Measured, not modelled
Measured well-water hardness in Valley County, Idaho: the median of laboratory samples taken at real water wells, in grains per gallon and mg/L as CaCO3, with the number of wells behind the figure.
| Median hardness | 1.6 gpg — about 27 mg/L as CaCO3 |
| Rating | slightly hard (Water Quality Association scale) |
| Middle half of wells | 0.9–2.3 gpg |
| Wells measured | 61 |
| Laboratory samples | 61 |
Source: Water Quality Portal (USGS & US EPA). Water Quality Portal (USGS NWIS + EPA STORET), siteType Well, 13 analytes. These are laboratory results at water wells in the public record — not municipal tap water and not a model. The figure is a county median: individual wells vary, and only a test on the property itself gives its reading. The full table for the state is at well water hardness in Idaho, by county; the method is on the methodology page.
Ratings use the Water Quality Association scale, in grains per gallon (gpg); 1 gpg is 17.118 mg/L as CaCO3.
| Rating | Range |
|---|---|
| soft | 0 – 1 gpg |
| slightly hard | 1 – 3.5 gpg |
| moderately hard | 3.5 – 7 gpg |
| hard | 7 – 10.5 gpg |
| very hard | over 10.5 gpg |
Mostly not — the median across 61 measured wells, one reading each in Valley County is 1.6 grains per gallon (about 27 mg/L as CaCO3), which is “slightly hard” on the Water Quality Association scale. The middle half of those wells falls between 0.9 and 2.3 gpg, so individual wells vary widely around the median. This is groundwater measured at other wells in the county, not a reading from any one property.
At or above 7 grains per gallon a water softener is the standard treatment; the county median of 1.6 gpg is below that line. Only a test on the property itself confirms the reading and sizes any equipment properly.
61 distinct wells in Valley County carry a laboratory hardness result in the public record we read; a county is published only when at least 3 do. Nothing here is estimated from municipal tap water.
Selling water treatment in Idaho? The new wells behind these figures are sold by territory — well water leads in Idaho.
Built from the same data that qualifies every lead Hard Water Feed sells, and regenerated with it — the figures on this page change only when the underlying public record does.