Know what’s in your water before anyone recommends equipment.
KUB says Knoxville’s drinking water met all existing standards in 2025[1]. In plain English, the report shows Tennessee River water that is moderately hard (94 ppm), carries chlorine to your tap, has low lead results and had one PFAS compound found at a low level in EPA testing. Here’s what each number means for your home.
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KUB draws surface water from the Tennessee River and treats it at the Mark B. Whitaker Water Treatment Plant, which marked its 100th anniversary in this report. KUB’s lab runs about 100,000 tests a year for more than 150 contaminants[1]. The state rates the river source “reasonably susceptible” to contamination, the standard wording for a river with farms, roads and towns upstream[1].
| What KUB measured | 2025 result | What it means at home |
|---|---|---|
| Hardness | 94 ppm (about 5.5 gpg)[1] | Moderately hard on the USGS scale[2]: spots, soap scum, water heater scale |
| Calcium / alkalinity / pH | 26 ppm / 75 ppm / 7.3[1] | The minerals behind the hardness |
| Total dissolved solids | 120 ppm[1] | Everything dissolved in the water, in one number |
| Chlorine | Highest running average 1.6 ppm; range 0.5–2.4[1] | Still in the water at your tap, in your shower and laundry |
| Chlorine dioxide | 0.10 ppm[1] | A second disinfectant KUB uses |
| Trihalomethanes | Highest locational running average 56 ppb; sites 20–79[1] | Byproducts of chlorination; federal limit 80 ppb |
| Haloacetic acids | Highest locational running average 31 ppb; sites 10–40[1] | Byproducts of chlorination; federal limit 60 ppb |
| Lead | 90th percentile 0.6 ppb; range below 0.5–2.9[1] | Low; the action level is 15 ppb |
| Copper | 90th percentile 0.196 ppm[1] | Low; the action level is 1.3 ppm |
| Nitrate | 0.48 ppm[1] | Far below the 10 ppm limit |
| Turbidity | 100% of monthly samples below 0.3 NTU[1] | Clear, well-filtered water leaving the plant |
| Sodium | 10 ppm[1] | Comes partly from the treatment process |
The legal answer is yes. KUB reports meeting every existing standard in 2025, with no turbidity problems and low lead and copper[1]. The fuller answer has three parts. First, the chlorine that protects the water on its way to you is still in it when it arrives. Second, the byproducts chlorine forms are present at low levels: KUB’s highest running average for trihalomethanes was 56 ppb[1]. Third, what you drink also depends on your own pipes, which KUB can’t control. Legal doesn’t automatically mean it’s what you want in your glass.
Moderately hard. KUB measured 94 ppm, about 5.5 grains per gallon[1]. USGS puts 61–120 mg/L in the moderately hard band[2]. Online claims of 8 grains or more for Knoxville don’t match KUB’s report. If spots and scale bother you, a water softener sized to 5.5 grains handles them.
KUB tests taps in homes, not just at the plant. A 90th percentile of 0.6 ppb means 9 out of 10 sampled homes were at or below that level, with the highest at 2.9 ppb[1]. KUB’s report explains that lead mostly comes from service lines and home plumbing, recommends cold water for drinking and cooking, flushing pipes that have sat unused, and a filter certified to reduce lead[1]. Reverse osmosis at the kitchen tap is one common way to do that.
KUB reports that its PFAS monitoring with TDEC found no PFAS at levels of concern[1]. EPA’s own UCMR 5 data give the detail: one compound, PFBS, was detected at 3.7 ppt in an April 17, 2024 sample at the Whitaker plant, and no PFOA or PFOS was found at or above the 4 ppt reporting level[3]. PFBS isn’t one of the two PFAS with 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[4].
KUB’s 2025 report lists fluoride at an average of 0.57 ppm, with a range of 0.47 to 0.68 ppm[1]. For questions about KUB’s fluoride practice, KUB is the right source.
Many Knox County addresses are on other utilities, each with its own report. Hallsdale-Powell, Knox-Chapman, First Utility District and West Knox are covered on our Knoxville and Farragut and West Knox pages.
KUB reports that Knoxville’s water met all existing federal and state standards in 2025, with low lead and copper results. That’s the legal answer. The water still reaches your tap with chlorine at up to 2.4 ppm and low levels of chlorination byproducts, and your home’s plumbing can add more. A free in-home test shows your own tap.
KUB publishes its yearly Water Quality Report on kub.org. The current report covers 2025 monitoring and lists hardness, chlorine, lead, copper, disinfection byproducts and other results. If your bill comes from Hallsdale-Powell, First Utility District, West Knox or Knox-Chapman instead, your water comes from that district and its own report applies.
Knoxville’s KUB water is moderately hard. KUB measured 94 ppm of hardness in its 2025 report, about 5.5 grains per gallon, and the USGS scale calls 61 to 120 mg/L moderately hard. That’s enough to leave spots, soap scum and water heater scale, but less than the 8 grains some websites claim.
KUB’s 2025 Water Quality Report lists fluoride in the water at an average of 0.57 ppm, ranging from 0.47 to 0.68 ppm. For questions about KUB’s fluoride practice, KUB is the right source. A reverse osmosis system at the kitchen tap reduces most dissolved minerals in drinking water if you prefer to filter it.
KUB reports no PFAS at levels of concern. In EPA’s UCMR 5 data, one compound, PFBS, was detected at 3.7 ppt in an April 2024 sample, and no PFOA or PFOS was found at or above the 4 ppt reporting level. PFBS isn’t one of the two PFAS with EPA’s 4 ppt limit.
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