Alafaya Water Hardness & Quality Report (2026)

Alafaya, Florida — a large unincorporated community in east Orange County adjacent to Orlando and the University of Central Florida (UCF), east of Orlando along the East–West Expressway (SR 408) — draws its municipal water supply from the Upper Floridan Aquifer via the Orange County Utilities Water Division, pumping from East Orange County Floridan Aquifer wellfields accessing the Eocene Avon Park Formation and Ocala Limestone Group. Alafaya is one of the largest unincorporated communities in the US and home to UCF. Water hardness in Alafaya measures 171 mg/L — classified as hard, somewhat softer than other central Florida Floridan aquifer cities (Melbourne: 328.5 mg/L; Palm Coast: 167.5 mg/L).

Alafaya's moderate-to-hard hardness (relative to central Florida's often very hard Floridan readings) reflects the east Orange County Floridan Aquifer's characteristics near the St. Johns River headwaters divide. The Upper Floridan Aquifer in east Orange County at the Alafaya latitude transitions into a zone where the aquifer's primary producing unit shifts between the highly dolomitic Avon Park Formation (which produces the hardest readings in Brevard and Osceola Counties) and the less-reactive upper Ocala Limestone section. The 171 mg/L reading suggests a moderate zone of the Floridan — hard from carbonate dissolution, but not as extreme as the deep Avon Park dolomite zones further east or south.

At 171 mg/L, Alafaya residents face regular hard water challenges. Scale deposits form on faucet aerators, showerheads, and appliances within weeks — monthly descaling with citric acid solution is standard maintenance. Orange County Utilities consistently delivers water meeting all Florida DEP and EPA Safe Drinking Water Act requirements.