Utility-reported hardness
Unavailable
Ask your provider or test your tap
Local water dashboard
Official source aggregationWater quality in Detroit, MI 48221
Regional hardness evidence, possible serving systems, EPA compliance history, and the measurements that are—and are not—available for Wayne County.
No active health-based violation reported
- Largest possible serving system
- Detroit City Of
- Source water
- Surface water
- County
- Wayne County
- Profile updated
Your tap water
What does the utility report?
Match the utility name to your water bill. These results describe the utility’s water, not a test at your home. A ZIP can include several water systems.
Utility hardness unavailable in this index
Nearby river or groundwater samples cannot tell us the hardness coming out of your tap. Ask your water provider for total hardness as CaCO₃, or test it at home.
Find an official utility report →At a glance
What the current records say
EPA quarter 2026Q2
All possible systems
No active flag
0 active health-based records
Measurements by utility
Each result belongs to a specific system.
Utility match
2 systems
Serves 633,218 people system-wide
Match the name on your water bill
Your utility’s measurements and compliance records
These are possible serving systems. A record for one system does not apply to every home in this ZIP. Confirm your provider before interpreting a measurement or notice. Federal records can lag current utility notices.
EPA snapshot: 2026Q2. Historical window begins Jan 1, 2021.
Detroit City Of
MI0001800 · Surface water · 633,218 people served system-wide
The system names this served city; Census place overlap links the city to this ZCTA.
No active health-based record in this imported snapshot
Find this utility’s official report →Measurements (1)
An action level is a regulatory trigger, not a pass/fail health boundary. A reported zero is the value in the source record and does not establish that lead is absent at your tap.
Lead (90th percentile)
EPA SDWIS Lead and Copper Rule samples
- Reported level
- 0.0075 mg/L
- Action level
- 0.015 mg/L
50% of the listed benchmark
Monitoring period: Jan 1, 2025 to Dec 31, 2025
Violation history (0)
No record returned in this imported window. This is not a guarantee of tap-water safety.
Great Lakes Water Authority
MI0002838 · Surface water · 0 people served system-wide
The system names this served city; Census place overlap links the city to this ZCTA.
No active health-based record in this imported snapshot
Find this utility’s official report →Measurements (0)
An action level is a regulatory trigger, not a pass/fail health boundary. A reported zero is the value in the source record and does not establish that lead is absent at your tap.
No comparable numerical result available
Federal SDWIS data does not provide a usable numerical result and benchmark for this profile. Missing data is not a pass. Check the serving utility's current Consumer Confidence Report.
Violation history (6)
| Rule | Status | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Surface Water Treatment Rule | Resolved | Sep 1, 2024 to Sep 2, 2024 |
| CARBON, TOTALHealth-based | Resolved | Jan 1, 2024 to Mar 31, 2024 |
| CARBON, TOTALHealth-based | Resolved | Oct 1, 2023 to Dec 31, 2023 |
| CARBON, TOTALHealth-based | Resolved | Jul 1, 2023 to Sep 30, 2023 |
| Bromate | Resolved | Jan 1, 2022 to Mar 31, 2022 |
| Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule | Resolved | Aug 1, 2021 to Aug 31, 2021 |
Hardness meter
What does nearby environmental evidence show?
283
PPM as CaCO₃
Very Hard
PPM
283
GPG
16.5
Regional environmental evidence
USGS hardness classification scale
283 PPM
Soft
0–60Moderate
61–120Hard
121–180Very hard
181+
0–60Moderate
61–120Hard
121–180Very hard
181+
Parts per million
283
mg/L as CaCO₃ equivalent
Grains per gallon
16.5
1 GPG ≈ 17.1 PPM
How to use regional evidence
These samples describe nearby environmental water. They cannot establish whether your tap water is soft or hard. Use a utility result or a tap test for appliance settings and treatment sizing.
USGS sites used
1
Nearest site
14.4 mi
Observation range
May 13, 2026–May 13, 2026
Regional evidence confidence
Low
Median of the latest source-type-aligned hardness observation at each monitoring site within 25 miles. Nearest monitoring location: CLINTON RIVER AT STERLING HEIGHTS, MI (Stream).USGS source documentation ↗Evidence tier: Regional environmental evidence. This value is not used as proof of the serving utility's treated-water hardness.
Regional context
Is 48221 typical?
These comparisons use other indexed ZIP estimates, not utility tap samples. They help show local context without replacing a household test.
Detroit median
283 PPM
About the same31 indexed ZIP readings · Range 283–283 PPM
Michigan median
283 PPM
About the same280 indexed ZIP readings · Range 51.6–479 PPM
Evidence-first next steps
Confirm the problem before choosing treatment
This profile can help you ask the right question. It cannot select equipment for a property without a current result from the serving utility or the tap.
Confirm the serving system
ZIP boundaries and utility service areas do not perfectly match. Verify the system on a water bill before relying on system-wide records.
Read the current utility report
Use the current Consumer Confidence Report for treated-water results and official notices.
Find an official utility report →Test for the decision you face
Use a tap hardness test before sizing a softener. For health concerns, use a certified laboratory and the correct sampling protocol.
Convert your hardness test result →Nearby indexed reports
More local profiles in Detroit
Estimates can differ across a city because monitoring locations and associated systems differ.
Frequently asked
Water questions for Detroit
Is tap water safe in Detroit?+
EPA ECHO shows no active health-based violation for the associated systems in this reporting snapshot. This does not prove every contaminant is absent; federal records can lag and household plumbing can change tap conditions.
How hard is the water?+
Utility-reported hardness is unavailable in this index. Regional samples do not establish tap-water hardness. Ask your provider or test your tap.
Do I need a water softener?+
Confirm hardness at your tap and consider actual scale or spotting before choosing treatment. Regional environmental values cannot determine whether you need a softener. A softener addresses hardness, not every contaminant.