Know what’s in your water before anyone recommends equipment.
Most Farragut homes are on First Utility District of Knox County, which treats water from Fort Loudoun Lake on the Tennessee River[1]. Much of the rest of west Knox County is on West Knox Utility District, which draws from Melton Hill Lake on the Clinch River[2]. Neither publishes a hardness number, so a free in-home test is how you find yours.
By sending your info, you agree to receive a call, SMS, or email regarding your question.
West Knox County is split mainly between two utility districts, and they don’t share a source.
If you live in Hardin Valley, Karns, Concord or along the Pellissippi corridor, check the name on your water bill. It decides which report applies to you. A few west Knoxville addresses are on KUB instead; KUB’s numbers are on our Knoxville page.
| FUD source and size | Fort Loudoun Lake (Tennessee River); over 105,000 customers[1]. |
|---|---|
| FUD chlorine | Average 1.46 ppm, range 0.46–2.20 ppm (2025)[1]. |
| FUD lead | 90th percentile 1.0 ppb; 1 of 60 homes was above the 15 ppb action level, traced to that home’s plumbing, and its follow-up sample was below it[1]. |
| FUD PFAS | PFBS 2.3–6.4 ppt (average 4.5) and PFHxA 1.9–3.0 ppt in the district’s own testing[1]. In EPA’s UCMR 5 data, PFBS reached 6.4 ppt in one February 2024 sample[3]. |
| FUD byproducts | Trihalomethanes: running average 52 ppb, samples 17–56 ppb (federal limit 80)[1]. |
| WKUD chlorine | Average 1.77 ppm, range 1.00–2.20 ppm (2025)[2]. |
| WKUD lead | 90th percentile below detection; 0 of 30 homes above the action level (2023 sampling)[2]. |
| WKUD service lines | The district reports no lead, galvanized-requiring-replacement or unknown service lines[2]. |
| Hardness | Not published by FUD or WKUD. For comparison, KUB measured 94 ppm[4]. |
Numbers come from each utility’s own report and EPA/USGS data, checked November 2026. Water changes from street to street, so book a free test for your home.
FUD publishes its own PFAS results, which not every utility does. Its 2025 report lists PFBS at 2.3 to 6.4 parts per trillion and PFHxA at 1.9 to 3.0 ppt[1]. Neither of those two compounds is one of the two PFAS that carry EPA’s 4 ppt limit. EPA’s limit for PFOA and for PFOS is 4 ppt, measured as a running annual average, with compliance due in 2029; a rule EPA proposed in May 2026 would let systems ask for an extension to 2031[5]. In EPA’s own UCMR 5 data, FUD had no PFOA or PFOS at or above the 4 ppt reporting level[3].
If you’d rather keep PFAS out of your drinking water anyway, reverse osmosis at the kitchen sink is the home option EPA research supports most strongly. Only a certified lab test of your own tap gives your number.
WKUD’s two plants sit on Melton Hill Lake. Its 2025 report lists the UCMR 5 results from 2023: PFBS at 1.3 ppt and PFBA at 2.1 ppt at one plant, and PFBA at 1.9 ppt and PFPeA at 1.5 ppt at the other[2]. All of those sit below EPA’s reporting levels, and EPA’s database shows no PFAS at or above them for WKUD[3]. The district also reports no lead, galvanized or unknown service lines in its system[2]. That’s good news for the pipe to your house. The plumbing inside it is a separate question.
Neither district publishes a hardness figure. Lake water in this part of the valley usually lands in the soft-to-moderately-hard range (KUB’s Tennessee River water measured 94 ppm[4]), but we’d rather measure than guess. A free test at your sink gives you the real number, and it’s the number we size a water softener to, if you need one at all.
Almost every Farragut, Hardin Valley and Karns home is on FUD, WKUD or KUB. Utility water arrives disinfected, so it carries chlorine and disinfection byproducts. Most homes we see here want chlorine filtered at the main line, and many add reverse osmosis for drinking water.
Wells are rare in Knox County: about 1% of residents, by USGS estimates[6]. If you have one, EPA advises testing it every year for coliform bacteria, nitrates, total dissolved solids and pH[7]. See well water treatment.
First Utility District treats Fort Loudoun Lake water and reported 2025 results that include chlorine averaging 1.46 ppm, a lead 90th percentile of 1.0 ppb and trihalomethanes at a 52 ppb running average. It also lists PFBS at 2.3–6.4 ppt and PFHxA at 1.9–3.0 ppt. Neither compound carries EPA’s 4 ppt limit. Hardness isn’t published.
Neither First Utility District nor West Knox Utility District publishes a hardness number. For comparison, KUB’s Tennessee River water measured 94 ppm in 2025, which the USGS scale calls moderately hard. Because the districts don’t publish one, the reliable way to know your hardness is to measure it at your tap. TWA’s in-home water test is free.
First Utility District’s own 2025 report lists PFBS at 2.3–6.4 ppt and PFHxA at 1.9–3.0 ppt. Those two compounds don’t carry EPA’s 4 ppt limit, which applies to PFOA and PFOS. EPA’s UCMR 5 data show no PFOA or PFOS at or above the 4 ppt reporting level for First Utility District or West Knox Utility District.
Both areas sit between First Utility District, West Knox Utility District and KUB territory, so the answer depends on your address. The name on your water bill tells you. West Knox draws from Melton Hill Lake on the Clinch River, while First Utility District uses Fort Loudoun Lake on the Tennessee River. Each publishes its own yearly report.
Perfected Water. Purified Air. Peace of Mind. It starts with a free in-home test.
Book a free in-home water test
All sources opened November 2026.
By sending your info, you agree to receive a call, SMS, or email regarding your question.
