Essex County water hardness
Essex County is a patchwork: municipal utilities in Newark, Bloomfield, Orange and East Orange each publish their own numbers, while several suburbs buy from NJ American Water's Short Hills system.
Across the 15 Essex County municipalities with published figures, hardness averages 10.9 grains per gallon — very hard water on the USGS scale. Because most towns here buy treated water rather than produce it, neighbouring municipalities on the same system report the same number; the systems represented below are Bloomfield Township municipal system, Little Falls Service System, East Orange municipal system, Essex Fells Water Utility (PWSID NJ0706001), Short Hills Service System, among others.
15 of 15 records
| mg/L | Class | Source | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomfield | 2.6 | 44 | Slightly Hard | Bloomfield Township municipal system | Bloomfield Twp CCR 2024 |
| Cedar Grove | 3.7 | 64 | Moderately Hard | Little Falls Service System | NJ American Water CCR |
| East Orange | 25.9 | 442 | Very Hard | East Orange municipal system | City of East Orange CCR |
| Essex Fells | 7.6 | 130 | Hard | Essex Fells Water Utility (PWSID NJ0706001) | Borough of Essex Fells Water Department |
| Irvington | 9.8 | 167 | Hard | Short Hills Service System | NJ American Water CCR |
| Livingston | 19.4 | 332 | Very Hard | Township of Livingston Water (PWSID NJ0710001) | Township of Livingston 2025 Water Quality Report (2024 data) |
| Maplewood | 9.8 | 167 | Hard | Short Hills Service System | NJ American Water CCR |
| Millburn (Short Hills) | 9.8 | 167 | Hard | Short Hills Service System | NJ American Water CCR |
| Montclair | 20.5 | 350 | Very Hard | Montclair Water Bureau (PWSID NJ0713001) | Montclair Water Bureau Consumer Confidence Report 2025 |
| Newark | 2.7 | 46 | Slightly Hard | Newark municipal system | City of Newark CCR (2020 data) |
| Orange | 14.3 | 245 | Very Hard | Orange municipal system | City of Orange CCR 2025 |
| Roseland | 7.6 | 130 | Hard | Roseland Water Department (PWSID NJ0718001) | Borough of Roseland 2025 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report; Borough of Essex Fells water department |
| South Orange Village | 9.8 | 168 | Hard | South Orange Village system | South Orange Village CCR |
| Verona | 10.2 | 174 | Hard | Verona Water Department (PWSID NJ0720001) | Township of Verona 2026 Water Quality Report (2025 data) |
| West Orange | 9.8 | 167 | Hard | Short Hills Service System | NJ American Water CCR |
Every Essex County town page
Each municipality has its own page with the reported figure, the system that supplies it, what the level means in practice locally, and the report the number was read from.
- Bloomfield water hardness — 2.6 gpg, slightly hard2.6 gpg
- Cedar Grove water hardness — 3.7 gpg, moderately hard3.7 gpg
- East Orange water hardness — 25.9 gpg, very hard25.9 gpg
- Essex Fells water hardness — 7.6 gpg, hard7.6 gpg
- Irvington water hardness — 9.8 gpg, hard9.8 gpg
- Livingston water hardness — 19.4 gpg, very hard19.4 gpg
- Maplewood water hardness — 9.8 gpg, hard9.8 gpg
- Millburn (Short Hills) water hardness — 9.8 gpg, hard9.8 gpg
- Montclair water hardness — 20.5 gpg, very hard20.5 gpg
- Newark water hardness — 2.7 gpg, slightly hard2.7 gpg
- Orange water hardness — 14.3 gpg, very hard14.3 gpg
- Roseland water hardness — 7.6 gpg, hard7.6 gpg
- South Orange Village water hardness — 9.8 gpg, hard9.8 gpg
- Verona water hardness — 10.2 gpg, hard10.2 gpg
- West Orange water hardness — 9.8 gpg, hard9.8 gpg
The extremes in Essex County are East Orange water hardness at 25.9 gpg and Bloomfield at 2.6 gpg.