5 Water Testing Tips After Moving to Florida

If you’ve recently moved to Florida, the chances are good that you’ve heard something about the need for water testing in your new home. Water here tends to be heavily mineralized – a condition also known as hard water.

The minerals in the water can be harmful in a variety of ways, both to your family’s health and to your appliances and plumbing. With that in mind, here are five water testing tips to help you identify issues with your water.

Depending on the results of your test, you may want to consider installing the Guardian Water Services water refiner.

Tip #1: Use Your Senses

When you move to a new home, you can start identifying potential issues with water by using your senses. This kind of common sense “testing” shouldn’t replace a professional test, but it’s a good place to start.

If your water smells like bleach, then it might indicate that your municipality uses bleach to purify water. Usually the smell will dissipate quickly. A rotten egg smell is an indication of bacterial growth in your drain or pipes, or in some cases, of a problem with the water supply itself.

Water that has a strong taste of bleach might be over-chlorinated. Likewise, water with a strong metallic taste may have a high concentration of minerals – common in Florida – or a low pH level. Any foul taste may be linked to bacterial contamination.

Your water should be clear and clean-looking. Water that is yellow or red-tinted may indicate the presence of rust in your pipes and fixtures. White particles or a generally cloudy appearance signal the presence of magnesium carbonate or calcium carbonate in your water. Your water should not have many visible particles – if it does, you need to call the municipality where you live and notify them.

Tip #2: Examine Your Pipes and Fixtures

One of the most common water-related issues in Florida is the presence of hard minerals in the water. You can quickly identify a hard water problem by examining your pipes and fixtures.

For example, water that is heavily mineralized tends to leave blue or white deposits in pipes and on faucets and shower heads. Rust in the pipes may be visible on exterior pipes or in your toilet bowl. Of course, if you are having plumbing work done, you can ask to see a cross-section of pipe to check for corrosion or deposits.

Tip #3: Check Water Quality in Your Area

The final step you can take before actually testing the water is to check the National Drinking Water Database, a website maintained by the Environmental Protection Agency where you can review water testing results by municipality.

Alternatively, you can contact the town or city where you live and get a copy of the Water Quality Report. (All municipalities are required to test water quality regularly and publish the results.) We’ve compiled this research into a downloadable report for your convenience here.

Tip #4: Buy a Home Water Testing Kit

After you have performed the preliminary tests outlined here, the next step may be to buy a home water testing kit. Some kits test only for pH levels, so make sure to look for one that contains multiple strips to test other things, including:

• Bacteria
• Lead
• Pesticides
• Nitrites and nitrates
• Chlorine
• Hardness

Most home tests work by submerging test strips in water and then comparing them to the included color chart. They are a good and affordable way to get an idea of what issues you might have with your home’s water.

Tip #5: Get a Professional Test

The final and most comprehensive step you can take is to get a professional water test like the one we do at Guardian Water Services. We test thoroughly to make sure that you have a clear picture of what’s in your water and what needs to be done to make the water safe for you and your family.

If you’d like to schedule your free water quality test today, please click here. As a limited time offer we are giving away complimentary $50 retail store gift cards in exchange for completing a water test at your home!