| Who are you?...
"I've got city water"... Water is treated by the city, but only approximately 2% is for in-home use. No doubt this water meets or exceeds EPA minimum standards. The other 98% is the same water used for fire fighting, industry use etc. Now, lets say that the city treats this water to an extremely high degree. It would still travel through miles of pipe installed who-knows how long ago? Remove that chlorine odor so you don't smell like you just came out of a pool and stop the dry, itchy after effects. You can also remove possible Trihalomethanes (carcinogenic by-products of organics in the water reacting with the chlorine).
It's easy to see how more water treatment is necessary and beneficial when water enters your home. The city could do it, but your bills would go through the roof.
OR...
"We get our water from a well"... A general test is conducted at the time of closing to evaluate whether a well is safe from e-coli and coliform bacteria and, usually upon request, checks are made for phosphates, nitrates, arsenic and other contaminants by the health department. Hardness, iron, chlorides and things of that nature can be measured but there are no maximum contaminant levels (MCL) for these items.
Unfortunately, our drinking water is being destroyed. Aside from the natural things underground picked up by water, did you know...
-every year at least 255 million metric tons of hazardous chemical wastes are dumped into our nations environment?
-there are 400,000 landfills, ponds, pits and lagoons in the U.S. containing some of the most dangerous substances known?
-there are 35,000 pesticides that are made from 600 chemical compounds - all potentially winding up in our water supply?
What do we test for?
Some of the common problems with water include the following:
Hardness of Water (dissolved Calcium) - Produces scaling that builds up on faucets, in fixtures and pipes. Also leaves unsightly spots on glasses, silverware and fixtures. Hardness creates soap curd that leaves the bath tub ring and decreases that effectiveness of shampoos, cleaning supplies and detergents for laundry and dishes. We can show you in your home how much is in the water and the difference soft water can make on soap effectriveness.
Iron - Higher concentrations of iron can cause an objectionable taste and rust colored staining of sinks, commodes, bath tubs, other plumbing fixtures and clothes. We test for both ferrous and ferric iron to make sure our recommendations work correctly.
Iron Bacteria - Iron bacteria, while not harmful to most individuals, does cause problems in the plumbing and can create odors similar to sulfur.
pH - Low pH water (acidic) can cause damage to sinks, faucets, hot water tanks, drainage and supply lines. These problems can cause extensive repair costs or replacement.
Sulfur - Sulfur causes damage to plumbing and gives off an offensive, "rotten egg" odor. Levels vary from mild to severe.
Chlorine - Chlorine is found to be objectionable in drinking and bathing water. Chlorine that mixes with organics in water forms trihalomethanes (THM's) THM's are reportedly cancer causing agents
Tannins - Decayed organic matter that is found in water. Can have an odor and stains clothing and fixtures.
Arsenic - Found naturally occurring in nature but harmful through both ingestion and contact. We do a general test looking for arsenic presence.
Nitrates and Nitrites - Gets into water through seepage. Unpleasant side-effects on the human body.
Oxygen content - Depending on what and how we are going to treat, especially high iron, we will need to know your O2 levels.
Sediments - sediments coming up from your well can destroy seals on fixtures, wear at finishes on your fixtures and appliances as well as make clothing and towels scratch.
We can also recommend an independent certified lab with no affiliation to us to do a full spectrum analysis on a sample of water you send directly to them. This information could then be used to make an educated decision on what areas of treatment you may wish to pinpoint.
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