Hard water in Selma, TX
Reported by City of Selma · June 2022
- TX typical
- 112 mg/L
- EPA health violations since 2016
- 0
- Softener for 3 people
- 24k grain
- Data
- Utility report
Tap water in Selma has about 180 mg/L of hardness, which is 10.5 grains per gallon. On the USGS scale that counts as hard. The number comes from City of Selma, dated June 2022. Reports for this system disagree, with values from 180 to 235 mg/L.
At 180 mg/L, Selma is 68 mg/L above the typical Texas figure of 112. None of the 10 nearest cities we track has harder water. The range nearby runs from 85 mg/L in Cibolo to 180 in Live Oak.
What 180 mg/L means at home
Expect white crust on faucets and showerheads, plus spots on dishes that come out of the dishwasher.
Kettles collect scale quickly. Water heaters build up sediment at the bottom of the tank, which makes them work harder over time.
Soap and detergent need a little more to lather, and soap scum shows up in the tub.
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
At 180 mg/L most of the trouble is scale, and only a few things deal with it.
Ion-exchange water softener
The standard whole-house fix. It swaps calcium and magnesium for sodium or potassium and needs salt plus a drain. Size it with the calculator below.
Salt-free conditioner
No salt and no drain line. It changes how minerals form scale instead of removing them, so water still tests hard.
Reverse osmosis or carbon filter
Under-sink reverse osmosis removes minerals from drinking water only. Plain carbon filters improve taste but do not soften.
3 people × 75 gallons a day × 10.5 gpg = 2,369 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 10 days.
EPA record for Selma's water system
No health-based violations since 2016
Serves about 11,418 people from groundwater.
- Health-based
- 0
- Monitoring or reporting
- 3
- 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 Selma water hard?
Yes. It measures about 180 mg/L (10.5 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as hard.
What is the water hardness in Selma in grains per gallon?
About 10.5 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 180 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 10.5.
What size water softener do I need in Selma?
For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 10.5 gpg works out to about 2,369 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 10 days.
Has the Selma water system had EPA violations?
EPA records show no health-based violations for City of Selma since 2016. There were also 3 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.
Nearby cities
- Universal City121 mg/LHard
- Live Oak180 mg/LHard
- Schertz176 mg/LHard
- Converse179 mg/LHard
- Cibolo85 mg/LModerately hard
- Windcrest180 mg/LHard
- Kirby180 mg/LHard
- Terrell Hills180 mg/LHard
- Alamo Heights180 mg/LHard
- Timberwood Park180 mg/LHard
Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, June 27, 2022), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.