Testing one drinking water could be intimidating with a household well owner, however it can be easy knowing a few elementary steps, says the nation's Ground Water Association (NGWA).
If you're interested in your well water, these 3 steps can help get owners the correct tests for contaminants that may present a health risk ?a or create taste, odor, or appearance problems:
1. Know what you must test for with your water.
2. Have a reliable water test.
3. Receive an interpretation of your respective test results so that you can take any appropriate action.
An excellent starting point learning more about these 3 steps is the NGWA website
What things to test
NGWA recommends that well owners test annually for bacteria, nitrate, and anything of local concern: for instance, naturally occurring hazards, like arsenic, or man-made, such as chemical or volatile organic compounds from industrial or waste sites.
Most county health departments do a little water testing, and several well owners are within a reasonable distance of an normal water testing lab. Are great places to get started on to locate out whether there might be considered a local issue.
Obtaining a water test
Knowing the place to start when you get a water test isn difficult. Go to www.WellOwner.org, and for the Water Testing tab near the top of the page.
Next, begin using these buttons:
Click for county health department contact info? This goes to a webpage where you can access contact information for local health departments nationwide. Ask your health department when it tests water, and if so, for what and exactly how much it costs.
Find a certified testing lab.This takes you into a map where you can navigate to your state agency webpage to get details about certified normal water testing labs.
Interpretation of one's water test results
For an interpretation of test results, commence with the agency or lab that did the test. If you need additional help, www.WellOwner.org links with an online water test interpretation tool located under the Water Testing tab. Type the values from a water test results to the appropriate fields from the online unit and it'll present an explanation in the results ?a usually such as risks to health, any warranted actions, and appropriate water treatment technologies.
