Boca Raton, FL tap water
Supplied by City of Boca Raton Utility Services. Here's what its water means for your fish.
Disinfectant
Chloramine
Your water is treated with chloramine. Unlike chlorine, it doesn't gas off when water sits out, and many pitcher and fridge filters aren't rated to remove it. Conditioners that list chloramine on the label break it apart, which frees about 0.67 ppm of ammonia here. Some utilities switch to plain chlorine for a few weeks a year.
Safety for fish and shrimp
Ammonia (with conditioner)
Estimate0.49–0.85 ppm (Worth knowing)
Typical 0.67 ppm
This is what a conditioner frees when it breaks the chloramine apart. A cycled filter clears it within a day; a big water change in a new or very small tank adds more of it at once. Some conditioners also bind ammonia for a day or so.
Estimated from the chloramine level City of Boca Raton Utility Services reports (2025).
Nitrite (NO₂)
0.07 ppm (Low)
Essentially none, so any nitrite in your tank comes from the tank itself.
From EPA monitoring data (2012–2019).
Nitrate (NO₃)
0.4 ppm (Low)
Low, so water changes lower your tank's nitrate well.
From EPA monitoring data (2012–2019).
Chlorine or chloramine at the tap
2–3.5 ppm
Typical 2.8 ppm
At tap levels, chlorine and chloramine are toxic to fish, shrimp and the bacteria in a filter. Water conditioners are made for this range.
Published by your utility: City of Boca Raton Utility Services' 2025 water quality report.
Water chemistry
General hardness
65–81 ppm
Typical 73 ppm
Moderately soft to medium. Suits most community fish and plants.
Published by your utility: City of Boca Raton Utility Services' 2025 water quality report.
Carbonate hardness (alkalinity)
Not published yet
We haven't found this number yet. A drop test kit gives you your exact reading.
pH
8–8.5
Typical 8.3
Alkaline. Many utilities raise pH to protect pipes. Stability matters more than the exact number.
Published by your utility: City of Boca Raton Utility Services' 2025 water quality report.
- City of Boca Raton Utility Services softens its water at the plant, so it may be softer than the local groundwater.
Who supplies Boca Raton, FL
- 2025 water quality report
City of Boca Raton Utility Services
Serves 95% of residents · Groundwater (wells) · Chloramine
Our data comes from public records and is still incomplete. Many utilities don't publish every number, so we're adding more all the time. Your city's range is a starting point: testing your own tap is the only way to know exactly what's in it.
Tap water lookup covers US cities only for now. Want to know why it matters? Read our story on tap water.
Compiled by Shoal & Stem from public records. Free to cite with a link.