A water quality report is full of tables, units and terms such as CaCO3 and grains per gallon. You probably opened it because your curls changed and you wanted a clear answer. You do not need to read it like a chemist. You need three things: the right report, the right number and a sense of what that number can and cannot tell you.
Find the right report first
Look for a Consumer Confidence Report, annual water quality report or utility data page from the company that serves your address. Search for total hardness, hardness as CaCO3, calcium hardness or grains per gallon. A city government homepage, a retailer map or a geology chart is not enough on its own.
Confirm the network, period and location. Large cities can have more than one service area, supply blend or treatment plant. If the report says the value varies by source, use that limitation rather than assuming one number applies everywhere.
Curious how a routine is built from numbers like these? See how Rizzado works, step by step.
See how Rizzado worksRead the statistic, not only the headline
An average is a single summary of multiple measurements. A median is the middle reported result. A range gives the lowest and highest reported values. These cannot be substituted for one another without saying so. Rizzado shows the statistic the utility publishes and explains when it is a range.
Check the unit. Values can appear as mg/L, ppm, grains per gallon, German degrees or French degrees. A report that identifies total hardness as CaCO3 gives the clearest match to the USGS bands. If it only lists calcium and magnesium, the calculation needs the same system and period.
Keep the limitation beside the number
Save the source link and its year. Water sources, treatment and reporting formats can change. If a building uses its own softener or treatment, the city report is still useful context but not a measurement from your shower.
A report helps you form a cautious question about your routine. It does not justify a claim that the water causes breakage, hair loss or a scalp condition.
Turn the number into a question
Write down four things before you compare anything: the report year, the service area, the statistic (average, median or range) and the unit. Without them, a number cannot be compared with another city's.
Then use the value as a starting question for your routine. Did the wash change when the water changed? Test one variable at a time over several wash days. A report explains your water. It cannot explain on its own why your hair behaves the way it does.
CITY DATA
Compare a published local source
These pages keep the utility or public authority source next to the figure. They are a starting point for a question, not proof of what is happening to your hair.
Browse every city with a primary source