How To Check The Water Quality In Your Home

How To Check The Water Quality In Your Home

. 4 min read

It’s normal to be concerned about the quality of your home's drinking water, especially if you’re worried about your family's health. The best water quality check kit can relieve you of your worries. Before you buy one, though, there are several steps you need to take to assure that the product you choose will help provide clean, fresh water.

Check the Water Source

When it comes to water, you should always think about the source. If your water comes from a private well, then you should consider that it might be contaminated with chemical pollutants that enter the water system through septic tanks and underground pipes. This may not be a big concern, unless you live in a rural area where wells are few and far between. However, if you drink bottled water or buy tap water, you may be exposing yourself to harmful chemicals.

It can be easy to overlook that the quality of your drinking water can affect your health in ways other than just having a strange taste and odour. This is why using water filters by Filtap is important. Many people take water filters for granted, but they can help you have a healthy body. If you drink unfiltered water, you're risking the health of your family.

In areas where the majority of the water comes from dams, the water is usually heavily polluted. In most cases, this means that the water is not tested and is not regulated for safety. This is why it's important to check the water quality in your area to avoid poisoning yourself and your family.

Use A Water Test Kit

Keep in mind that a water quality check kit is not a substitute for a regular home water test. These kits will only detect the level of contaminants present in your drinking water. You still need to do a standard water test to be sure that there are no other contaminants in the water, such as sediment or rust.

A home water test kit should also contain a list of ingredients that are in it. Make sure that the product contains activated granular carbon, micron filters, pH stabilizers, chlorine, an iron-chelating agent, and what are called ion exchange systems. This makes the water less toxic and prevents harmful minerals from building up in your pipes.

When purchasing a water test kit, make sure that it has the latest standards for testing and reporting contaminants. It should include a test for the following:

  • Lead
  • Cysts
  • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
  • Trihalomethanes (THMs)
  • Bacteria
  • Cryptosporidium
  • Parasites
  • Giardia
  • Cryptosporidium

Determine the Local Government Standard for Safe Drinking Water

Third, you must be aware that your local government enforces a certain standard for safe drinking water. The most common standards are set by the Safe Drinking Water Foundation, which uses a process called the Alpha Screening Method to determine the safety levels for several contaminants.

Your home may have higher contaminant levels than local standards, but if you’re serviced by a water treatment facility, it should pass safety standards for contaminants. If your household doesn't have an approved water treatment facility, then your local water company may be able to give you the results you need to find out what your water source is.

Check the Water Pipes

The importance of checking water quality in your home also includes testing the faucets to make sure that your pipes are safe. You don't want to run the risk of having an accident in your home, especially when it comes to your drinking water. It's important to find out from the supplier or local water treatment plant what their recommended filtering methods are for your particular area.

A plumbing professional can also give recommendations to ensure a safe plumbing system at home, which can affect water quality.

Tips to Ensure Safe Drinking Water

Ask A Health Professional

Ask your doctor or pharmacist to recommend a good, reliable brand of bottled water. If they can't do this, at least ask them for the names of some popular bottled waters. Look at the back of the bottle to see what the recommended concentration level of chlorine is, what percentage of the water contains iron, what kind of filter was used, and what type of UV stabilizer was used.

Use the Best Water Filter

The first thing you need to do is make sure you get a water filter system to take care of any potential issues with your water. You also want to be sure you’re using the best type of filter available for your particular situation. For example, if you have a well or river, you will not want to run any chlorination through it to ensure safe drinking water. The same is true with any other source of water, so you will want to determine which way your water is going to come in.

You also need to consider the types of water filters you will use in order to find the best one for your needs. For instance, reverse osmosis systems can remove chemicals, but they’re extremely expensive. In addition, there is a concern with the fact that they can remove healthy minerals as well. The best filters are the ones that are able to remove both types of contaminants, along with the healthy minerals that are good for your body. There are some water filters on the market today that can do this as well.

Check the following tips when choosing the best water filter:

  • Before you purchase any filters for your tap water, you will need to know what type of water you have. If you have an entire water system or a whole house, you will need to make sure you install the correct type of filter in the proper location. Make sure the filter has enough capacity to ensure that all of the water coming in is pure.
  • Make sure you also check the manufacturer's recommendations for the water filters you’re using. This will make sure you get the best performance from your product, and that no chemicals get through.
  • If you’re interested in using an in-home system, make sure that the manufacturer makes it safe to do so. If the filter system you’re using cannot guarantee safe drinking water, then you need to make sure you find a different company that’s capable. It’s important you have the peace of mind knowing that your family is safe in any situation that you can think of with the filters they provide.

Conclusion

You can check the water quality in your home by knowing the source, using a home water test kit, and asking professionals as discussed above. It’s crucial to check water quality at home, most especially drinking water, to ensure the safety and health of your family.



Table Of Contents

Mark Thompson

Mark is an Australian Agronomist and a father of two beautiful girls. He enjoys writing about garden design, landscape architecture, DIY, tools, and related topics.

About expertEasy

Live in Australia? Whether you need your lawn mowed, your garden landscaped, your home painted, or you need a photographer, expertEasy is the easy way to find expert help.

Find the right expert