Drinking Water Testing Is Becoming Increasing Important

By Minnie Whitley


The quality of water sources has continuously decreased over the last few years due to urbanization and industrialization. As a result drinking water testing should never be ignored. There are a lot of factors that affect the quality of H2O as it is transported from the sources. Some of them are ageing systems of supply, direct contamination at the source and nature of plumbing in our homes.

It is impossible to determine if H2O is safe for taking by merely looking at it. This is because factors that people should be keen on to determine quality are visible other are invisible. Also some are obvious while others require a test. As a result professionals in aquatic matters need to be on watch to prevent disease outbreaks triggered by taking contaminated H2O. Due to the fact that homesteads are many, the professionals can enlighten the public; provide free plumbing audit water testing.

It is ignorance for people to argue that they can determine if H2O is safe drinking without taking a test. Most of these people use their senses to determine the quality. This method has greatly been discouraged because senses only alert people on the visible contaminants and unappetizing impurities like sulfur and a lot of chlorine because they have a strong smell.

Contaminated H2O causes various health symptoms. These effects range from slight to severe ones like diarrhea and cramps. The intensity of the health effects due to drinking H2O is determined by amount of harmful chemicals or contaminants present in the water, length of time they have been present, and the quantity of such water taken.

There are seven main reasons why testing should not be ignored especially among homeowners using springs, wells, and cisterns for H2O supply. To begin with people should be aware that testing private water supply is completely voluntary unlike public H2O that is tested by local government. There is no government program or agencies that test private water supply hence it is entirely the responsibility of the user to determine if it is safe for consumption.

It is a point of concern that most of the public supplies have never been tested. Research has evidenced that despite the high risk of water contamination most H2O sources are not tested. However over the past few years the governments of various nations have brought the testing services near its citizens through establishment of more laboratory analyses institutions.

Another reason why people should be careful on testing is because most of the pollutants found in our systems may not have obvious symptoms. Some of the symptoms are not direct but have long time impact. Some of these tests help save our future generations. This is because information collected from the analyses is kept safely and used in future to determine the quality.

Looking at water and concluding it is safe for consumption is absolutely wrong and should be discouraged. Past tests and carrying out analyses are the only two reasons that should make one confident that water is safe for drinking. If one realizes that H2O has a strange smell, taste or color, they should keep off the source until a test is conducted.




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