Well water hardness in Maine
Across 14 counties of Maine, the median well sampled by the USGS has 2.8 gpg of hardness. Counties range from 0.6 gpg (Washington County) to 6.4 gpg (Aroostook County).
Millions of American households drink water from their own well. No utility tests that water and no water quality report covers it. These pages summarise the hardness the U.S. Geological Survey measured in wells county by county, so you know what to expect before you test your own well.
Counties, hardest first
| gpg | mg/L | wells | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aroostook County | 6.4 | 110 | 45 | moderately hard |
| Somerset County | 4.3 | 74 | 39 | moderately hard |
| Penobscot County | 4.1 | 71 | 24 | moderately hard |
| Knox County | 3.9 | 67 | 14 | moderately hard |
| Kennebec County | 3.4 | 59 | 52 | soft |
| York County | 3.2 | 54 | 56 | soft |
| Waldo County | 3.1 | 54 | 12 | soft |
| Androscoggin County | 2.5 | 43 | 21 | soft |
| Cumberland County | 2.4 | 41 | 73 | soft |
| Piscataquis County | 1.9 | 33 | 14 | soft |
| Franklin County | 1.8 | 30 | 23 | soft |
| Oxford County | 1.5 | 27 | 121 | soft |
| Hancock County | 1.3 | 22 | 36 | soft |
| Washington County | 0.6 | 10 | 50 | soft |
Counties with fewer than 10 sampled wells, or a median outside 5–500 mg/L, are not shown until the figure is reviewed.