WATER TESTING AND INTERPRETATION

WHY TEST YOUR WATER?

 25% of private water supplies have never been tested, another 20% have only been tested by a water treatment company!

 Many contaminants have no obvious symptoms in water  Routine water testing gives you legal protection



Drinking Water Standards

“Acceptable” level of the pollutant in drinking water, enforced by DEP for public supplies  Specific to intended water use 

Primary

and

Secondary

Standards exist for drinking water  Limits set by the U.S. EPA, enforced by the PA DEP – on public water systems only!

 Primary = health based (MCL) – Total coliform bacteria = absent (<1/100 mL) – E. coli bacteria = absent (<1/100 mL) – Barium = < 2.0 mg/L  Secondary = aesthetic (RMCL or SMCL) – Iron = 0.3 mg/L – pH = 6.5 to 8.5

Water Test Reports

 “Parameter” or “Test” = what was tested  “Result” = the concentration in your water sample  “Unit(s)”  milligram per liter (mg/L) for most   pH unit Specific conductance (uS/cm or umhos/cm)    Coliform bacteria = CFU/mL or colonies per 100 mL E. coli = MPN per 100 mL or “present/absent” Hardness = mg/L or gpg (gpg is about 17 mg/L)  Quantitation Limit = lowest level they can measure  Method, Analyst (or “By”), Date, Qualifiers are also included  A “<“ sign in front of a numbers means “less than” the level they could detect

UNITS OF MEASURE

milligram per liter (mg/L) = parts per million (ppm) microgram per liter (µg/L) = parts per billion (ppb) Other Special Units Bacteria = colonies per 100 mL pH = pH units Hardness sometimes in grains per gallon Radon = pCi/L

How do I know what to test my water for?

General Recommendation Every Year

 Coliform bacteria  $20-$30  Sample in different seasons from year to year

Coliform and E. coli Bacteria

• Coliform are “indicator organisms” that occur from surface runoff, insects, etc.

50 40 • May cause flu-like symptoms 30 20 • Both should be zero in drinking water 10 0 • Often related to construction of water well or spring

Coliform E. coli

Every 3 Years Add A Couple Tests

1. pH • Secondary standard = 6.5 to 8.5

2. Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) • Sum of all ions dissolved in water (iron+nitrate+ hardness + etc.) • Both of these tests are good general tests, readily available and cheap • Should not see big changes in pH or TDS over the years 3. Add a third test targeted at local land uses

TARGET TESTING AT LOCAL LAND USE

Landfills Organics, ?

Houses Bacteria Nitrate Sediment Yard Chemicals Roads Chloride, Sodium Mining Metals, pH Industry Organics, Petroleum Agriculture Bacteria, Nitrate, Pesticides Gas Drilling Barium, chloride, TDS

Example - Nitrates

• Originates from fertilizers or from animal or human wastes • Highest levels in PA are found in southeastern and southcentral counties •Reported as either NO 3 or NO 3 -N •Primary drinking water standard is 10 mg/L as NO 3 -N or 45 mg/L as NO 3

Water Testing Near Gas Drilling

• Industry pre-drill testing - within 2,500 feet (many going further), cooperate, get identification of person collecting samples, must be done by a state accredited lab, free copy to homeowner, make sure to understand report • Chain of custody or “third party” testing • Critical for legal documentation of water (whether by industry or by homeowner) • Timeframe for testing • Pre-drilling - within months before drilling starts • Post drilling – presumed responsibility only lasts for 12 months • Continuous monitoring – simple meters

Testing Parameters

• Critical indicators • Total dissolved solids, pH, barium, chloride, iron, manganese, methane gas Cost ~$200 Protection Less • Excellent additions • Suspended sediment, hardness, sodium, total organic carbon, strontium, lead, arsenic, alkalinity, oil/grease, surfactants, coliform bacteria, sulfate, nitrate • Expensive additions • BTEX, volatile organic compounds (VOC), radium, radon, gross alpha $800+ More More Testing = More Protection

Use Symptoms to Target Testing

• White residue, water heater damage =

hardness

•

Mostly from calcium and magnesium

• •

No drinking water standard Soft = < 17 mg/L

• • •

Moderately hard = 17-60 mg/L Hard = 60-120 mg/L Very hard = >120 mg/L

• Reddish stains, metallic taste = • RMCL < 0.3 mg/L

iron

• Common in sandstone, shale or near mining • Black stains, metallic taste =

manganese

• Often occurs with iron • RMCL < 0.05 mg/L

Use Symptoms to Target Testing

• Rotten egg odor •

hydrogen sulfide gas Very common in wells in certain shale formations

•

No drinking water standard, nose is best testing method

• Slime residue, blocked water pipes, musty odor =

iron bacteria

• Harmless bacteria that feed on iron • No drinking water standard • Blue stains, metallic taste -

corrosive water

• Generally caused by low pH and soft water • RMCL = non-corrosive • May cause lead and/or copper if home has metal plumbing

What About Radon in Water?

• Naturally occurring radioactive gas released from water • Most wells in PA have significant amounts of dissolved radon gas •Proposed standard of 300 pCi/L (80% will fail this standard) •But, it takes 10,000 pCi/L in water to get just 1 pCi/L in air •So, best to test indoor air first, then test water if air concentration is high •Can be easily removed with carbon filtration

Where to Get Your Water Tested

• Certified state accredited labs • List from local DEP or Extension • Penn State Extension • County offices carry test kits • Regional DEP office • Generally only do bacteria testing Penn State Water Testing Lab

How Do You Take a Water Sample?

• Use a clean container from the certified laboratory • Follow lab instructions carefully • Be especially careful with bacteria sample collection • Keep samples cool for delivery to lab

Chain of Custody Water Testing

• Lab employee or independent consultant visits the home to collect the sample • Ensures proper sample collection and handling • Provides legally valid results • Slightly more expensive but critical if the objective is to legally document water quality • Water test becomes legal document • List of labs offering this service at http://extension.psu.edu/water

Water Test Reports

• Test reports are usually available within about two weeks • Receipt of pre-drilling (industry) results may be longer • Test report components (no two reports are the same!) • Letter - description of sample handling, comments • Water supply information (address, type, date, etc.) • Parameters tested • Units for each test parameter • Results for each parameter • Drinking water standards (if applicable) • Methods (EPA methodology used for analyses) • Quality Control and Assurance (results of QC analyses)

Common Water Test Report Comments and Qualifiers

• ND = not detected • “<“ = below a detection level • BD = below detection • “MRL” or “DL” = maximum reporting or detection limit • “Flags” = problems or comments about sample

A Penn State Water Test Report

Simple User friendly Less information

Benchmark Analytics Inc. - Example

• Simple • Result and unit combined • Flags and comments interspersed • MCL provided

• TestAmerica • More complex • Flag = comment about analysis • MRL = maximum reporting limit • No comparison to standards