How hard is the water in South Houston, TX?

Tap water hardness
60mg/L
3.5gpg
Moderately hard

Reported by City of South Houston · June 2022

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

South Houston water measures 60 mg/L (3.5 gpg) of hardness, moderately hard by USGS standards. The number comes from City of South Houston, dated June 2022.

South Houston on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+TX typical 112Jacinto City: 33 mg/LJacinto City 33Webster: 42 mg/LWebster 42Channelview: 42 mg/LChannelview 42Cloverleaf: 48 mg/LCloverleaf 48La Porte: 51 mg/LLa Porte 51Galena Park: 57 mg/LGalena Park 57Pasadena: 68 mg/LPasadena 68Friendswood: 69 mg/LFriendswood 69Pearland: 79 mg/LPearland 79Deer Park: 85 mg/LDeer Park 85South Houston 60mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+TX 112Jacinto City: 33 mg/LJacinto Ci. 33Cloverleaf: 48 mg/LCloverleaf 48Galena Park: 57 mg/LGalena Park 57Pasadena: 68 mg/LPasadena 68Pearland: 79 mg/LPearland 79Deer Park: 85 mg/LDeer Park 8560 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

At 60 mg/L, South Houston is 52 mg/L below the typical Texas figure of 112. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 6 have softer water and 4 have harder. The range nearby runs from 33 mg/L in Jacinto City to 85 in Deer Park.

What 60 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 South Houston

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 3.5 gpg = 790 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 30 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for South Houston's water system

City of South Houston · PWSID TX1010294

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 17,397 people from surface water.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
1
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 South Houston water hard?

Somewhat. It measures about 60 mg/L (3.5 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.

What is the water hardness in South Houston in grains per gallon?

About 3.5 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 60 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 3.5.

What size water softener do I need in South Houston?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 3.5 gpg works out to about 790 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 30 days.

Has the South Houston water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for City of South Houston since 2016. There were also 1 monitoring or reporting violation, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 342 cities in Texas

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, June 20, 2022), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.