HG3 tap water: what's in it?
Yorkshire Water: at least 69 tests failed UK drinking-water standards in 2025 (DWI, company-wide).
Some published DWI figures don't reconcile or identify a company, so we've left them out; the true number may be higher. England overall: 99.97% of tests met standards.
HG3 tap water quality report · 2026
Hardness
Soft
Pateley Bridge and Ripon 2019 (supply zone) · 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024
Details
Pateley Bridge and Ripon 2019 (supply zone) · 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024
Hosepipe ban
No hosepipe ban
Checked 11 October 2026 at 02:34
Details
Checked 11 October 2026 at 02:34
Storm overflows
64 overflows within 10 km of HG3 centre
1,495 spills in 2025
Details
1,495 spills in 2025
Lead pipes
44% built before 1973
Estimate, not a test. Homes in the parts of HG3 we can match to council-tax records (100% of its postcodes) whose build period is known; the share with no recorded build period isn't published for these areas. Allowing for suppressed counts: 42–44%. England and Wales: 61% (2026).
Details
Estimate, not a test. Homes in the parts of HG3 we can match to council-tax records (100% of its postcodes) whose build period is known; the share with no recorded build period isn't published for these areas. Allowing for suppressed counts: 42–44%. England and Wales: 61% (2026).
Who supplies water in HG3
Supplies 1,205 of 1,205 postcodes (100%)
Sewerage: Usually Yorkshire Water — they provide water and sewerage across most of their area. Your water bill confirms yours.
Drinking-water test record
Yorkshire Water: 1,205 of 1,205 postcodes
Yorkshire Water
Yorkshire Water, company-wide
- Regulator
- DWI
- Report year
- 2025
- Failed tests
- Not shown
- Tests
- 388,919
The regulator's published total and its company rows disagree, so we don't show a count.
| Parameter | Failed tests |
|---|---|
| E. coli (confirmed) | Failed tests: 4 |
| Enterococci (confirmed) | Failed tests: 2 |
| Iron | Failed tests: 20 |
| Lead | Failed tests: 6 |
| Nickel | Failed tests: 7 |
| Total coliforms (confirmed) | Failed tests: 30 |
Source: DWI england 2025, Annex B — dated 6 July 2026, read 13 October 2026
Source: DWI england 2025, Annex A — dated 6 July 2026, read 13 October 2026
England: 99.97% of tests met standards in 2025 (DWI).
Source: DWI england 2025, national compliance — dated 6 July 2026, read 13 October 2026
How hard is the water in HG3?
Across HG3's supply zones, hardness ranges from 60 mg/l (soft) to 73 mg/l (soft). Those 4 zones cover 87% of its postcodes.
4 identified supply zones in HG3
Pateley Bridge and Ripon 2019 · Yorkshire Water (584 of 1,205 postcodes)
73 mg/l · 5.1 °Clark · 4.1 °dH · 7.3 °fH
Zone average.
Pateley Bridge and Ripon 2019 (supply zone) · 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024
Source: Yorkshire Water — dated 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024, read 29 September 2026
Harrogate South 2019 · Yorkshire Water (196 of 1,205 postcodes)
69 mg/l · 4.9 °Clark · 3.9 °dH · 6.9 °fH
Zone average.
Harrogate South 2019 (supply zone) · 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024
Source: Yorkshire Water — dated 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024, read 29 September 2026
Harrogate North 2019 · Yorkshire Water (190 of 1,205 postcodes)
60 mg/l · 4.2 °Clark · 3.3 °dH · 6.0 °fH
Zone average.
Harrogate North 2019 (supply zone) · 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024
Source: Yorkshire Water — dated 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024, read 28 September 2026
Knaresborough 2019 · Yorkshire Water (76 of 1,205 postcodes)
67 mg/l · 4.7 °Clark · 3.7 °dH · 6.7 °fH
Zone average.
Knaresborough 2019 (supply zone) · 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024
Source: Yorkshire Water — dated 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024, read 29 September 2026
159 postcodes without an identified supply zone
Yorkshire Water (159 of 1,205 postcodes)
We do not have a verified hardness figure for this area. Ask your water company for its water quality report.
Storm overflows nearby
64 overflows within 10 km of HG3 centre · 1,495 spills in 2025
HG3 (district) · 2025
Source: Environment Agency EDM annual return 2025 — dated 20 August 2026, read 13 October 2026
Overflows here are run by Yorkshire Water.
49 of these were monitored for only part of 2025.
Nearest 5 shown
BIRSTWITH NO2 SPS
Into RIVER NIDD · 0.8 km from the centre of HG3
5 spills · 14.3 hours · Monitored 100% of 2025
VILLAGE GREEN CSO
Into RIVER NIDD · 0.8 km from the centre of HG3
0 spills · 0 hours · Monitored 100% of 2025
HIRST BRIDGE - KILLINGHALL NO.1
Into TANG BECK · 1 km from the centre of HG3
65 spills · 846.5 hours · Monitored 100% of 2025
PROPOSED SSO NO 14 MANHOLE
Into RIVER NIDD · 1.5 km from the centre of HG3
0 spills · 0 hours · Monitored 58.8% of 2025
THE GRANARY CSO
Into NIDD AND TRIBS · 2 km from the centre of HG3
41 spills · 320.5 hours · Monitored 93.1% of 2025
Annual 2025 figures from monitored overflows. Not live, and not a bathing-water or tap-water verdict.
- 57 England outfalls in the 2025 return had no usable location and aren't counted.
- Northern Ireland isn't covered: No licensed annual per-outfall source in the approved source list; BT postcode coordinates require an LPS licence.
Older homes and lead pipes
44% built before 1973
44% of homes here were built before 1973 — estimate, not a test.
Homes in the parts of HG3 we can match to council-tax records (100% of its postcodes) whose build period is known; the share with no recorded build period isn't published for these areas. Allowing for suppressed counts: 42–44%. England and Wales: 61% (2026).
Older homes are more likely to have lead pipes. Only a test tells you whether yours does.
HG3 (district) · 2026
Source: Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties — dated 31 March 2026, read 24 September 2026
Fluoride
We cannot confirm whether this area is part of a water fluoridation scheme. Ask your water supplier using your postcode.
Around one in ten people in England receive drinking water supplied by a fluoridation scheme.
England · 2026 health monitoring report
Source: UKHSA and DHSC — dated 30 March 2026, read 13 October 2026
Hosepipe bans
What you can do
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Links go to amazon.com; Amazon's Earn Globally service can localise them to amazon.co.uk. Check the model and UK delivery before buying.
Water filter jugs
LifeStraw
LSH7GLSPK21
Performance certification:
Certified by WQA to NSF/ANSI 42 for Aesthetic Chlorine and Taste and Odor; Certified by WQA to NSF/ANSI 53 for Lead and Mercury; Certified by WQA to NSF/ANSI 401 for Microplastics (a US/international standard; it is not UK approval)
View Detailsreduces chlorine taste and odour in drinking water.
A UK retailer lists this model. Amazon UK stock and delivery are unverified; this Amazon link may not ship to the UK. Check the exact model and UK delivery before you pay.
UK availability evidence checked 14 October 2026.
Shower filters
Weddell Water
WD-100BL
Performance certification:
Certified by NSF to NSF/ANSI 177 for Free Available Chlorine Reduction (a US/international standard; it is not UK approval)
View Detailsreduces chlorine in shower water; does not soften water.
A UK retailer lists this model. Amazon UK stock and delivery are unverified; this Amazon link may not ship to the UK. Check the exact model and UK delivery before you pay.
Check it fits your shower fitting before buying; a US fitting may need an adaptor.
UK availability evidence checked 14 October 2026.
We haven't verified a lead test kit for UK buyers yet.
What a pick has to pass:
- A lead result reported by a laboratory accredited for that test (UKAS, ISO/IEC 17025), named on the kit's listing
- UK availability evidenced by Amazon UK, the manufacturer or a UK retailer, checked in the last 90 days
Start with your water company: if you think you have lead pipes, you can ask it to test the water at your kitchen tap. Which water test you need
Common water problems
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Water softener cost UK 2026: price by home size
Why is my tap water cloudy or white?
Why is my tap water cloudy or white? (UK)
Brown tap water: causes and what to do (UK)
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Tap water tastes metallic? Causes and fixes (UK)
Questions about tap water in HG3
- Is the water in HG3 hard or soft?
- Yorkshire Water: soft, 73 mg/l, 5.1 °Clark, 4.1 °dH, 7.3 °fH (Pateley Bridge and Ripon 2019 (supply zone), 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024). Zone average. Yorkshire Water: soft, 69 mg/l, 4.9 °Clark, 3.9 °dH, 6.9 °fH (Harrogate South 2019 (supply zone), 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024). Zone average. Yorkshire Water: soft, 60 mg/l, 4.2 °Clark, 3.3 °dH, 6.0 °fH (Harrogate North 2019 (supply zone), 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024). Zone average. Yorkshire Water: We do not have a verified hardness figure for this area. Ask your water company for its water quality report. Yorkshire Water: soft, 67 mg/l, 4.7 °Clark, 3.7 °dH, 6.7 °fH (Knaresborough 2019 (supply zone), 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024). Zone average.
- What does the drinking water regulator's record show for HG3?
- Yorkshire Water: at least 69 tests failed UK drinking-water standards in 2025 (DWI, company-wide). Some published DWI figures don't reconcile or identify a company, so we've left them out; the true number may be higher. England overall: 99.97% of tests met standards.
- Could homes in HG3 have lead pipes?
- 44% of homes here were built before 1973 — estimate, not a test. Homes in the parts of HG3 we can match to council-tax records (100% of its postcodes) whose build period is known; the share with no recorded build period isn't published for these areas. Allowing for suppressed counts: 42–44%. England and Wales: 61% (2026). Older homes are more likely to have lead pipes. Only a test tells you whether yours does.
- Is the water in HG3 fluoridated?
- We cannot confirm whether this area is part of a water fluoridation scheme. Ask your water supplier using your postcode. Around one in ten people in England receive drinking water supplied by a fluoridation scheme.
Sources and method
- Water Company Boundaries (UC2) ↗ · 19 September 2026 · read 20 September 2026
- Yorkshire Water contact page ↗ · 13 October 2026 · read 13 October 2026
- DWI england 2025, Annex B ↗ · 2025 · read 13 October 2026
- DWI england 2025, national compliance ↗ · 2025 · read 13 October 2026
- Yorkshire Water ↗ · 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024 · read 29 September 2026
- Environment Agency EDM annual return 2025 ↗ · 2025 · read 13 October 2026
- Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties ↗ · 2026 · read 24 September 2026
- UKHSA and DHSC ↗ · 2026 health monitoring report · read 13 October 2026
- Yorkshire Water ↗ · 11 October 2026 · read 11 October 2026
Yorkshire Water contact page, Yorkshire Water, Yorkshire Water, Yorkshire Water, Yorkshire Water, Yorkshire Water: Database right, used under the publisher's terms.
Water company boundaries © Water UK, licensed under CC BY 4.0Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0
Data generation uk-2026-10-16-derive6