Burlington Water Hardness & Quality Report (2026)

Burlington, Iowa, in Des Moines County on the west bank of the Mississippi River, receives its municipal water from the Burlington Water Division, which operates a surface water intake directly on the Mississippi. The Mississippi at Burlington drains a vast multi-state watershed encompassing the upper Midwest — including Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Iowa — before reaching its Des Moines County intake. Water undergoes conventional treatment at Burlington's water plant before distribution through the city's municipal grid serving this historic river city.

The very hard 321.5 mg/L hardness reflects the Mississippi River's extraordinary accumulation of dissolved minerals across its upper basin. The river and its tributaries — including the Wisconsin, Rock, Iowa, and Des Moines Rivers — drain across thick sequences of Silurian Niagara Dolomite, Devonian Cedar Valley and Wapsipinicon limestones, and Ordovician Galena-Platteville carbonates exposed throughout the Midwest driftless area and surrounding carbonate plains. Each tributary contributes calcium and magnesium bicarbonates to the mainstem, with Iowa's own drainage adding further hardness from state-wide limestone and dolomite formations.

At 321.5 mg/L with TDS of 790.7 mg/L, Burlington has very hard water — among the harder municipal supplies in Iowa. Scale accumulates aggressively in all heating appliances: kettles develop thick white crust within days of use, water heaters lose efficiency rapidly from calcium insulation on elements, and dishwashers consistently leave white deposits on glassware. A whole-house water softener is strongly recommended for Burlington homeowners to protect appliances, plumbing fixtures, and water heaters from the high rate of scale formation. Under-sink reverse osmosis for drinking water also significantly improves taste and reduces the visible mineral content in cold beverages.