Orange Water Hardness & Quality Report (2026)

Orange, New Jersey, in Essex County — a major northeast New Jersey urban community (Orange is part of the 'Oranges' cluster of Essex County communities — Orange, East Orange, South Orange, Maplewood, and West Orange — historically a significant New Jersey urban-industrial area), home of Thomas Edison's historic Orange laboratory site (Edison's West Orange Laboratory — now the Edison National Historic Site — is adjacent to the Orange area; Edison conducted much of his famous work on the phonograph, motion pictures, and electrical systems in the Orange, NJ laboratory), a diverse Essex County community with a significant Haitian-American, Latino-American, and African-American majority population, and part of the densely urbanized Essex County inner ring — draws its municipal water supply via Suez Water New Jersey or the Essex County MUA. Water hardness in Orange measures 126.5 mg/L — classified as moderately hard.

Orange's moderate hardness reflects the Essex County watershed's geology and distribution. The Wanaque Reservoir (Pequannock River watershed) drains the New Jersey Highlands (Precambrian calcareous-poor Highlands gneiss — the highly resistant northern New Jersey crystalline belt). The Essex County older urban distribution mains (primarily early 20th century infrastructure in the dense Orange urban grid) produce moderate mineral accumulation, producing the moderate 126.5 mg/L.

At 126.5 mg/L, Orange residents encounter moderate scale accumulation. Monthly cleaning with citric acid solution is recommended. Suez Water New Jersey consistently delivers water meeting all New Jersey DEP and EPA Safe Drinking Water Act requirements.