Should I Have My Town Or City Water Tested?

Reasons to test your city or town water.
Water is an important component of your new home. You want to know now what the quality of the water is. The reason you do is that you can factor in the expenses you may encounter adding or modifying the water filtration and purification system that may be necessary. By checking the water quality now, you can be certain of its current quality.

Which Test Should I Have? For most folks the best test to do is the one that will give you confidence in the water quality. We believe that our COMPREHENSIVE SCAN does this for most situations. This test covers the four common areas of contaminants that folks have concerns about. They are:
* Microbiological - Including total coliform and fecal/ e.coli bacteria.
* Inorganic Chemistry - Includes common metals such as iron, lead, manganese, arsenic and others. It also checks hardness, pH, nitrate and several other indicators of water quality.
* Organic Chemistry - We check 61 volatile organic compounds including benzene, MTBE, styrene, toluene, vinyl chloride, xylenes and others.
* Radiological - The US EPA continues to suggest that the level of radon in your house is effected by the level in your water. Your homes value can be affected by the level of radon in your water.

ISN'T MY WATER TESTED BY MY WATER UTILITY, TOWN OR COUNTY?
By Federal law any government or private company which provides water to at least 25 people on a regular basis must comply with certain testing requirements. Assuming that the required level of testing occurs, that means the water at it's point of distribution is of reasonable quality.

However, there are a number of things that can happen between that distribution point and your kitchen tap. These things include:
* Cracked or broken distribution pipes. In many towns these pipes were installed many decades ago. In some cases, the water mains are over a century old. Ground water can then enter these pipes through the cracks adding any number of contaminants.
* Sometimes there are inadequate or faulty flow control valves that result in other customer's water backwashing into your water source.
* Chlorine is often added to public water. A by-product of chlorinazation is the creation of a group of chemicals called trihalomethanes. These chemicals are known or suspected carcinogens if their levels exceed certain limits.
* Any home built prior to 1990 probably was constructed using lead based solder for the plumbing. That solder can, in certain circumstances, work its way into your water supply.
* Some older homes even have lead pipes leading to the public main. While the lead from these pipes doesn't necessarily enter the drinking water, the only way to know this is by testing.

By having a COMPREHENSIVE SCAN completed on your water, you should have a great deal of certainty about the quality of your water.

In conclusion As a key component of your new home, the drinking water is important to understand. Doing the correct level of testing gives the best certainty that your family will be able to enjoy safe, refreshing water. Cutting this corner now can be very expensive down the road, so take the time to consider this decision carefully.
Now is a great time to have Jim check your water. We wish you the best in your new home. Let us know if we can assist you in making your life there more pleasant.