How hard is the water in Rice Lake, WI?

Tap water hardness
96mg/L
5.6gpg
Moderately hard

Reported by Rice Lake Waterworks · August 2022

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

Rice Lake water measures 96 mg/L (5.6 gpg) of hardness, moderately hard by USGS standards. The number comes from Rice Lake Waterworks, dated August 2022.

Rice Lake on the hardness scale, with nearby cities
060120180240300360+WI typical 170Chippewa Falls: 49 mg/LChippewa Falls 49Lake Hallie: 61 mg/LLake Hallie 61Eau Claire: 101 mg/LEau Claire 101Altoona: 102 mg/LAltoona 102Merrill: 116 mg/LMerrill 116Menomonie: 150 mg/LMenomonie 150River Falls: 180 mg/LRiver Falls 180New Richmond: 194 mg/LNew Richmond 194Hudson: 210 mg/LHudson 210Marshfield: 249 mg/LMarshfield 249Rice Lake 96mg/L as calcium carbonate060120180240300360+WI 170Chippewa Falls: 49 mg/LChippewa F. 49Lake Hallie: 61 mg/LLake Hallie 61Eau Claire: 101 mg/LEau Claire 101Altoona: 102 mg/LAltoona 102Menomonie: 150 mg/LMenomonie 150New Richmond: 194 mg/LNew Richmo. 19496 mg/Lmg/L as calcium carbonate
Soft 0–60 mg/LModerately hard 61–120 mg/LHard 121–180 mg/LVery hard 181+ mg/L

Rice Lake sits 74 mg/L below the typical Wisconsin figure of 170. Of the 10 nearest cities we track, 2 have softer water and 8 have harder. The range nearby runs from 49 mg/L in Chippewa Falls to 249 in Marshfield.

What 96 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 Rice Lake

3 people × 75 gallons a day × 5.6 gpg = 1,256 grains a day. A 24,000-grain unit regenerates about every 19 days.

Size it for your household

EPA record for Rice Lake's water system

Rice Lake Waterworks · PWSID WI6030138

No health-based violations since 2016

Serves about 9,012 people from groundwater.

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 Rice Lake water hard?

Somewhat. It measures about 96 mg/L (5.6 grains per gallon), which the USGS classes as moderately hard.

What is the water hardness in Rice Lake in grains per gallon?

About 5.6 gpg. One grain per gallon equals 17.1 mg/L, so 96 mg/L divided by 17.1 gives 5.6.

What size water softener do I need in Rice Lake?

For 3 people using 75 gallons each per day, 5.6 gpg works out to about 1,256 grains a day. A 24,000-grain softener covers that with a regeneration about every 19 days.

Has the Rice Lake water system had EPA violations?

EPA records show no health-based violations for Rice Lake Waterworks since 2016. There were also 1 monitoring or reporting violation, which are about late or missing tests and notices.

Nearby cities

All 112 cities in Wisconsin

Hardness data: TapWaterData US Water Hardness (utility report, August 16, 2022), CC BY 4.0. Population: US Census Bureau. Violations: EPA ECHO. How we use them.