Hard water in Richlands, VA

Tap water hardness
143mg/L
8.4gpg
Hard

Reported by Richlands, Town of · August 2022

VA typical
65 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
1
Softener for 3 people
24k grain
Data
Utility report

Richlands water measures 143 mg/L (8.4 gpg) of hardness, hard by USGS standards. The number comes from Richlands, Town of, dated August 2022.

Richlands on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+VA typical 65Big Stone Gap: 7 mg/LBig Stone Gap 7Pulaski: 20 mg/LPulaski 20Blacksburg: 41 mg/LBlacksburg 41Radford: 55 mg/LRadford 55Bristol: 88 mg/LBristol 88Abingdon: 93 mg/LAbingdon 93Cave Spring: 145 mg/LCave Spring 145Roanoke: 145 mg/LRoanoke 145Salem: 166 mg/LSalem 166Christiansburg: 213 mg/LChristiansburg 213Richlands 143mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+VA 65Big Stone Gap: 7 mg/LBig Stone. 7Pulaski: 20 mg/LPulaski 20Blacksburg: 41 mg/LBlacksburg 41Radford: 55 mg/LRadford 55Bristol: 88 mg/LBristol 88Abingdon: 93 mg/LAbingdon 93143 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Richlands sits 78 mg/L above the typical Virginia figure of 65. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 6 have softer water and 4 have harder. The range nearby runs from 7 mg/L in Big Stone Gap to 213 in Christiansburg.

What 143 mg/L means at home

Expect white crust on faucets and showerheads, plus spots on dishes that come out of the dishwasher.

Kettles collect scale quickly. Water heaters build up sediment at the bottom of the tank, which makes them work harder over time.

Soap and detergent need a little more to lather, and soap scum shows up in the tub.

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

At 143 mg/L most of the trouble is scale, and only a few things deal with it.

Ion-exchange water softener

The standard whole-house fix. It swaps calcium and magnesium for sodium or potassium and needs salt plus a drain. Size it with the calculator below.

Salt-free conditioner

No salt and no drain line. It changes how minerals form scale instead of removing them, so water still tests hard.

Reverse osmosis or carbon filter

Under-sink reverse osmosis removes minerals from drinking water only. Plain carbon filters improve taste but do not soften.

Softener size for Richlands

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 8.4 gpg = 1,881 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 12 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for Richlands's water system

Richlands, Town of · PWSID VA1185695

1 health-based violation since 2016

Serves about 4,564 people from surface water.

Health-based
1
Monitoring or reporting
4
Open now
0
20162017201820192020202120222023202420252026Haloacetic acids (HAA5)'16'18'20'22'24'26Haloacetic acids (HAA5)
Each dot is one health-based violation, placed at the start of its compliance period.
Contaminant or ruleViolationsPeriodStatus
Haloacetic acids (HAA5)a disinfection byproduct12018Resolved

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 Richlands water hard?

Yes. It measures about 143 mg/L (8.4 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as hard.

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

About 8.4 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 143 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 8.4.

What size water softener do I need in Richlands?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 8.4 gpg works out to about 1,881 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 12 days.

Has the Richlands water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show 1 health-based violation for Richlands, Town of since 2016, involving Haloacetic acids (HAA5). There were also 4 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, August 15, 2022), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.