How hard is the water in Harrisonburg, VA?

Tap water hardness
80mg/L
4.7gpg
Moderately hard

Reported by Harrisonburg, City of · June 2025

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

The water in Harrisonburg carries roughly 80 mg/L of dissolved calcium and magnesium, or 4.7 grains per gallon. That is moderately hard water. The number comes from Harrisonburg, City of, dated June 2025.

Harrisonburg on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+VA typical 65Lake Monticello: 22 mg/LLake Monticello 22University of Virginia: 37 mg/LUniversity of Virginia 37Charlottesville: 37 mg/LCharlottesville 37Fishersville: 55 mg/LFishersville 55Stuarts Draft: 55 mg/LStuarts Draft 55Waynesboro: 84 mg/LWaynesboro 84Culpeper: 110 mg/LCulpeper 110Staunton: 131 mg/LStaunton 131Strasburg: 171 mg/LStrasburg 171Bridgewater: 175 mg/LBridgewater 175Harrisonburg 80mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+VA 65University of Virginia: 37 mg/LUniversity. 37Fishersville: 55 mg/LFishersvil. 55Stuarts Draft: 55 mg/LStuarts Dr. 55Waynesboro: 84 mg/LWaynesboro 84Staunton: 131 mg/LStaunton 131Bridgewater: 175 mg/LBridgewater 17580 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 80 mg/L, Harrisonburg is 15 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 22 mg/L in Lake Monticello to 175 in Bridgewater.

What 80 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 Harrisonburg

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 4.7 gpg = 1,060 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 22 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for Harrisonburg's water system

Harrisonburg, City of · PWSID VA2660345

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 61,000 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 Harrisonburg water hard?

Somewhat. It measures about 80 mg/L (4.7 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.

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

About 4.7 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 80 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 4.7.

What size water softener do I need in Harrisonburg?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 4.7 gpg works out to about 1,060 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 22 days.

Has the Harrisonburg water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Harrisonburg, City of since 2016. There were also 1 monitoring or reporting violation, 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 18, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.