How hard is the water in Bon Air, VA?
Reported by Henrico County Water System · October 2025
- VA typical
- 65 mg/L
- EPA health violations since 2016
- 0
- Softener for 3 people
- 24k grain
- Data
- Utility report
Tap water in Bon Air has about 65 mg/L of hardness, which is 3.8 grains per gallon. On the USGS scale that counts as moderately hard. The number comes from Henrico County Water System, dated October 2025.
At 65 mg/L, Bon Air is close to the typical Virginia figure of 65 mg/L. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 4 have softer water and 1 has harder. The range nearby runs from 45 mg/L in Rockwood to 67 in Richmond.
What 65 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 × 3.8 gpg = 857 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 27 days.
EPA record for Bon Air's water system
No health-based violations since 2016
Serves about 330,000 people from surface water.
- Health-based
- 0
- Monitoring or reporting
- 0
- Open now
- 0
TapWaterData ties Bon Air to this system. EPA's service-area records do not name Bon Air, so check the utility printed on your water bill.
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 Bon Air water hard?
Somewhat. It measures about 65 mg/L (3.8 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.
What is the water hardness in Bon Air in grains per gallon?
About 3.8 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 65 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 3.8.
What size water softener do I need in Bon Air?
For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 3.8 gpg works out to about 857 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 27 days.
Has the Bon Air water system had EPA violations?
EPA records show no health-based violations for Henrico County Water System since 2016.
Nearby cities
- Manchester65 mg/LModerately hard
- Rockwood45 mg/LSoft
- Tuckahoe65 mg/LModerately hard
- Richmond67 mg/LModerately hard
- Brandermill45 mg/LSoft
- Dumbarton65 mg/LModerately hard
- Meadowbrook45 mg/LSoft
- Lakeside65 mg/LModerately hard
- Woodlake45 mg/LSoft
- Laurel65 mg/LModerately hard
Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, October 6, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.