How hard is the water in Androscoggin County, ME?

3.1 grains per gallon

You do not need a softener here.

The median hardness measured in Androscoggin County, ME is 53 mg/L as calcium carbonate, which is 3.1 gpg. That is soft on the USGS scale. It comes from 24 samples at 10 sites between 1999 and 2023, drawn from groundwater wells, which is what most taps and private wells in the county draw on.

How much it varies here

Half the sites came in between 2.3 and 4 gpg. That spread crosses a decision line, so some homes here land on a different answer. A $10 test strip on your own tap settles it. Confidence in the county figure: medium (how it is measured).

What to do next

You can skip the softener. At 3.1 gpg the most a softener would fix is the odd water spot. If a salesperson in Androscoggin County says otherwise, ask to see their reading in grains per gallon and compare it with this one. Because Androscoggin County straddles a decision line, check your own tap with a $10 test strip before you spend anything.

More on when a softener is not worth it.

From 1.9 to 6.4 gpg

The softest single sample on record in Androscoggin County was 32 mg/L and the hardest 110 mg/L, a 3-fold gap. The top quarter of sites read above 4 gpg and the bottom quarter below 2.3 gpg.

Androscoggin County against the rest of Maine

Among the 16 Maine counties with data, Androscoggin County is number 9 of 16 counting from the hardest. Across the whole country it is harder than 22% of counties.

Softest in Maine: Lincoln County at 0.7 gpg. Hardest: Penobscot County at 6.9 gpg. Closest to Androscoggin County: Franklin County (3.2), Oxford County (2.8), Kennebec County (3.4).