How hard is the water in Montpelier, VT?
Reported by Montpelier Water System · January 2025
- VT typical
- 62 mg/L
- EPA health violations since 2016
- 0
- Softener for 3 people
- 24k grain
- Data
- Utility report
Tap water in Montpelier has about 101 mg/L of hardness, which is 5.9 grains per gallon. On the USGS scale that counts as moderately hard. The number comes from Montpelier Water System, dated January 2025.
At 101 mg/L, Montpelier is 39 mg/L above the typical Vermont figure of 62. None of the 4 nearest cities we track has harder water. The range nearby runs from 60 mg/L in Barre to 67 in South Burlington.
What 101 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.
3 people × 75 gallons a day × 5.9 gpg = 1,330 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 18 days.
EPA record for Montpelier's water system
No health-based violations since 2016
Serves about 8,912 people from surface water.
- 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 Montpelier water hard?
Somewhat. It measures about 101 mg/L (5.9 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.
What is the water hardness in Montpelier in grains per gallon?
About 5.9 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 101 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 5.9.
What size water softener do I need in Montpelier?
For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 5.9 gpg works out to about 1,330 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 18 days.
Has the Montpelier water system had EPA violations?
EPA records show no health-based violations for Montpelier Water System since 2016. There were also 3 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.
Nearby cities
- Barre60 mg/LSoft
- South Burlington67 mg/LModerately hard
- Winooski62 mg/LModerately hard
- Burlington62 mg/LModerately hard
Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, January 22, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.