Nexton
Nexton is a newer build-out on Summerville CPW, and most homes have a garage-accessible main that makes any install straightforward. Nexton 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.
Your utility
Nexton 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
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.
| Compound | Status | EWG multiplier |
|---|---|---|
| PFUnA | Detected | Above EWG advisory |
| PFOS | Detected | Above EWG advisory |
| PFOA | Detected | Above EWG advisory |
| PFHxS | Detected | Above EWG advisory |
| PFBS | Detected | Above 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.
Nexton broke ground in March 2013 and launched commercially in 2015, so the housing stock is uniformly modern. The community passed 3,500 homes sold in 2025 and is planned for roughly 7,500 at build-out across about 5,000 acres. Builders include Pulte, David Weekley Homes, Ashton Woods, Homes by Dickerson, Saussy Burbank, True Homes, New Leaf Builders and Del Webb. Nexton has been named the best master-planned community in the United States by the National Association of Home Builders.
Because Nexton homes are post-2013 construction, the main water line is almost always accessible and the plumbing is modern. That keeps a whole-home install to about four hours with no drywall work. Nexton also has a Del Webb 55-plus section, where the practical question is usually about filter service intervals rather than installation.
Lowcountry water service area
Nexton sits inside a patchwork of Lowcountry water utilities, each with its own source, hardness and disinfection chemistry. The Nexton marker is highlighted; click any other marker to see its utility, hardness, and water page.
What Nexton is asking
Not by the published number, but often at the tap. The utility reports Nexton 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.
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.
It depends on your tap. The published figure for Nexton 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.
Nexton 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.
Chloramine. Nexton 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.
Pristine Water Networks installs whole-home Puronics systems throughout Nexton. 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.
Your neighbor, doing the work
“I’ve tested water in Nexton 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
45 minutes. On your counter. No pressure. If your water tests fine, we will tell you.
