You can depend on four of your 5 senses for water “diagnostics.” Water quality issues can often be detected by:
- Sight – Water that is red, brown, yellowish, or cloudy can indicate corrosion and/or contaminants in your plumbing. Runoff from dying vegetation (leaves, etc.) can give water a yellow/brown tint.
- Smell – Some of the common water smells include:
- Chlorine – Used as a disinfectant, chlorine in your water may be harmless but some find the smell annoying.
- Metallic – This could be a sign of arsenic, copper, iron, lead, manganese, mercury, or zinc from your pipes or in your water.
- Musty/mold smells can be decaying organic matter in the plumbing or water.
- Rotten eggs/Sulphur/salty may indicate bacteria-based hydrogen sulfide in your water.
- Turpentine – A chemical/turpentine smell may indicate methyl tertiary butyl (MTBE) in your water. MTBE is a byproduct of gasoline refining, paint, and/or detergent.
- Taste – Bad-tasting water can include:
- Metallic – It could be high in arsenic, copper, iron, lead, manganese, mercury, or zinc. Low potential Hydrogen (pH) is another reason your water may leave a metallic aftertaste.
- Salty – If you have high chloride levels in your water it may be from industrial waste or irrigation runoff.
- ‘Skunky’ – That moldy/lake-water smell may be simply old water.
- Touch – Your water shouldn’t feel gritty and there should never be sediment or tiny flecks of anything in your water. If just one tap has funny-looking/tasting/feeling water, check the mesh in the cylinder at the end of your tap. If there seems to be dirt in your water, it’s probably not hazardous, just yukky.
Clean Water is a Necessity
Having a water purification or filtration system is no longer a luxury. Most of us won’t settle for a water delivery system that is hazardous to our health. No one should!
Hard or metallic water can not only cause wellness issues for your family, your appliances’ longevity and efficiency will be impacted. Bradbury Brothers Cooling, Heating & Plumbing professionals can offer clean water solutions that are affordable and healthy. Call 281-651-5484/936-251-2030 or contact us for more information.
