How hard is the water in Catron County, NM?
5.1 grains per gallon
Optional: a softener helps, but plenty of homes skip it.
The median hardness measured in Catron County, NM is 87 mg/L as calcium carbonate, which is 5.1 gpg. That is moderately hard on the USGS scale. It comes from 27 samples at 27 sites between 1998 and 2020, 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 4.3 and 6.2 gpg. The whole middle of that range gives the same answer, so a test of your own tap is unlikely to change it. Confidence in the county figure: medium (how it is measured).
What to do next
At 5.1 gpg this is your call. Look for white film on glasses and crust on the shower head: if you see little of either, you can live without one. If you do want one, a 24,000-grain unit is enough, so ask for that size rather than a bigger one.
More on when a softener is not worth it.
From 0.2 to 38.6 gpg
The softest single sample on record in Catron County was 3.8 mg/L and the hardest 660 mg/L, a 174-fold gap. The top quarter of sites read above 6.2 gpg and the bottom quarter below 4.3 gpg.
Wells 5.1 gpg, rivers and lakes 4.9 gpg
27 groundwater samples from 27 wells put the median at 87 mg/L. 240 surface samples from 31 sites put it at 84.7 mg/L. In Catron County the wells come out 0.2 gpg harder. Groundwater sits in contact with rock for years and picks up calcium and magnesium as it goes, so wells usually read harder. The two sources are close, so the county figure should hold whichever one your tap is on.
What a softener would cost to run
For a household of 3, a 24,000-grain unit covers a week between regenerations. Expect about 111 lb of salt a year (3 bags of 40 lb, about $20), and roughly 2,346 gallons of regeneration water. Installed, most units run $1,000 to $4,500; spread over 15 years with salt, that is about $120 a year.
Sizing at 5.1 gpg
| People | Grains a day | Unit | Salt a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 306 | 24,000 | 37 lb |
| 2 | 612 | 24,000 | 74 lb |
| 4 | 1,224 | 24,000 | 149 lb |
| 6 | 1,836 | 24,000 | 223 lb |
Catron County against the rest of New Mexico
Among the 33 New Mexico counties with data, Catron County is number 29 of 33 counting from the hardest. Across the whole country it is harder than 31% of counties.
Softest in New Mexico: Rio Arriba County at 2.3 gpg. Hardest: Chaves County at 116.2 gpg. Closest to Catron County: Taos County (4.9), Los Alamos County (4.6), Hidalgo County (5.8).