Lowcountry landscape

Cane Bay Plantation

Cane Bay Plantation water, explained.

Cane Bay Plantation is the largest master-planned community on the Summerville CPW system, so what is true here is true for thousands of nearly identical homes. Cane Bay Plantation water has a published hardness of about 1.4 grains per gallon (23 to 25 ppm total hardness), but our in-home field tests regularly read 3 to 6 grains per gallon at the tap.

Summerville CPW · 1.4 GPG published / 3-6 at the tap

Your utility

What Summerville CPW actually delivers to Cane Bay Plantation.

Cane Bay Plantation water has a published hardness of about 1.4 grains per gallon (23 to 25 ppm total hardness), though our in-home field tests regularly read 3 to 6 grains per gallon at the tap. It is disinfected with chloramine at about 3.27 ppm. UCMR5 testing by Santee Cooper at the Lake Moultrie plant measured PFOS at 7.3 ng/L and PFOA at 6.65 ng/L. The EPA limit for each is 4.0 parts per trillion, so both are above the federal limit. Utilities on this plant have until 2031 to comply and a $96 million upgrade is underway.

Source: Summerville CPW Consumer Confidence Report, EWG Tap Water Database

Water utility

Summerville CPW

Source: Lake Moultrie via Santee Cooper

Hardness

about 1.4 gpg published (23-25 ppm); 3-6 gpg at the tap in our field tests

Disinfectant

Chloramine

Municipality

Summerville (Berkeley County)

PFAS status

PFAS Detected

UCMR5 testing by Santee Cooper at the Lake Moultrie plant that supplies this system measured PFOS at 7.3 ng/L (range 7.2-7.4) and PFOA at 6.65 ng/L (range 5.9-7.4). The EPA maximum contaminant level for each is 4.0 parts per trillion, so both sit above the federal limit. Utilities on this system have until 2031 to comply, and a $96 million treatment upgrade is underway.

The forever-chemicals data

PFAS compounds detected in Cane Bay Plantation water

UCMR5 testing by Santee Cooper at the Lake Moultrie plant that supplies this system measured PFOS at 7.3 ng/L (range 7.2-7.4) and PFOA at 6.65 ng/L (range 5.9-7.4). The EPA maximum contaminant level for each is 4.0 parts per trillion, so both sit above the federal limit. Utilities on this system have until 2031 to comply, and a $96 million treatment upgrade is underway.

CompoundStatusEWG multiplier
PFUnADetectedAbove EWG advisory
PFOSDetectedAbove EWG advisory
PFOADetectedAbove EWG advisory
PFHxSDetectedAbove EWG advisory
PFBSDetectedAbove EWG advisory

Source: EWG Tap Water Database for Summerville CPW. CPW has begun a $96 million remediation project with completion targeted for 2029 to 2031.

What the homes in Cane Bay Plantation are like

Build era and builders

Cane Bay Plantation covers more than 4,500 acres in Berkeley County and is built out in separate villages rather than as one tract. Lennar builds Lindera Preserve, Dan Ryan builds Magnolia, and Del Webb operates a gated 360-acre section for residents aged 55 and over. Each village was delivered in a different year by a different builder, so plumbing layouts vary more across Cane Bay than in a single-builder community.

The lake is not your tap water

Lakes of Cane Bay is built around a 300-acre lake used for kayaking and paddleboarding, and the Magnolia village has six ponds. None of that surface water is what comes out of a Cane Bay tap. Household water arrives from Lake Moultrie through the Santee Cooper plant, and the neighbourhood ponds are stormwater and amenity features. A water test measures what is at your kitchen sink, not what is in the lake.

Lowcountry water service area

See your water in context.

Cane Bay Plantation sits inside a patchwork of Lowcountry water utilities, each with its own source, hardness and disinfection chemistry. The Cane Bay Plantation marker is highlighted; click any other marker to see its utility, hardness, and water page.

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What Cane Bay Plantation is asking

Three things your neighbors have asked us.

Is Cane Bay Plantation water hard?

Not by the published number, but often at the tap. The utility reports Cane Bay Plantation water at about 1.4 grains per gallon (23 to 25 ppm total hardness), which is soft by the USGS scale. That is a system average, though. Our in-home field tests regularly read 3 to 6 grains per gallon at the tap, slightly hard to moderately hard, which is enough to show up as spotting and scale. That is why we test your own tap before recommending anything.

Does Cane Bay Plantation water have PFAS?

Yes. UCMR5 testing by Santee Cooper at the Lake Moultrie plant measured PFOS at 7.3 ng/L and PFOA at 6.65 ng/L. The EPA limit for each is 4.0 parts per trillion, so both are above the federal limit. Utilities on this plant have until 2031 to comply and a $96 million upgrade is underway. Along with the hardness we measure at the tap, it is a main reason to consider treatment here.

Do I need a water softener in Cane Bay Plantation?

It depends on your tap. The published figure for Cane Bay Plantation water is about 1.4 grains per gallon, but our in-home tests here regularly read 3 to 6 grains per gallon, enough to leave spotting and scale over time. The water also carries PFOS and PFOA above the EPA limit, plus chloramine at about 3.27 ppm. Those call for filtration. We test at your tap first and set up any system from that live reading, not the utility average.

What utility serves Cane Bay Plantation?

Cane Bay Plantation is served by Summerville CPW, which buys treated surface water from the Santee Cooper Regional Water System. The source is Lake Moultrie. Santee Cooper adds chloramine as the secondary disinfectant to limit the formation of TTHMs and HAA5s.

Why does Cane Bay Plantation water taste or smell the way it does?

Chloramine. Cane Bay Plantation water is disinfected with chloramine rather than free chlorine, averaging about 3.27 ppm. Chloramine holds its residual all the way to the tap instead of off-gassing, which is good for microbial safety and is also why the taste does not disappear if you leave a pitcher on the counter. Removing it takes catalytic carbon.

Who installs water filtration in Cane Bay Plantation?

Pristine Water Networks installs whole-home Puronics systems throughout Cane Bay Plantation. Installation is handled by an SC-licensed partner plumber and takes about four hours. It starts with a free 45-minute in-home water test, and if your water comes back fine we will tell you so.

Jarred Guidelli, Pristine Water Networks

Your neighbor, doing the work

“I’ve tested water in Cane Bay Plantation homes up and down these streets. If your water tests fine, I’ll tell you.”

Jarred Guidelli · Founder, Pristine Water Networks

Summerville, SC · SC-licensed partner plumber · Authorized Puronics dealer

Free in-home water test

Book your free water test in Cane Bay Plantation.

45 minutes. On your counter. No pressure. If your water tests fine, we will tell you.