Pleasant Hill has grown to about 11,942 people (Census Bureau 2024 estimate), and none of them get their water from a Pleasant Hill utility. EPA's drinking water records (SDWIS) show the Pleasant Hill Water Department, PWSID IA7767092, was deactivated on 25 January 2005. Since then most homes have been on Des Moines Water Works (DMWW) water, and the eastern part of town is on SE Polk Rural Water. This page covers which one is yours, what the water is like when it arrives, and what we install when a test points somewhere. Kind Water Co offers its free in-home water test in Pleasant Hill, and we install and repair here.
| Pleasant Hill at a glance | What the record shows |
|---|---|
| Who supplies the water | Des Moines Water Works for most of the city. The SE Polk Rural Water entry in the 2026 Central Iowa Water Works / DMWW water quality report includes the eastern portions of Pleasant Hill. The city's own system, IA7767092, has been inactive since 25 January 2005 (EPA SDWIS) |
| Where it comes from | The Fleur Drive, L.D. McMullen and Saylorville treatment plants that Des Moines Water Works manages for Central Iowa Water Works. SE Polk Rural Water's only active source in SDWIS is a connection to Des Moines Water Works |
| Softened at the plant | Yes. Fleur Drive and McMullen use lime softening, and Saylorville uses ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis |
| Published hardness | A goal, not a reading: DMWW strives to keep total hardness below 150 mg/L, about 8.8 grains per gallon. The Iowa DNR Drinking Water Portal returns no hardness samples for Pleasant Hill or SE Polk Rural Water |
Pleasant Hill used to treat its own water. SDWIS lists the Pleasant Hill Water Department's Plant #1 as inactive from 13 October 1997. After that the city bought from Des Moines Water Works, and that purchase connection is marked inactive from 1 January 2005, weeks before the whole system was deactivated. For a while the water even flowed the other way: SE Polk Rural Water's records show it buying water from the Pleasant Hill Water Department until 31 July 1993.
Today the picture is simpler than the history. DMWW's 2026 regional water quality report lists Pleasant Hill among the communities its water supplies, and a second footnote says the SE Polk Rural Water figures include water supplied to Runnells and the eastern portions of Pleasant Hill. SE Polk Rural Water (PWSID IA7774701) serves 7,565 people through 3,026 connections, and its own treatment plant has been inactive since 21 October 2010. So whichever side of town you live on, your water starts at the same DMWW-managed plants. If you're not sure which system serves your address, the report lists DMWW customer service as a contact for Pleasant Hill.
Because the water reaches Pleasant Hill through two distribution systems, the 2026 report gives each its own row. On the Des Moines row, which covers Pleasant Hill, total trihalomethanes (TTHM), a by-product of disinfecting with chlorine, show a level found of 56 µg/L with a range of 41 to 77. On the SE Polk Rural Water row, the level found is 69 µg/L with a range of 42 to 94. The MCL is 80 µg/L, applied as a running annual average at each sampling location. The chlorine disinfectant running average is 1.20 mg/L on the Des Moines row and 1.00 mg/L on SE Polk's, against a 4 mg/L maximum. Both rows come from samples taken across each distribution system, not from your kitchen tap.
Lime softening at Fleur Drive and McMullen, and reverse osmosis at Saylorville, take a lot of hardness out before the water leaves the plant. They don't take it all out. DMWW's goal is to keep total hardness below 150 mg/L, about 8.8 grains per gallon. That's a ceiling the utility aims for, not a reading from your tap. The U.S. Geological Survey calls 61 to 120 mg/L moderately hard and 121 to 180 mg/L hard, so water near that goal still sits in the hard band. DMWW's own FAQ includes guidance on setting a home water softener.
That's why we don't guess. Whether your home needs a softener, reverse osmosis, both or nothing is something the tap test decides. Our free in-home screening measures hardness, iron and total dissolved solids (TDS) at your kitchen sink. It doesn't test for bacteria, nitrate, lead or PFAS; those need a certified laboratory, and we'll point you to one.
Every price is all-in: equipment, installation, taxes and warranty. Installs are done by licensed local plumbing professionals we vet, schedule, and stand behind.
Military and first responders take $100 off. Travel is simple: the first 50 miles are free, then $1 a mile, and we quote it before you agree.
Past the city's edge, some acreages in eastern Polk County draw from private wells, where nobody treats the water before it reaches the house. Polk County's Environmental Health Services Division offers free drinking-well water testing to private well users in the county, in conjunction with the Iowa DNR, covering coliform bacteria, E. coli, nitrate, arsenic and manganese. The county recommends testing at least once a year, and if contamination turns up, it's the owner's job to request the retest. Our guide to free well water testing in Iowa walks through it.
A bacteria result needs professional follow-up from the county or a certified well contractor before you rely on the water. For hardness, iron, sulfur and sediment, our well water treatment is a dual-tank system at $3,450, or $3,800 with a tank RO, plus a $500 sediment filter and $700 supplemental UV (NSF/ANSI 55 Class B) for well water that has already tested safe.
We're licensed and insured, and our pricing is published and all-in. Our softeners are built from NSF/ANSI 44 certified components and our reverse osmosis systems are certified to NSF/ANSI 58. And where the only published number is a utility's goal, we'd rather measure your water than borrow a neighbor's reading.
We come to your kitchen sink, measure hardness, iron and TDS, show you the numbers and leave a written quote, with no obligation. If the right answer is a softener, reverse osmosis, both or nothing, that's what you'll hear. Request a quote or get an instant quote, or call or text 319-319-6566.
Runnells · Des Moines · Altoona · Ankeny · Indianola · All of Polk County
Des Moines Water Works supplies most of the city. The 2026 Central Iowa Water Works / DMWW water quality report lists Pleasant Hill among the communities DMWW's water supplies, and its SE Polk Rural Water entry includes the eastern portions of Pleasant Hill. SE Polk Rural Water buys its water from DMWW, so both routes start at the same plants. Pleasant Hill's own water department was deactivated on 25 January 2005, according to EPA's SDWIS records.
It's softened at the plant but can still count as hard. Des Moines Water Works' goal is to keep total hardness below 150 mg/L, about 8.8 grains per gallon, and the U.S. Geological Survey calls 121 to 180 mg/L hard. That's a goal, not a reading from your tap, and no Pleasant Hill hardness figure is published. Our free in-home test measures your own tap.
It depends on your tap. Our free in-home screening measures hardness, iron and total dissolved solids (TDS) at the kitchen sink, and the numbers decide: a softener, reverse osmosis, both or nothing. DMWW's own FAQ includes guidance on setting a home water softener, and we'll show you your readings before recommending anything.
Yes. Polk County Environmental Health Services offers free drinking-well water testing to private well users in the county, in conjunction with the Iowa DNR. The test covers coliform bacteria, E. coli, nitrate, arsenic and manganese. The county recommends testing once a year, and if contamination is found, the well owner has to request the retest.
A whole-home softener with carbon filtration is $2,500, or $2,850 with reverse osmosis. Reverse osmosis alone is $800 tank or $900 tankless, and a softener-only install is $1,900. Prices are all-in, with equipment, installation, taxes and warranty. Travel is free for the first 50 miles, then $1 a mile, quoted before you agree.
Every number on this page comes from a public record. Here is where to open each one yourself.
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