How hard is the water in Valencia County, NM?
8.9 grains per gallon
A softener is worth it here.
The median hardness measured in Valencia County, NM is 152 mg/L as calcium carbonate, which is 8.9 gpg. That is hard on the USGS scale. It comes from 22 samples at 18 sites between 1990 and 2017, 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 6.8 and 17.5 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
At 8.9 gpg a softener is worth getting, mainly to protect the water heater and cut soap use. Get at least two quotes, ask each installer what grain capacity they are fitting, and check it against the sizing table below. Because Valencia County straddles a decision line, check your own tap with a $10 test strip before you spend anything.
More on sizing a softener for your household.
From 1.4 to 70.7 gpg
The softest single sample on record in Valencia County was 24.7 mg/L and the hardest 1,210 mg/L, a 49-fold gap. The top quarter of sites read above 17.5 gpg and the bottom quarter below 6.8 gpg. So even here some sites draw water soft enough to need nothing at all.
Wells 8.9 gpg, rivers and lakes 7.8 gpg
22 groundwater samples from 18 wells put the median at 152 mg/L. 151 surface samples from 10 sites put it at 133.5 mg/L. In Valencia County the wells come out 1.1 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 194 lb of salt a year (5 bags of 40 lb, about $35), 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 $135 a year.
Sizing at 8.9 gpg
| People | Grains a day | Unit | Salt a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 534 | 24,000 | 65 lb |
| 2 | 1,068 | 24,000 | 130 lb |
| 4 | 2,136 | 24,000 | 260 lb |
| 6 | 3,204 | 24,000 | 390 lb |
Valencia County against the rest of New Mexico
Among the 33 New Mexico counties with data, Valencia County is number 23 of 33 counting from the hardest. Across the whole country it is harder than 46% of counties.
Softest in New Mexico: Rio Arriba County at 2.3 gpg. Hardest: Chaves County at 116.2 gpg. Closest to Valencia County: Santa Fe County (9), Socorro County (7.9), Grant County (7.8).