South Boston, VA water hardness

Tap water hardness
29mg/L
1.7gpg
Soft

Reported by Hcsa- Leigh Street Plant · July 2022

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

South Boston water measures 29 mg/L (1.7 gpg) of hardness, soft by USGS standards. The number comes from Hcsa- Leigh Street Plant, dated July 2022.

South Boston on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+VA typical 65Madison Heights: 19 mg/LMadison Heights 19Martinsville: 20 mg/LMartinsville 20Lynchburg: 26 mg/LLynchburg 26Collinsville: 26 mg/LCollinsville 26Timberlake: 33 mg/LTimberlake 33Danville: 38 mg/LDanville 38Bedford: 65 mg/LBedford 65Vinton: 145 mg/LVinton 145Roanoke: 145 mg/LRoanoke 145Cave Spring: 145 mg/LCave Spring 145South Boston 29mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+VA 65Madison Heights: 19 mg/LMadison He. 19Martinsville: 20 mg/LMartinsvil. 20Lynchburg: 26 mg/LLynchburg 26Timberlake: 33 mg/LTimberlake 33Danville: 38 mg/LDanville 38Bedford: 65 mg/LBedford 6529 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

South Boston sits 36 mg/L below the typical Virginia figure of 65. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 4 have softer water and 6 have harder. The range nearby runs from 19 mg/L in Madison Heights to 145 in Vinton.

What 29 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 29 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 South Boston's water system

Hcsa- Leigh Street Plant · PWSID VA5780600

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 9,364 people from surface water.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
0
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 South Boston water hard?

No. It measures about 29 mg/L (1.7 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

What is the water hardness in South Boston in grains per gallon?

About 1.7 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 29 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 1.7.

Has the South Boston water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Hcsa- Leigh Street Plant since 2016.

Nearby cities

All 79 cities in Virginia

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, July 27, 2022), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.