Shoal & Stem

Pompton Plains, NJ tap water

Supplied mostly by Pequannock Twp Water Department, plus 1 other utility. Here's what the 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 a little ammonia. Some utilities switch to plain chlorine for a few weeks a year.

Safety for fish and shrimp

Nitrite (NO₂)

Not detected (Low)

Not detected in testing, so any nitrite in your tank comes from the tank itself.

From EPA monitoring data (2012–2019).

Nitrate (NO₃)

0.5–21 ppm (Low)

Typical 6.3 ppm

Water changes can't take your tank's nitrate below this level.

From EPA monitoring data; Passaic Valley Water Commission and Pequannock Twp Water Department, which supplies Pequannock Twp WD-Cedar Crest (2013–2024).

Water chemistry

General hardness

Supplier's figure

52–154 ppm

Typical 52 ppm

Soft. Good for tetras, rasboras and most shrimp. Livebearers, snails and African cichlids prefer harder water.

From the utility that supplies yours: Passaic Valley Water Commission, which supplies Pequannock Twp Water Department; Passaic Valley Water Commission, which supplies Pequannock Twp WD-Cedar Crest (2024).

Carbonate hardness (alkalinity)

72–174 ppm

Typical 154 ppm

Strong buffering. pH stays steady and hard to lower without RO water.

From EPA monitoring data; Riverdale Boro Water Dep, which supplies Pequannock Twp WD-Cedar Crest (2012–2019).

pH

7.2–8

Typical 7.6

Most community fish do well here. Stable water matters more than the exact number.

From EPA monitoring data; Riverdale Boro Water Dep, which supplies Pequannock Twp WD-Cedar Crest (2012–2019).

Total dissolved solids

Supplier's figure

80–445 ppm

Typical 80 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: Passaic Valley Water Commission, which supplies Pequannock Twp Water Department; Passaic Valley Water Commission, which supplies Pequannock Twp WD-Cedar Crest (2024).

  • Pequannock Twp Water Department and Pequannock Twp WD-Cedar Crest add phosphate to protect pipes. It can feed algae in tanks without much plant growth.

Who supplies Pompton Plains, NJ

  • Pequannock Twp Water Department

    Serves 83% of residents · Buys water from Newark Water Department · Chloramine

  • Pequannock Twp WD-Cedar Crest

    Serves 17% of residents · Buys water from Riverdale Boro Water Dep · 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.

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