Do you have information about water hardness in the United States?
Q:
Do you have information about water hardness in the United States?
A:
You can view a national map of hardness in surface water showing hardness indications throughout the United States on this web page.
In reference to the EPA's Local Drinking Water Information
It
is important to note that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has
not set a legal limit or standard for hardness in water. This is
primarily because the constituents that contribute to hardness
(generally calcium and magnesium ions) are not toxic; that is, they do
not cause harmful health effects. Instead, there is a generally accepted
division of water into categories of soft, moderately hard, hard, and
very hard, as explained in the water hardness chart. Most water
utilities try to provide water that is not in the very hard category
because of the unpleasant effects such as scaling in equipment and the
need for more soap and synthetic detergents. In addition, many
homeowners in hard-water areas use water softeners to further reduce
hardness by substituting sodium for calcium and magnesium.