Aquatell

Pennsylvania

The 23 hardness figures we’ve verified run from 1.0 to 25 grains per gallon, with a median of 9.0; 78% are hard or very hard.

How the 23 figures spread across the bands

  • Soft 0
  • Slightly hard 2
  • Moderately hard 3
  • Hard 10
  • Very hard 8
Hardness
9.0 gpg medianAverage 9.9 gpg (169 ppm), from 1.0 to 25. 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
2 of 5use chloramine; 3 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 scaleDisinfectantSourcesAsk Aqua
Bensalem
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 25 gpg430 ppm, very hard –
Punxsutawney
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 18 gpg310 ppm, very hard –
Scranton
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 15 gpg259 ppm, very hard –
Reading
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 15 gpg265 ppm, very hard Chlorine Disinfectant
Erie
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 13 gpg219 ppm, very hard Chlorine Disinfectant
Allentown
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 12 gpg205 ppm, very hard Chlorine Disinfectant
Pittsburgh
2 notes
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
  • Another Aquatell page gives chlorine; this table's figure is kept.
 11 gpg194 ppm, very hard Chloramine Disinfectant
York-Hanover
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 11 gpg182 ppm, very hard –
Lebanon
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 10 gpg176 ppm, hard –
State College
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 10 gpg170 ppm, hard –
Carlisle
 9.8 gpg168 ppm, hard – Hardness
Harrisburg
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 9.0 gpg160 ppm, hard –
Hershey
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 9.0 gpg150 ppm, hard –
Philadelphia
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 9.0 gpg154 ppm, hard Chloramine Disinfectant
Williamsport
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 8.0 gpg145 ppm, hard –
Altoona
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 7.0 gpg121 ppm, hard –
Gettysburg
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 7.0 gpg118 ppm, hard –
Johnstown
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 7.0 gpg122 ppm, hard –
East Stroudsburg
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 6.0 gpg112 ppm, moderately hard –
Lancaster
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 6.0 gpg105 ppm, moderately hard –
Warren
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 6.0 gpg96 ppm, moderately hard –
Chambersburg
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 1.0 gpg10 ppm, slightly hard –
Hazleton
No source linked
  • The page it came from links no primary source for this figure.
 1.0 gpg23 ppm, slightly hard –

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.

Water softenersSizing a softener

Chlorine or chloramine

Standard carbon removes chlorine’s taste and smell. Chloramine lasts longer in the pipes and needs catalytic carbon to remove it.

Carbon and chloramine filters

Not sure what you need?

Aqua knows these figures and Aquatell’s treatment charts, and can size a system for your home.

Softeners for Pennsylvania’s water

See them all