Massachusetts
The 23 hardness figures we’ve verified run from 0.7 to 5.2 grains per gallon, with a median of 1.0; 0% are hard or very hard.
SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hard
Soft to moderately hard 0.7–5.2 gpg
How the 23 figures spread across the bands
- Soft 2
- Slightly hard 18
- Moderately hard 3
- Hard 0
- Very hard 0
- Hardness
- 1.0 gpg medianAverage 1.6 gpg (27 ppm), from 0.7 to 5.2. Each published figure counts once in the average, median and spread; a figure published as a range is shown as its range and isn't averaged.
- Coverage
- 23 places23 listings as published
- Disinfectant
- 4 of 5use chloramine; 1 use chlorine
Every place we have
Sources are each city’s water quality report or its utility. Gather the listings up by place or by the water system that serves them, or see every listing as published; open a group to see what’s in it.
23 places
| On the scale | Disinfectant | Sources | Ask Aqua | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Woburn |
5.2 gpg89 ppm, moderately hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardModerately hard 5.2 gpg |
– | Hardness | |
Shrewsbury |
5.0 gpg86 ppm, moderately hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardModerately hard 5.0 gpg |
– | Hardness | |
Cambridge No source linked
|
4.3 gpg72 ppm, moderately hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardModerately hard 4.3 gpg |
Chloramine | Disinfectant | |
Vineyard Haven No source linked
|
2.0 gpg32 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 2.0 gpg |
– | ||
Brockton No source linked
|
1.8 gpg30 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.8 gpg |
– | ||
Worcester No source linked
|
1.7 gpg29 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.7 gpg |
Chlorine | Disinfectant | |
Boston No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
Chloramine | Disinfectant | |
Brookline No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Chicopee No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Framingham No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Lowell No source linked
|
1.0 gpg10 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
Chloramine | Disinfectant | |
Malden No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Medford No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Methuen No source linked
|
1.0 gpg17 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Newton No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Peabody No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Pittsfield No source linked
|
1.0 gpg8 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Quincy No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Revere No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Somerville No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Waltham No source linked
|
1.0 gpg16 ppm, slightly hard | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSlightly hard 1.0 gpg |
– | ||
Springfield No source linked
|
0.8 gpg12 ppm, soft | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSoft 0.8 gpg |
Chloramine | Disinfectant | |
Taunton |
0.7 gpg11 ppm, soft | SoftSlightly hardModerately hardHardVery hardSoft 0.7 gpg |
– | Hardness |
Missing your city? Aquatell researches cities on request from the utility’s own reports, usually within a week. A note on a figure says what we found when we checked it: units that didn’t agree, another page with a different figure, a range.
What to do about it
Hard water
Above about 3.5 grains per gallon, scale builds in water heaters, fixtures and appliances. A softener sized for your hardness and household removes it for the whole house.
Chlorine or chloramine
Standard carbon removes chlorine’s taste and smell. Chloramine lasts longer in the pipes and needs catalytic carbon to remove it.
Not sure what you need?
Aqua knows these figures and Aquatell’s treatment charts, and can size a system for your home.
