Water quality

If your water is hard you will notice a white scale furring up your kettle, or in your bath, sink or shower.  This is not harmful but may affect appliances such as washing machines, dishwashers and steam irons.

To find out how water hardness affects your appliances and how hard the water is in your area view the water hardness leaflet below.

The quality of your water is checked at every stage on its journey to your tap.  Each year over 200,000 tests are carried out on your behalf by the Drinking Water Inspectorate and our pass rate is currently 99.9 per cent.

The water pressure in your area is constantly monitored and should be enough to fill a ten litre bucket in one minute. Further information can be found in the leaflet below.  

We do not fluoridate the water we supply in the south east of England. However, around 40% of the water we supply in the north east of England is fluoridated. The fluoridated areas include parts of Northumberland, Tynedale, Tyneside and north west Durham. Fluoridation began in these areas in the early 1970s and continues under a legal arrangement with the Strategic Health Authority. All of the costs associated with fluoridation are met by the Strategic Health Authority.

The main towns that receive fluoridated water include; Alnwick, Chester le Street, Consett, Cramlington, some of Durham, Gateshead, Hexham, Newcastle and Stanley, this list is indicative and not comprehensive. If you would like to understand more about the water supply where you live, please use the In your area function on our website, this will provide you with a water quality report which includes the fluoride level in your area.

For more information on fluoride please see the Dentistry area of the Strategic Health Authority (SHA) website and the consumer area of the Drinking Water Inspectorate(DWI) website.