Port Orchard, WA water hardness

Tap water hardness
39mg/L
2.3gpg
Soft

Reported by Bremerton City of · November 2024

WA typical
36 mg/L
EPA health violations since 2016
0
Data
Utility report

Port Orchard water measures 39 mg/L (2.3 gpg) of hardness, soft by USGS standards. The number comes from Bremerton City of, dated November 2024.

Port Orchard on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+WA typical 36White Center: 31 mg/LWhite Center 31Seattle: 31 mg/LSeattle 31Burien: 33 mg/LBurien 33Bremerton: 39 mg/LBremerton 39Gig Harbor: 46 mg/LGig Harbor 46Tracyton: 49 mg/LTracyton 49Normandy Park: 64 mg/LNormandy Park 64Poulsbo: 67 mg/LPoulsbo 67Bainbridge Island: 70 mg/LBainbridge Island 70Silverdale: 80 mg/LSilverdale 80Port Orchard 39mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+WA 36White Center: 31 mg/LWhite Cent. 31Bremerton: 39 mg/LBremerton 39Gig Harbor: 46 mg/LGig Harbor 46Tracyton: 49 mg/LTracyton 49Bainbridge Island: 70 mg/LBainbridge. 70Silverdale: 80 mg/LSilverdale 8039 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Port Orchard sits close to the typical Washington figure of 36 mg/L. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 3 have softer water and 6 have harder. The range nearby runs from 31 mg/L in White Center to 80 in Silverdale.

What 39 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 39 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 Port Orchard's water system

Port Orchard Water Dept · PWSID WA5368900

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 15,355 people from groundwater.

Health-based
0
Monitoring or reporting
0
Open now
0

EPA lists Port Orchard Water Dept as the system serving Port Orchard. The hardness figure above comes from a different system's report, which TapWaterData uses for Port Orchard.

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 Port Orchard water hard?

No. It measures about 39 mg/L (2.3 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as soft.

What is the water hardness in Port Orchard in grains per gallon?

About 2.3 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 39 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 2.3.

Has the Port Orchard water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Port Orchard Water Dept since 2016.

Nearby cities

All 145 cities in Washington

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, November 18, 2024), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.