Home Water Quality: How to Find Valuable Data About Your Domestic Water Supply
Are you concerned about the water quality in your home? Domestic water supplies provided by municipalities and private companies are frequently monitored for the presence of organic and inorganic impurities. However, homeowners can sometimes become concerned about their home water quality due to observations such as undesirable taste, odor or color, or the noticeable presence of particulates.
Your domestic water supplier likely releases periodic reports about water quality within its general service area. However, if you would like more information concerning the water specifically utilized within your home, domestic water sampling can provide valuable data. The procedure simply entails the collection of representative samples from the home and submission of these samples to an environmental laboratory for the analysis of various water quality parameters. The list of analytes can be tailored to suit your needs and may including the following:
- Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
- Metals
- Total suspended solids (TSS)
- Total dissolved solids (TDS)
- MBAS (detergents)
- Ammonia
- Nitrate
- pH
- Bacteria (coliform, E. coli)
Obtaining chemical data regarding the quality of the water in your home can reassure you that your water is safe to use or can provide information necessary to identify a problem and develop a solution, whether that means installing a filtration/purification system, evaluating the condition of the pipes within the home, or contacting your local supplier if it is determined that an issue potentially originates from the source.
New York State and local counties maintain guidance pertaining to domestic water quality. Walden’s experienced engineers and geologists are familiar with this regulatory guidance, which assists in the interpretation of sample analytical data. If you would like more information about domestic water sampling in your home, call Walden!