Radford, VA water hardness

Tap water hardness
55mg/L
3.2gpg
SoftReports range 55–98

Reported by Radford, City of · May 2025

VA typical
65 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Data
Utility report

Tap water in Radford has about 55 mg/L of hardness, which is 3.2 grains per gallon. On the USGS scale that counts as soft. The number comes from Radford, City of, dated May 2025. Reports for this system disagree, with values from 55 to 98 mg/L.

Radford on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+VA typical 65Pulaski: 20 mg/LPulaski 20Martinsville: 20 mg/LMartinsville 20Collinsville: 26 mg/LCollinsville 26Blacksburg: 41 mg/LBlacksburg 41Bedford: 65 mg/LBedford 65Cave Spring: 145 mg/LCave Spring 145Roanoke: 145 mg/LRoanoke 145Vinton: 145 mg/LVinton 145Salem: 166 mg/LSalem 166Christiansburg: 213 mg/LChristiansburg 213Radford 55mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+VA 65Pulaski: 20 mg/LPulaski 20Blacksburg: 41 mg/LBlacksburg 41Cave Spring: 145 mg/LCave Spring 145Roanoke: 145 mg/LRoanoke 145Salem: 166 mg/LSalem 166Christiansburg: 213 mg/LChristians. 21355 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Radford sits close to the typical Virginia figure of 65 mg/L. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 4 have softer water and 6 have harder. The range nearby runs from 20 mg/L in Pulaski to 213 in Christiansburg.

What 55 mg/L means at home

Soap and shampoo lather with very little product. Kettles and showerheads stay mostly free of white crust.

Some people notice that soap feels slow to rinse off in soft water. That slippery feel is normal and harmless.

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

Nothing, as far as hardness goes. At 55 mg/L a softener would have almost nothing to remove.

Carbon filter

If the water tastes of chlorine, a pitcher or faucet carbon filter takes care of that. It does not change hardness.

EPA record for Radford's water system

Radford, City of · PWSID VA1750100

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 17,420 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 Radford water hard?

No. It measures about 55 mg/L (3.2 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

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

About 3.2 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 55 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 3.2.

Has the Radford water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Radford, City of 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, May 28, 2025), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.