What does water hardness mean?

As water naturally flows over rocks and through the soil, it picks up minerals that get dissolved in the water. The more calcium and magnesium present, the harder your water. While water hardness is not a safety issue, you may notice increased mineral build-up or soap residue with harder water. Water hardness can be expressed as PPM – parts per million or GPG – grains per gallon.

Because the hardness of water is a result of the different minerals in the rocks and soil, water hardness does vary by source.

What is your primary source of drinking water?

You can find the hardness for your primary source for drinking water by looking on our Authority GIS . 

1. Click on the GIS & Outage Maps link found in the center of our home page www.westernvawater.org
2. Click "View" on the WVWA Public GIS Map
3. The SEARCH tool box will open with the mapping in the top left corner.  Type in your house number and street name. 
   Click within the yellow parcel boundaries identifying your property.
4. Your primary source of drinking water will appear at the bottom of the pop-up box - you may have to scroll to get to the bottom of the pop-up box.  Please note that your water source may vary depending on changes the distribution system and water plant production.
   
   
   
   For information on the Water Authority’s other sources of water and treatment, please see the current Water Quality Report