How to Conduct a Water Sample Test
Water purity varies depending on its source, its surrounding environment and how it's delivered to your home. Specific variables---such as chlorine content, pH, and bacterial contamination---help to determine whether water is safe to drink. By conducting a few inexpensive tests, you can inform yourself about the pH of your water, and the amount of chlorine and bacteria it contains.
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Things You'll Need
- 3 small glass jars
- pH test strip
- Chlorine test strip
- Petri dish
- Agar solution
- Sterile cotton swab
Instructions
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Fill three glass jars with the water you want to test.
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Test the water's pH by dipping a pH test strip briefly into the first jar. If the strip turns more yellow, that means the water is basic. If the strip turns more pink, the water is acidic. Acidic water may be more likely to leach hazardous metals like lead from pipes and fixtures.
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Test chlorine levels by dipping a chlorine test strip into the second jar. The darker the blue on the strip, the more chlorine the water contains. Water with a chlorine content higher than 4 parts per million may cause health problems.
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Test for bacteria by using a petri dish. Collect water from the third jar on the end of a sterile cotton swab. Wipe the swab around in an agar-filled petri dish. Place the lid on the dish. After 48 hours, you will see blotchy growths in the dish if there are bacteria in the water sample.
This test can result in false positives. For definitive results, you will need to have a laboratory test your water.
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References
- Photo Credit test tube image by Oleg Verbitsky from Fotolia.com
