Water softener help for Las Cruces and the Mesilla Valley

How it works

1. Call or send a request

   Tell us your community, your water source and what you're seeing.

2. We connect you

   Your call goes to an independent water treatment company that serves the Las Cruces area.

3. They call you back

   They test the water, recommend equipment and quote the work directly.

Who is this for?

Homeowners in Las Cruces, Mesilla, Sunland Park, Santa Teresa, Anthony and the rest of Doña Ana County who want to do something about hard water. That covers people buying a first softener, people whose unit has quit working, people who moved into a house with a softener nobody explained, and people on private wells who want to know what's in their water before they spend money on equipment. It also covers drinking-water systems such as reverse osmosis under the kitchen sink.

Is Las Cruces water hard?

Yes. Las Cruces Utilities pumps all of its drinking water from wells drilled into the Mesilla and Jornada Bolsons, the deep groundwater basins under the valley and the desert east of town. The city's annual water quality report says minerals dissolving into that groundwater give it moderate levels of calcium, manganese and iron, and it calls the result the common "hard water" typical of groundwater sources in the Southwest. That's why white scale shows up on shower heads, kettles and dishwasher racks across town.

The report doesn't print a hardness number, so the honest way to size a softener is a test at your own tap. A test gives a reading in grains per gallon, and North Dakota State University Extension's widely used scale treats anything from 7 to 10.5 grains as hard and anything above 10.5 as very hard.

Do I actually need a softener?

It's a choice, not a requirement. A softener removes the calcium and magnesium that cause scale. It's worth it if you're tired of scrubbing crust off fixtures, want your water heater, dishwasher and washing machine to stay free of buildup, or are on a well with harder water than the city system. If the spotting doesn't bother you, you may decide the salt and upkeep aren't worth it. A good water treatment company tests first, explains the trade-offs and sizes the unit to your water, instead of pushing the biggest tank on the truck.

Signs your water is hard or your softener isn't working

• White, chalky crust around faucets, shower heads and the dishwasher
• Cloudy film on glasses and shower doors
• Soap and shampoo that won't lather
• A water heater that pops or rumbles as scale builds up
• Salt in the brine tank that never goes down
• Orange or dark staining, which can point to iron or manganese
• Scale coming back after the softener used to keep it away

City water, another system or a private well?

It matters. Las Cruces Utilities runs the main city system plus several small ones, including Hacienda Acres, Las Alturas, San Andres and University Estates, and it publishes a water quality report for each. Mesilla, Sunland Park and Anthony get their water from their own providers. Those reports are a good place to look up what's in your water before you call.

Private wells are a different story. The New Mexico Environment Department says private well owners are solely responsible for the safety and quality of their water, and its testing advice is a recommendation, not a requirement. It suggests testing every year for bacteria, nitrate and arsenic. If you're on a well in Organ, the East Mesa, the North Valley or anywhere else outside a water system, test before choosing equipment, because iron, manganese or other results can change what you need.

What about drinking water?

A softener isn't a drinking-water filter. Salt-based softeners trade hardness minerals for sodium, and NDSU Extension estimates about 8 mg/L of sodium added for every grain of hardness removed. Its advice is to leave one kitchen tap unsoftened for drinking and cooking. Plenty of Las Cruces households pair a softener with a reverse osmosis tap at the sink, which also reduces many other dissolved substances. More on reverse osmosis.

What happens when you call?

You tell us where you live and what's going on. We connect you with an independent water treatment company that works in your area. They'll usually ask about your water source and household size, test the water, look at where the equipment can go, and then recommend a system or a repair. Ask them to put the hardness reading, the equipment model and size, and the warranty in writing.

Are you a water softener company?

No. Las Cruces Water Softener is a referral service. We connect you with an independent company that serves your address, and that company tests, quotes, installs and stands behind the work. Read our tips for hiring a water treatment company and the Las Cruces hard water guide before you buy anything.

Areas we cover

• Las Cruces
• Mesilla
• Sunland Park
• Anthony

Planning ahead? Read our Las Cruces hard water guide.