Dresden drinks a large share of reservoir water from the Ore Mountains, treated at the Coschütz waterworks, plus Elbe bank filtrate from Hosterwitz and Tolkewitz. At 4 to 6 °dH, the reservoir water is very soft.
Water hardness
6.0 °dHsoftHardly any limescale, little detergent, ideal for tea and espresso. Very soft water can attack copper pipes. Descale: every 3 months.
Aquaviana’s advice
- Very soft water: hardly any limescale, little detergent, ideal for tea.
- Districts with Elbe water (east, south) have 8 to 10 °dH, which is still mild.
- Soft water is low in minerals; here, calcium and magnesium come from your food.
Where the water comes from
Around half of Dresden’s water comes from the Klingenberg and Lehnmühle reservoirs in the eastern Ore Mountains and is treated at the Coschütz waterworks with flocculation, filtering and ozone. The other half is obtained by the Hosterwitz and Tolkewitz waterworks as bank filtrate of the Elbe, partly with artificial groundwater recharge. Depending on the district, one source predominates, which you can tell from the hardness.
Hardness and taste
Reservoir water from granite and gneiss is very soft at 4 to 6 °dH (about 70 to 110 mg/l CaCO3), while Elbe water is at 8 to 10. That gives Dresden the softest water of the twelve cities described here. It tastes clear and light, almost like still spring water, with little calcium (20 to 40 mg/l). Nitrate is low, and because of the treatment the pH value is slightly alkaline.
What that means day to day
Hardly any limescale: descale the kettle every three months, set the washing machine to “soft” and dose detergent sparingly. Tea and coffee taste good straight from the tap, and a filter is unnecessary. If you are used to getting a lot of minerals from your water, you will not get them here; a calcium-rich mineral water or a good diet makes up for it. For espresso machines, the soft water is a blessing.
Try it out
Hardness converterConvert °dH, °fH, °e, mmol/l and ppm into one another and read off the hardness range and descaling interval.Tap water checkEight questions about your home, pipes and region, an assessment with a traffic light and next steps.Share
