Drinking Water Quality in the Home

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Drinking Water Quality in the Home

• Healthy Homes Resource
• Purdue Extension
• 2005

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Introduction

• Should you be concerned?
• What may not be safe?
• Does where your water come from make a
  difference?
• Action Steps
• Testing your drinking water

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Drinking Water

• Americans drink more than 1 billion glasses a day
• Depend on it for cooking, cleaning
• Bathing
• Where does your water come from?
• Who tests to ensure safety

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Drinking Water Quality Safety

• Bacteria and Viruses
• Cause
• Upset Stomachs
• Diarrhea
• Just one drink can make you sick
• Worse for children, the sick, elderly

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Nitrates

• From animal, human waste, fertilizer
• Can Cause Blue Baby Syndrome
• Dont get enough oxygen
• Must get immediate medical help
• Some believe nitrates cause
• Birth defects Miscarriages
• Water to make baby formula must be safe

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Lead and Copper

• Metals that come from your plumbing
• Lead pipes in older homes or lead solder
• Copper pipes are reddish-brown in color
• Too much lead leads to
• Colic in babies
• Behavioral problems for young children
• Upset stomachs and diarrhea for adults from lead

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If you have lead or copper

• Clear our pipes
• First draw in the morning, or when it hasnt been
  used for a while
• Let run for 2-3 minutes
• Never use hot water for
• Cooking
• Drinking
• Making Formula

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Other Harmful Chemicals

• Pesticides
• Gas and Oil
• Small amounts cause damage to
• Kidneys
• Liver
• Other organs
• Some cause cancer and pregnacy problems

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Public Water Supplies

• Water tested for 80 different chemicals
• Tell you when it is unsafe
• Boil Water notices
• Water Utilities notify once a year
• Can call anytime
• Problems occur when water reaches the house
• Lead pipes or solder
• Copper piping

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Private Water Supplies

• Private Well
• Your responsibility to ensure safety
• Test water
• Test every two years at a laboratory
• Test for nitrates and bacteria
• Test for other pollutants if problems
• Local Extension or Health Dept. can help with
  testing procedures and labs

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Help Protect Water Supplies

• Your water supply is local
• May be groundwater under your house
• May come from river or near- by lake

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Help Protect Water Supplies

• Follow labels when using poisons for bugs or
  weeds
• Watch how you store chemicals outside
• Make sure labeled and tightly sealed
• Do not throw chemicals in garbage or down the
  drain
• Clean up after your dog

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Protect your Water Supply

• Know your wells location
• Is it uphill from
• Animal pens
• Manure
• Pet Waste
• Septic Systems
• Dumps
• Places where chemicals are stored

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Well Basics

• Well Casing needs to stick up above ground
• No gaps or spaces
• No holes or cracks
• Does well cap fit tightly?
• No low area for rain to collect
• Do not store gas, oil weed killer near well

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Protecting your Well

• What kind of well do you have?
• Dug usually less than 50 feet
• May be less safe
• Drilled well narrow and deep sometimes
  hundreds of feet
• Driven point or sand point
• 1-2 inches wide and quite shallow
• How old is your well?
• Is your well in good shape?

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Unused Wells

• Not Properly sealed or capped
• Can allow pollution in groundwater
• Ask local health department for recommendations

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Prevent Back Flow

• Devices on Ends of faucets
• Keep pollutants from washing back into the hose
  and into drinking water
• Call Back Flow Prevention Devices

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Drinking Water Quality Summary

• Where your water comes from determines safety
  responsibilities
• Municipal water tested for 80 contaminants
• Well water Owner must test
• Contaminants
• Nitrates, lead, copper, pesticides, gas, oil
• Keep water supplies safe
• Dispose of chemicals properly
• Seal unused wells

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The End

• Questions?????
• Prepared by Catherine E. Burwell, PhD, and
• Kendra Freeman
• Purdue Cooperative Extension Service
• 2005.