How hard is the water in Bristol, VA?

Tap water hardness
88mg/L
5.2gpg
Moderately hard

Reported by Bvu Authority · June 2025

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

Bristol water measures 88 mg/L (5.2 gpg) of hardness, moderately hard by USGS standards. The number comes from Bvu Authority, dated June 2025.

Bristol on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+VA typical 65Big Stone Gap: 7 mg/LBig Stone Gap 7Pulaski: 20 mg/LPulaski 20Collinsville: 26 mg/LCollinsville 26Blacksburg: 41 mg/LBlacksburg 41Radford: 55 mg/LRadford 55Abingdon: 93 mg/LAbingdon 93Richlands: 143 mg/LRichlands 143Cave Spring: 145 mg/LCave Spring 145Salem: 166 mg/LSalem 166Christiansburg: 213 mg/LChristiansburg 213Bristol 88mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+VA 65Big Stone Gap: 7 mg/LBig Stone. 7Pulaski: 20 mg/LPulaski 20Radford: 55 mg/LRadford 55Abingdon: 93 mg/LAbingdon 93Richlands: 143 mg/LRichlands 143Christiansburg: 213 mg/LChristians. 21388 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Bristol sits 23 mg/L above the typical Virginia figure of 65. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 5 have softer water and 5 have harder. The range nearby runs from 7 mg/L in Big Stone Gap to 213 in Christiansburg.

What 88 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 Bristol

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 5.2 gpg = 1,161 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 20 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for Bristol's water system

Bvu Authority · PWSID VA1520070

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 20,000 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 Bristol water hard?

Somewhat. It measures about 88 mg/L (5.2 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.

What is the water hardness in Bristol in grains per gallon?

About 5.2 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 88 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 5.2.

What size water softener do I need in Bristol?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 5.2 gpg works out to about 1,161 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 20 days.

Has the Bristol water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Bvu Authority since 2016. There were also 3 monitoring or reporting violations, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 79 cities in Virginia

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, June 9, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.