Fairfax, CA tap water
Supplied mostly by East Niles CSD, plus 1 other utility. Here's what the water means for your fish.
Disinfectant
Chlorine
Your water is treated with chlorine. It slowly gases off from standing water, and any water conditioner removes it.
Safety for fish and shrimp
Nitrate (NO₃)
12–18 ppm (Worth knowing)
Typical 16 ppm
Water changes can't take your tank's nitrate below this level.
From California Water Board lab results (2023–2026).
Copper at home taps
0.04–0.14 ppm (Worth knowing)
Typical 0.14 ppm
Shrimp and snails are sensitive to copper. Water that sits in household pipes picks up the most; it drops once the tap has run for a minute.
From California Water Board lab results (2023–2025).
Water chemistry
General hardness
Supplier's figure45–460 ppm
Typical 45 ppm
Soft. Good for tetras, rasboras and most shrimp. Livebearers, snails and African cichlids prefer harder water.
From the utility that supplies yours: Kern County Water Agency, which supplies East Niles CSD; California Water Board lab results, measured before treatment (2023–2025).
Carbonate hardness (alkalinity)
Supplier's figure50–210 ppm
Typical 50 ppm
Moderate buffering. pH should stay fairly steady.
From the utility that supplies yours: Kern County Water Agency, which supplies East Niles CSD; California Water Board lab results, measured before treatment (2023–2025).
pH
Supplier's figure7.3–8.2
Typical 7.3
Most community fish do well here. Stable water matters more than the exact number.
From the utility that supplies yours: Kern County Water Agency, which supplies East Niles CSD; California Water Board lab results, measured before treatment (2023–2025).
Total dissolved solids
Supplier's figure105–860 ppm
Typical 105 ppm
A rough measure of everything dissolved in the water. RO water reads near 0, so TDS is a quick way to compare waters.
From the utility that supplies yours: Kern County Water Agency, which supplies East Niles CSD; California Water Board lab results, measured before treatment (2023–2025).
Who supplies Fairfax, CA
East Niles CSD
Serves 83% of residents · Buys water from Kern County Water Agency · Chlorine
Victory Mutual Water Company
Serves 47% of residents · Groundwater (wells) · Chlorine
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.
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Compiled by Shoal & Stem from public records. Free to cite with a link.