How to Test for VOCs in Water
If you live in an industrial or agricultural area or notice changes in the smell, taste and appearance of your water, testing for VOCs in your well water may be one of the best decisions you could make. Volatile organic compounds are contaminants in drinking water that typically seep into the water supply as the result of the dumping of industrial chemicals or tanker spills. The chemicals, in high doses, have been linked to various cancers, kidney, liver and CNS conditions and birth defects.
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Instructions
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Consult your local health department before undertaking any test. VOCs are quite uncommon, so before you spend the time and money on sometimes pricey testing, check with the experts first. They'll be able to tell you the likelihood of VOCs in your specific area or guide you to the right types of tests, those sources that may be likely to cause changes in your water quality (such as nitrates).
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Know when to move forward. If your neighborhood is a likely area for VOCs like benzene and MTBE, you'll want to move forward. Same goes for if your area is a known problem spot. Have there been tanker spills in the region or flooding, for example?
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Obtain a home testing kit. Some plumbing supply or water treatment facilities offer these for free, but the tests vary greatly in kind depending on what you're trying to zero in on. For example, some procedures require you to run water before obtaining a sample, while others suggest you collect samples after the water has sat in the pipes overnight. No matter what the specifics, you should have written instructions included with your kit to help you obtain "clean" samples.
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Enlist help. A better way than DYI is to have the experts collect the water sample. Often a technician from, say, the local health department will come to your home, extract the samples and analyze them or send them to a lab for review.
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Review results carefully. A lab will send you a report, outlining results of any VOC tests. These results will dictate your water treatment options. Most labs will offer a summary of the results in plain-speak but there are basic key terms you should understand. For example, the maximum contaminant level is that level which is considered acceptable by federal standards, while level detected is the amount of an isolated chemical relayed in a specific unit of measurement (typically PPM or parts per million).
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Follow through. If it's deemed you need to have your water treatment, don't simply install the appropriate treatment measures. Keep an ongoing record of any changes you recognize in your water. This may include slight odors or flavor anomalies, but no matter how slight they may seem, it may signify existing or even newly-emerging problems. That could mean the treatment option you have explored isn't working.
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