F 104

Water Testing
Paul D. Robillard, Associate Professor, Agricultural Engineering

A
private water supply is just that—private. The methemoglobinemia (blue baby syndrome) in infants
quality of the private water supply is the and ruminant animals. To protect people and
responsibility of the homeowner. State laws livestock, a water quality standard of 10 milligrams
do not require testing of private domestic water per liter nitrate nitrogen (mg/l NO3-N) has been set for
supplies and regulatory agencies do not regularly human consumption and 100 mg/l NO3-N for
monitor the quality of private supplies. Therefore, the livestock. Ten mg/l nitrate nitrogen is equivalent to 45
only way a homeowner can be certain that the water is mg/l nitrate.
safe to drink is to have the water tested periodically.
Sulfates & total dissolve solids
What Should the Water be Tested For? Excessive concentrations of sulfates and other
dissolved salts can cause gastro-intestinal problems in
To protect both livestock and family members, the humans and animals. Water quality standards of 250
water supply should be tested to see if it meets state mg/l of sulfate and 500 mg/l total dissolved solids
and federal bacterial and chemical standards. It is have been set for drinking water supplies.
possible to run a comprehensive water analysis, but
this can be very expensive. The following tests pH
address the most common and serious health concerns,
and indicate contamination from sewage, manure, gas Water with a pH less than 6.5 or greater than 8.0 can
drilling, and mining activity. cause corrosion problems in plumbing. Corrosion not
only shortens the life of the pipe but also introduces
Bacteria dissolved metals into the water which can stain
fixtures and pose a potential health hazard. Cattle and
While it is possible to test for every water-borne
dairy cows are also sensitive to both low and high pH
disease causing bacteria and virus, such a test would
(below 5.5 and above 8.5) water. Water with a low pH
be very costly. Instead, a test for total coliform
may increase problems related to acidosis, and water
bacteria can be run. Most coliform bacteria do not
with high pH may result in alkalosis problems.
cause disease, but they are present in the intestines of
all warm blooded animals. Therefore, if these bacteria Other Water Problems
are present in a water supply, sewage or manure may
be contaminating the water. In addition to obtaining a water supply that is safe to
The digestive systems of cattle are particularly drink, it is also desirable to have water that is tasteless,
sensitive to all types of bacterial contamination. odorless, and non-staining. To select the appropriate
Therefore, in addition to testing for coliform bacteria, a treatment equipment to eliminate these problems, the
total bacteria count, which includes all types of bacteria, level of a number of minerals needs to be determined.
should indicate other sources of contamination.
Iron
Nitrates High concentrations of iron gives water a metallic
Nitrate contamination of drinking water is important taste, stains clothing and fixtures, and promotes the
because of its effect on human and livestock health. growth of iron bacteria in the water system.
Excessive concentrations of nitrate can cause
 gas well drilling in the area, or any other activity that
Hardness
may pollute water, a noticeable drop in dairy milk
Water hardness causes scaling problems in hot water production, or a change in the appearance, taste, or
pipes and water heaters, and interferes with the odor of the water.
cleaning action of soaps and detergents. The quality of surface water supplies fluctuates
much more than that of well water supplies. Its quality
Hydrogen Sulfide is affected by changes in temperature, algal blooms,
amount of rainfall and runoff, and the activity in the
Hydrogen sulfide gives water a “rotten egg” taste and
watershed. Therefore, all drinking water from surface
odor. Because hydrogen sulfide is a gas, it comes out
water supplies should be filtered and disinfected.
of solution very quickly. This makes it difficult to
send a water sample to a laboratory for testing.
Therefore, measurements for the concentration of How Should a Water Sample be Taken?
hydrogen sulfide must be made on site. Directions for collecting a water sample should always
come with the sample containers obtained from the
Monitoring Impacts of Gas Drilling or lab. These instructions should be followed carefully to
Mining Activity ensure a representative sample. The aerator should be
removed from the faucet and the water should be
To demonstrate the impact of gas drilling or mining allowed to run for several minutes. Care must be
activity, it is useful to have your water supply tested taken not to touch the inside of the sample container.
for a number of minerals. Samples taken prior to gas Samples should be refrigerated and delivered to the lab
drilling or mining should be collected by a as quickly as possible.
disinterested third party. The testing should be done at
an EPA certified laboratory. In addition to having a
Where Can a Water Test be Run?
water supply tested for bacteria and nitrates, a number
of other tests are helpful. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental
Resources (DER) will test a water sample to determine
Mining Activity Gas Drilling Activity if it is bacteriologically safe. Information on this
testing is available from a local DER office. Fee is
Total dissolved solids (TDS) Total dissolved solids (TDS) $10 for the mailing kit, which includes a sample bottle
Iron (Fe) Chlorides (Cl) and the laboratory test.
Sulfate (SO4) Sodium (Na) There are many private laboratories in
Pennsylvania that will analyze water from private
Acidity Barium (Ba) water supplies. Fact Sheet SW-18, Where to Have
pH Lead (Pb) Your Water Tested lists some testing laboratories
Langelier’s Saturation Index pH which have been approved by the Pennsylvania
(LSI) Department of Environmental Resources to analyze
Manganese (Mn) Langelier’s Saturation Index drinking water for various contaminants. In addition,
(LSI) the EPA has produced a list of approved drinking
Aluminum (Al) Strontium (Sr) water laboratories for Pennsylvania. These two
listings are available through your county extension
office.

How Often Should a Water