CONTAMINANTS

CONTAMINANTS IN WELL AND CITY WATER

What is a water contaminant?

Technically, anything that is not water that is in water is a contaminant. For example, iron, sodium, and even Kool-Aid are contaminants. Some pollutants are harmful, and some are just a nuisance. There are four categories of contaminants – physical, chemical, biological, and radiological.

WHY ARE THERE STILL CONTAMINANTS IN TREATED WATER?

Testing city water is still crucial as they are only required to meet National Primary Drinking Water Standards. That means there are acceptable levels of contamination in the drinking water treated at public facilities flowing into homes.

Those who use private water sources, such as a well, are left to ensure their own safe drinking well water. Contaminants enter the water supply publicly and privately from many different areas, including construction, agricultural pesticides, soil erosion, road salt, or companies surrounding the home or the water supply.

HOW CAN YOU TELL IF WATER IS CONTAMINATED?

There may not be any obvious signs of water contamination, which is why it is important to test your water regularly or have permanent treatment in place to avoid future contamination, such as bacteria.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU CONSUME CONTAMINATED DRINKING WATER?

Contaminated drinking water may cause health issues. Testing water can help determine the types of contaminants potentially causing unsafe drinking water. The process can also help you decide which type of home water treatment system you may need.

NO SINGLE UNIT WILL REMOVE EVERY CONTAMINANT

Don’t confuse conditioned, softened, or neutralized water with “purified” water. These are treatments for water problems that are not harmful to drink. For most residential households, combining a UV light system for bacteria and reverse osmosis or an always fresh filtration system would achieve safe, potable water. Understanding not only the contaminant but its source can help you determine what system you need to protect your home best.

IF YOU HAVE CHILDREN, TEST FOR FLUORIDE AND LEAD

Check out this guide on Drinking Water published by the CT Dept of Public Health: www.epa.gov

Your health, and that of your family, are important. If you want the plain truth about water contaminants and what to do to protect you and your family, call or email us today. Our expert and professional technicians will recommend the water test that is right for you.

If you need help understanding an existing water test - we can help. Call H2O Equipment Company today at 860-267-0110.

Start with our FREE Water Test
Takes only 10 minutes
No Obligation
Why wait? Call now!
860-267-0110

	Max Level	Sign or Symptoms	Primary Source	Treatment Options
Arsenic	0	Cancer	Nature	Many
Chloride	250	Taste	Varies, road salt	Reverse Osmosis
Chlorine	4 mg/l	Taste	As additive	Carbon System Always Fresh
Coliform Bacteria	ZERO	Gastro-intestinal illness	Fecal waste	Well Chlorination Ultraviolet Light System
Copper	1.3 mg/l	Liver/Kidney	Plumbing, Nature	Neutralizer Reverse Osmosis Always Fresh
Flouride	4.0 mg/l	Bone disease	Nature, As additive	Reverse Osmosis
Hardness	5 grains	White scaling	Nature	Water Softener
Iron	0.3	Red stains	Nature	Water Softener Birm Filtration
Lead	0	Developmental Delays in kids	Plumbing, Nature	Carbon System Reverse Osmosis Always Fresh
Manganese	0.05	Brown stains	Nature	Water Softener
MTBE Methyl tertiary-butyl ether	70 ppb	Multiple	Man-made	Carbon System
Nitrate as N	10.0 mg/l	Blue Baby Syndrome	Fertilizer, Sewage	Reverse Osmosis
Nitrite as N	1.0 mg/l	Blue Baby Syndrome	Fertilizer, Sewage	Reverse Osmosis
pH	6.4-10.0	Corrosion	Nature	Neutralizer
Radon	4,000 pi/cl	Cancer	Nature	Carbon System Aeration System
Sodium	28 mg/l	------	Nature, Road Salt	Reverse Osmosis
Sulfate	500 mg/l	Laxative	Nature, Road Salt	Reverse Osmosis Anion Softener
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)	Varies	Varies	Man-made	Carbon System Always Fresh