Water Filtration & Treatment in Margate

One utility, one plant

Unlike some Broward cities that buy water from a neighbor or the county, Margate owns and operates both its water treatment plant and its wastewater plants. According to the city's Utilities Division page, the system serves everyone within Margate's boundaries plus a portion of Coconut Creek. Coconut Creek's own Water Services page tells residents south of Coconut Creek Parkway to contact the City of Margate.

From the aquifer to your tap

The 2025 Water Quality Report calls the Biscayne Aquifer the sole source for the plant. The steps it describes:

1. Aeration, which the Utilities Division page says removes iron and carbon dioxide.
2. Lime softening in two clarifiers rated at 13.5 million gallons per day each, to reduce hardness. A polymer helps particles settle.
3. Multi-media filtration, with orthophosphate added at the filters.
4. Chloramine disinfection.
5. Storage in three above-ground tanks holding 5.9 million gallons, then distribution through the city's pipes.

Chloramine is a combination of chlorine and ammonia. It lasts longer in the pipes than free chlorine, which is why many Florida utilities use it, and it is also why the taste and smell can persist all the way to your shower. The orthophosphate step is common in water systems as a filtering aid, as Margate's report describes it.

What the 2025 report shows

• Disinfectant residual: 3.0 ppm, with results from 0.7 to 4.0, against a maximum of 4.0.
• Disinfection byproducts: HAA5 at 28.5 ppb and TTHM at 23.0 ppb, under limits of 60 and 80.
• Sodium: 45.6 ppm (July 2023 sample).
• Lead and copper: no sampling sites exceeded the action levels in the June 2024 round.
• Source water assessment: FDEP identified 27 potential contamination sources near the wells in 2025, with low to moderate susceptibility, and the report says none of those contaminants were detected in source water samples.

All of those numbers describe the water leaving the system as a whole. Your own tap can differ a little depending on how far you are from the plant, how long water sits in your pipes, and your home's plumbing. That is the gap a home test fills.

Margate's yearly chlorine switch

Each summer DEES temporarily converts the system from chloramine to free chlorine as a maintenance step to prevent bacterial growth in the pipes. In 2026 it ran from July 28 through August 20. The city says some customers notice a stronger chlorine taste and odor, and hydrant flushing during that period can cause brief cloudy or discolored water. Dialysis patients and aquarium owners get specific instructions in the notice.

What fits a Margate home

• Single-family home: a whole-home city water system for chloramine at every tap, often with under-sink alkaline RO in the kitchen.
• Condo or townhome: under-sink RO for drinking and cooking water. See the best drinking water system for a Margate home.
• Business on State Road 7 or Atlantic Boulevard: an ion-exchange softening plant where equipment needs scale protection, after testing.
• Irrigation or private well: see well water in Margate.

Margate is mostly single-family homes, townhomes and condo communities. In older homes, aging interior plumbing can affect taste or color at the tap, which is a plumbing question first and a filtration question second. Jorge will point that out if he sees it. If you live in the part of Coconut Creek south of Coconut Creek Parkway, your water also comes from the Margate plant, and the same advice applies.

Every Margate topic

Systems: whole-home filtration, water softeners, under-sink RO, drinking water systems, softener vs. filter.

Problems: chlorine and chloramine, rotten-egg smell, orange stains, hard water spots, dry skin after showering, PFAS, fluoride, well water.

Costs: filtration, reverse osmosis, softener. Testing: home water testing.

Book a free test

Call, text or WhatsApp Jorge at (305) 793-5974. He tests at your tap, compares the results with Margate's report, explains them in plain words, and recommends a system only if it fits. Living Water offers financing through its financing partners; you apply with a credit application, and a co-applicant can apply with you.

You can request a printed copy of the city's report by emailing [email protected] or calling (954) 972-0828.

Updated 2026-10-17 · Living Waters · Jorge Canela, Water Quality Specialist