RM18 tap water: what's in it?
Northumbrian, Essex and Suffolk Water group (figures include Essex & Suffolk Water): at least 36 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.
RM18 tap water quality report · 2026
Hardness
Not covered
We do not have a verified hardness figure for this area. Ask your water company for its water quality report.
Details
We do not have a verified hardness figure for this area. Ask your water company for its water quality report.
Hosepipe ban
Hosepipe ban in force
Essex & Suffolk Water (Environment Agency, 11 October 2026). Checked 11 October 2026 at 02:34
Details
Essex & Suffolk Water (Environment Agency, 11 October 2026). Checked 11 October 2026 at 02:34
Storm overflows
23 overflows within 10 km of RM18 centre
245 spills in 2025
Details
245 spills in 2025
Lead pipes
52% built before 1973
Estimate, not a test. Homes in the parts of RM18 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: 51–52%. England and Wales: 61% (2026).
Details
Estimate, not a test. Homes in the parts of RM18 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: 51–52%. England and Wales: 61% (2026).
Who supplies water in RM18
Part of Northumbrian, Essex and Suffolk Water
Supplies 332 of 332 postcodes (100%)
We can't confirm your sewerage company from official data for this area.
Drinking-water test record
Essex & Suffolk Water: 332 of 332 postcodes
Essex & Suffolk Water
Northumbrian, Essex and Suffolk Water group, includes Essex & Suffolk Water
- Regulator
- DWI
- Report year
- 2025
- Failed tests
- Not shown
- Tests
- 266,202
The regulator's published total and its company rows disagree, so we don't show a count.
| Parameter | Failed tests |
|---|---|
| Aluminium | Failed tests: 4 |
| E. coli (confirmed) | Failed tests: 3 |
| Enterococci (confirmed) | Failed tests: 1 |
| Iron | Failed tests: 9 |
| Lead | Failed tests: 5 |
| Manganese | Failed tests: 3 |
| Nickel | Failed tests: 2 |
| Nitrite – consumers taps | Failed tests: 1 |
| Sodium | Failed tests: 1 |
| Total coliforms (confirmed) | Failed tests: 7 |
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 RM18?
Across RM18's supply zones, hardness ranges from 250 mg/l (hard) to 250 mg/l (hard). Those 1 zones cover 1% of its postcodes.
1 identified supply zones in RM18
GRAYS · Essex & Suffolk Water (2 of 332 postcodes)
250 mg/l · 17.6 °Clark · 14.0 °dH · 25.0 °fH
Zone average.
GRAYS (supply zone) · January 2025 to December 2025
Source: Essex & Suffolk Water — dated January 2025 to December 2025, read 28 September 2026
330 postcodes without an identified supply zone
Essex & Suffolk Water (330 of 332 postcodes)
We do not have a verified hardness figure for this area. Ask your water company for its water quality report.
Storm overflows nearby
23 overflows within 10 km of RM18 centre · 245 spills in 2025
RM18 (district) · 2025
Source: Environment Agency EDM annual return 2025 — dated 20 August 2026, read 13 October 2026
Overflows here are run by Anglian Water, Southern Water and Thames Water.
20 of these were monitored for only part of 2025.
Nearest 5 shown
TILBURY WATER RECYCLING CENTRE
Into Ouse (Newport Pagnell to Roxton) · 1.7 km from the centre of RM18
64 spills · 142 hours · Monitored 99.7% of 2025
COBHAM STREET GRAVESEND CSO
Into TIDAL RIVER THAMES · 2.5 km from the centre of RM18
1 spill · 1.3 hours · Monitored 66.8% of 2025
CROSS LANE EAST CSO
Into RIVER THAMES - TIDAL · 2.5 km from the centre of RM18
9 spills · 2.6 hours · Monitored 55.5% of 2025
OLD ROAD WEST GRAVESEND CSO
Into TIDAL RIVER THAMES · 2.5 km from the centre of RM18
16 spills · 10.2 hours · Monitored 100% of 2025
SINGLEWELL ROAD GRAVESEND 123 CSO
Into TIDAL RIVER THAMES · 2.5 km from the centre of RM18
3 spills · 22.3 hours · Monitored 60.9% 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
52% built before 1973
52% of homes here were built before 1973 — estimate, not a test.
Homes in the parts of RM18 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: 51–52%. England and Wales: 61% (2026).
Older homes are more likely to have lead pipes. Only a test tells you whether yours does.
RM18 (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
General picks — we don't hold your hardness
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
How much does a water softener cost in the UK?
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)
Why does my tap water taste metallic?
Tap water tastes metallic? Causes and fixes (UK)
Questions about tap water in RM18
- Is the water in RM18 hard or soft?
- Essex & Suffolk Water: We do not have a verified hardness figure for this area. Ask your water company for its water quality report. Essex & Suffolk Water: hard, 250 mg/l, 17.6 °Clark, 14.0 °dH, 25.0 °fH (GRAYS (supply zone), January 2025 to December 2025). Zone average.
- What does the drinking water regulator's record show for RM18?
- Northumbrian, Essex and Suffolk Water group (figures include Essex & Suffolk Water): at least 36 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 RM18 have lead pipes?
- 52% of homes here were built before 1973 — estimate, not a test. Homes in the parts of RM18 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: 51–52%. 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 RM18 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
- Essex & Suffolk 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
- Essex & Suffolk Water ↗ · January 2025 to December 2025 · read 28 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
- Environment Agency ↗ · 11 October 2026 · read 11 October 2026
Essex & Suffolk 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 v3.0All content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0, except where otherwise stated © Crown copyright
Data generation uk-2026-10-16-derive6