beach in grains per gallon?

About 1.8 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 30 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 1.8.

Has the Myrtle Beach water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Myrtle Beach City of since 2016. There were also 4 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 58 cities in South Carolina

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (county estimate, July 4, 2026), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.