Clean water is a blessing, but a lot of times, the water coming from your taps or supply may not be clean and free from impurities. Here is everything you need to know about testing your tap water and what kinds of impurities may be present in the water so you can consider other options like a water filter or bottled water home delivery service.

Testing Water Quality

House-Testing Kit

This method of testing impurities in tap water is probably the most common one. You can get water testing kits very easily from anywhere. These kits come with some strips, which you dip in the water, and a pretty big result sheet, from which you can get the results.

These testing kits are easy to use and you can get accurate results in no time, without having to spend a lot of money. All you need to do is fill up a glass with some tap water that you want to test. Then, use the strips that come in the kit and dip them generously in water and leave them for a few seconds to develop.

When the strip has completely changed its color, you can match the color from the standard sheet given in the kit and it will give you the names of the impurities present in the water.

Judge By The Appearance And Smell

Your senses can also help you out a lot in testing the water. This is not as precise, but you can get a good idea of it, especially if you’re in dire need to test the water and you don’t have a kit on hand. You can smell the water, look at it, and even taste it to get a general idea of what could be present in it.

If the water looks murky, then there might be suspended particles of sand in it. If the water has a metallic taste and smell to it, then there might be metals in the water, like iron, copper, and even sodium.

Go To A Certified Lab

If you want a certified report on the impurities present in your water and you don’t want to test it by yourself, then you can always go to a certified lab and they can test out the water for you. Keep in mind that it’s going to be way expensive, but the reports are usually pretty accurate.

Contact Your Water Supply Company

If a company is supplying you with water, then you can ask them for a water quality report. These companies usually run tests, regularly, on the water they’re supplying, so you can get recent and accurate reports on what is present in your water. You can even request this report before you commit to this company for water supply. It’s a safe and fool-proof way of getting information on what types of impurities are present in your water and what type of filter you need to purify it further.

What Impurities Are Present In Tap Water?

The testing methods are a pretty awesome way of finding out impurities in the water, but you should also know what kinds of things are present in the water and what effects they can have on the body if you continue to drink untreated water. The type of impurities in your water can help you choose the correct water filtration system Warren.

Iron

Iron is a common metal found in tap water. It can make your water look red or green and it can also have a metallic taste. Iron is not good to consume in this state, so this is why it’s necessary to remove it from the water, otherwise, it can lead to a lot of health issues, like an upset stomach, rashes on the skin, and more.

Iron can be removed easily by a water filter and if you attach it to your tap, then you can have clean water at all times.

Sulfur

Sulfur is also another impurity present in water coming from supply reservoirs. Sulfur imparts a weird taste and smell to your water, to the point where it’s almost hard to drink it. Water that has sulfur smells and tastes like rotten or bad eggs and the stench is extremely unpleasant.

Other than that, the water appears to be clear, but once you smell and taste it, you don’t want to keep drinking it. Sulfur is also easy to remove from water. It can be done with a chemical ion exchange process or through normal cylindrical filters.

Sand

Sand can be present in the water in the form of suspended particles. This can be because of improper cleaning of the reservoir, from which your water is being supplied. There is nothing wrong with sand being in your water, as far as health issues are concerned, but it does make your water look dirty and murky and it’s not pleasant to look at and drink.

If you let the water sit around for some time, the sand may settle at the bottom, but you will still need to remove sand from the water. This is easily done with water filters. Just keep in mind that you will need to change out the filters regularly for better performance of the filter, especially if there’s a lot of sand in the water.

Heavy Metals

Other than normal metals, like iron, copper, etc., tap water can also have heavier metals in it, like lead, chromium, and arsenic. These metals are extremely hazardous, not only to humans but to the rest of the environment and surroundings too.

Lead and arsenic are virtually poisonous and they can affect fishes and other creatures living in water. Lead and arsenic can also lead to harmful effects on humans, like lead poisoning and even life-altering diseases.

Chlorine

Chlorine is used as a disinfectant in water, to get rid of impurities like Sulphur and other metals, but sometimes chlorine can also be classified as an impurity in water. Chlorine has a strong and pungent smell and taste, kind of like bleach and it is not pleasant to drink at all.

This impurity needs to be removed, because excess chlorine, when consumed, can lead to stomach aches and skin issues. Once the chlorine is removed, the water also tastes normal.

Calcium, Magnesium, And Sodium

Calcium and magnesium are responsible for making the water hard. Hard water doesn’t produce any lather and it can be a nightmare to wash clothes with it. On the other hand, sodium makes the water taste extremely salty. Moreover, it can cause mineral build-up in household appliances.

To get rid of calcium and magnesium in the water, you will need to install a water softener, which will exchange the metal ions for neutral ions.

As for the sodium ions, they can be removed by filtration or through an ion exchange process as well. Water with calcium, magnesium, and even sodium is pretty much useless and you will need to treat it, somehow, to make it potable and usable.

Conclusion

There you have it! Tap water can look seemingly clean, but there can be a lot of microscopic impurities and dissolved elements in it. Testing the water will give you the results in no time and with this information, you can install a water purifying system which will get rid of these impurities or you can consider a drinking water delivery service Meadville for clean water.