For those unfamiliar with the problem excess iron in pool water may cause...

• In high enough concentrations it will make pool water look VERY uninviting because it may give the water a brown, dark and/or otherwise unpleasant appearance.
   
• Iron may form sediments and stains when chlorine or other oxidizers get added to the pool water... and in the case of staining some of the iron stains may take on a permanent and certainly unwanted nature.

Does iron pose a health risk?  Not really, but again, iron in pool water may take on a really unpleasant appearance due to discoloration and the formation of sediment, solids and/or gross looking stains on pool surfaces.

To answer Lia's question directly, one should NOT attempt to replace traditional pool filter sand with other filtration substances (like Greensand which gets used to filter out unwanted water contaminants such as  iron, hydrogen sulfide and/or manganese).

Since Lia mentioned ferric iron covering the bottom of her pool, it sounds like whatever filtration option she chooses should include a  sediment pre-filter.  Taking out 'solids' (like ferric iron) before water hits the main filter helps to extend main filter life and efficiency.

We found additional recommendations for iron reduction and iron removal on the FilterWater.Com web site:

• To treat up to 3 ppm ferrous or ferric iron (metal iron), use of a filter such as the Pentek RFFE20-BB Iron Reduction Filter in a Big Blue 20x4.5 housing is suggested.
   
• If iron is above 3 ppm or if it is bacteria-based, use of an Iron and Hydrogen Sulfide Whole House System up to 15 ppm is suggested.
   
• If iron level is above 15 ppm, or for incoming water lines larger than 1", you should probably consider a Commercial Iron Removal System.

First Things First:  How Much Iron Does the Water Source Contain?

As with any water contamination situation, the removal/reduction method depends greatly upon the concentration and nature of the contaminant.  Always TEST YOUR WATER before investing in  a water filtration system... or run the risk of purchasing and installing the wrong products!

Good afternoon, Jeanette, and thank you for your inquiry. The links below will allow you to learn more about the test procedure for  SenSafe Manganese Check:

• http://watertestingblog.com/products/481020-card-1.jpg
  
  
• http://watertestingblog.com/products/481020-card-2.jpg

Regarding accuracy, we really have not heard any complaints from users of the product. When we experimented with it years ago we found that it did a pretty decent job... for a dip-n-read style of test.

If you need something with greater precision, range, etc., then we suggest considering a product such as the following which provides a digital readout of results:

The Well Water (Driller) version of the eXact Micro 20 Handheld Water Testing Meter (information available on this page: http://www.filterwater.com/pc-458-32-exact-micro-20-water-tester-kit.aspx) comes with testing materials for a number of important water quality parameters in addition to manganese.

Is Manganese a Health Hazard?

As a general rule manganese in drinking water does NOT present a health hazard, though in great enough concentration ANYthing could pose a threat to human health.

Typically manganese in water presents itself as more a nuisance for laundry since it may cause black staining and for that reason water professionals suggest keeping its levels below 0.05mg/L (ppm).

Filtering Out Manganese?

Should you find yourself in a situation where manganese levels in your water supply give you trouble, the following Propur water filters have been tested by an independent lab to reduce manganese levels in drinking water by >99%.

• ProPur ProMax PMC-4000 Undercounter Water Filter
  
  
• ProPur ProMax PMC-3000 Countertop Water Filter
  
  
• ProPur Inline Connect FS10 Under Counter Water Filter

Flooding, whether extensive or localized, may compromise water quality in drinking water wells.

What if my well never got submerged by flood waters?  Even though your well may not have undergone severe flooding itself, you should not assume that it will provide safe, clean drinking water.  When floods occur, contaminated surface water may indirectly find its way into the aquifer (underground water source) from which your well draws its water.

Under normal circumstances, surface water creeps slowly downward through the ground and as it does so it undergoes a sort of natural filtering by the elements it passes through.  When floods occur, that filtration process may get bypassed altogether, as in cases where a damaged wellhead tapping into the aquifer allows contaminated surface water to shoot rapidly downward into aquifer by way of a compromised water well.

After flood waters recede, check your water supply to see if any of the following conditions exist:

• Has the quality of your water changed (odor, color or taste)?
• Did the flood waters come close to your water source?
• Did your well actually get flooded?

If your particular situation meets any of the above criteria and you suspect that the quality of your drinking water may have gotten compromised, you should seriously consider taking the following steps:

• Immediately stop using the well water for human consumption and use only bottled or boiled water for things like drinking, cooking, and washing.
• At the very least have your well tested for coliform bacteria and should the test come back positive, definitely have your well disinfected.  Then test, again, to make certain the disinfection process worked.

WaterSafe City Water Test Kit

COMPLETE Water Quality Test Kit - 13 Parameters

COMPLETE Water Test Kit w/ Lead & Pesticide Tests

Thank you, Brad, for the inquiry.  At this point we know of no at-home water test kit exists that test for THM's (trihalomethanes) or other DBP's (disinfection byproducts).  Testing for those sorts of substances/compounds requires laboratory techniques and equipment.

With that said, companies like National Testing Laboratories offer mail-in water testing services that include tests for THM's. The most basic one we know of is called "Watercheck City-Check Basic" and you can read more about it in the Water Test Kit Store.

Results of testing carried out by National Testing Laboratories typically get emailed to customers about 10 business days after the lab receives samples for analysis.

What are THM's?

The term trihalomethanes describes a class of compounds in the disinfection byproduct family which get created when a disinfectant (example: chlorine in the form of hypochlorous acid) interacts with and/or neutralizes organic contaminants in water.

Scientists and health officials have determined that consuming water with elevated levels of THM's poses a threat to human health and therefore the EPA regulates the amount of THM's that public water supplies may possess.  If a water system's internal testing reveals higher than allowed levels of THM's the water system must immediately remedy the situation and in most cases must also report the failed tests to its customers within a specified period of time.

Filtering THM's Out of Drinking Water

Can home water filters remove or drastically reduce THM's in drinking water?  Yes, some do have that ability.  As an example, several of the home water filters in the Multipure product line have been tested according to NSF/ANSI Standard 53 for the reduction of a number of potentially harmful drinking water contaminants including THM's.

During that testing Multipure’s Drinking Water Systems' Aquaversa, Aquaperform and Aquadome water filter systems effectively reduced concentrations of unwanted contaminants to less than or equal to the permissible contaminant limits for filtered water leaving the systems.

If you'd like to see the full list of potential drinking water contaminants Multipure filters remove or reduce, you can view that information here.

Thank you, Robert, for the inquiry. At this time we carry two kits that contain MOST of the items in your list. See below for details:

COMPLETE Water Quality Test Kit includes tests for:

• Iron: 0.0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.3, 1.0 ppm (mg/L) – 2 tests
• Copper: 0, 0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 ppm (mg/L) – 2 tests
• Chloride: 0, 250, 500 ppm (mg/L) – 2 tests
• Nitrate: 0, 2.0, 10, 20, 50, ppm (mg/L) (as N) – 2 tests
• Nitrite: 0, 0.2, 1.0, 1.5, 3.0 ppm (mg/L) (as N) – 2 tests
• pH: 2.0, 4.0, 5.0, 6.5, 8.5, 9.5, 10.5, 12 – 2 tests
• Total Alkalinity: 0, 80, 120, 180, 240, 500 ppm (mg/L) – 2 tests
• Total Chlorine: 0, 0.2, 1, 4, 10 ppm (mg/L) – 2 tests
• Total Hardness: 0, 50, 120, 250, 425, 1000 ppm (mg/L) – 2 tests
• Free Chlorine: 0, 0.5, 0.2, 0.6, 1.5, 4.0, 10 ppm (mg/L) – 2 tests
• Sulfate: 0, 250, >500 – 2 tests
• Hydrogen Sulfide: 0, 0.2, 2.0 ppm (mg/L) – 2 tests
• Bacteria: presence / absence media for total coliforms 1 test

The Water Quality Test Kit includes tests for:

• 2 tests for Alkalinity, Total
• 1 test for Bacteria, Coliform in Water
• 2 tests for Chloride
• 2 tests for Chlorine, Free
• 2 tests for Chlorine, Total
• 2 tests for Copper, Total
• 2 tests for Hardness, Total
• 2 tests for Hydrogen Sulfide
• 2 tests for Iron
• 1 test for Lead
• 2 tests for Nitrate/Nitrite, as Nitrogen
• 1 test for Pesticides (Atrazine & Simazine)
• 2 tests for ph
• 2 tests for Sulfate

Neither kit includes a tests for Manganese, though.

Got larger or more frequent testing needs?

If you need to test more than one or two water sources for a range of water quality parameters, you may want to consider either the Well Driller Standard Test Kit or Well Driller Master Test Kit.

In the Water Metals Section of the Water Test Kit Store we offer quick and easy tests for a number of metals such as:

Testing for other metals such as strontium, barium and aluminum requires more advanced testing methods typically only found in laboratory environments.

See below for a few of the mail-in water testing packages offered by National Testing Laboratories

Thank you, Margette, for the iron in water question.  The United States EPA does not consider dissolved iron in drinking water a hazard to anyone's health at any concentration.  It does include iron in its Secondary Drinking Water Standards which deal with aesthetic matters such as the color, taste or odor of the water.

We recently read a few articles written by chemists water professionals who decided to look a bit further into the effects of dissolved iron concentrations in drinking water.  They developed an interesting hypothesis that although dissolved iron does not directly cause health problems, it may indirectly play a part in allowing other, negative things to happen to the human body.

But, for now (at least), word on the street says that higher iron concentrations in drinking water pose no direct threat to human health... though they CAN ruin your favorite shirt/blouse with stains, make your plumbing fixtures look gross with ugly stains, and/or clog up your pipes, water heaters, water filters, etc.

WaterWorks Total Iron Test

Chemical name for hydrogen sulfide: H₂S

• Detection Range: 0, 0.3, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 ppm (mg/L)
• Total Test Time < 2 Minutes
• No Powders to Dissolve or Tablets to Crush
• Each Kit Contains 30 Tests
• Current Inventory Has Expiration Date of 9/2017

The Low Range H₂S Test Kit detects concentrations of H₂S from 0 to 2ppm (mg/L) with its first increment down at 0.3ppm (mg/L).  Other H₂S tests use a 'fizzing agent' to liberate hydrogen sulfide gas from water samples and then detect the gas, but this test does not.  Instead, this product uses a test procedure that changes the color of the sample in direct proportion to the concentration of dissolved H₂S in the aqueous sample.

The color of the sample then gets compared to a visual color chart designed specifically for this water quality test.

Got a rotten egg or sulfur smell in your water?

If so, then you more than likely have dissolved hydrogen sulfide gas in your water... and you also probably want to get that smell OUT of your water as soon as possible.

Before investing in a system to remove dissolved hydrogen sulfide gas you must first determine the concentration of the gas in your water so you can select the correct water treatment system. Otherwise you run the risk of purchasing too little remediation for the job or wasting money on a system that has far more hydrogen sulfide gas removal capabilities than your water quality situation requires.

Learn more about dissolved hydrogen sulfide gas in water, how to test for it, and how to remove it in the Hydrogen Sulfide Archives section of the Water Testing Blog!

"Hi....I am so confused as to which test to order. We have copper piping that has developed leaks due to tiny pin holes in the piping. Our PH is excellent but do not know what is causing the greenish color inside the pipes. Our plumber, about whom you can have a peek here, recommended we do a test on the water but since the water has normal acidity we do not know what to do now. Please help. Thanks so much. I am clueless and hoping you can point me in the right direction as to what we need to test for now!"

Hello, Sue, and thank you for your inquiry.  We suspect the greenish color you see comes from oxidation of the copper on its surface and the fact that you see it on the inside of the pipes indicates that your pipes most likely spent some time with air in them.  Perhaps the leaks in the pipes allowed oxygen into the system or maybe the system spent some time in a drained condition?

As for what caused the pinholes in the first place, pH would normally top the list as likely offender. Aside from that, you may want to take a look at alkalinity which affects the stability of the pH. If you have low alkalinity your water may have a great pH today and an absolutely horrible pH tomorrow.

Also, how old is the plumbing in question?  Perhaps just the age of the system has given it time to develop pinhole leaks?

Easy Way to Test for pH & Alkalinity

We currently carry a product called the WaterWorks pH & Alkalinity which performs a test for both pH and total alkalinity at the same time.

The WaterWorks pH & Total Alkalinity test strip utilizes a single test strip designed with two separate test pads: one for measuring pH and the other for measuring Total Alkalinity. The test procedure works well as an alternative to traditional wet chemical tests that sometimes require the use of potentially hazardous chemicals.

• pH: 6.0, 6.5, 7.0, 7.5, 8.0, 8.5, 9.0
• Total Alkalinity: 0, 80, 120, 180, 240, 360 ppm (mg/L)

Hello, Kyle, and thank you for your inquiry.  You raised a few interesting points and asked a few interesting questions... to which we have several (hopefully helpful) responses:

• General Metals Testing Approach -- This approach will give you a 30,000-ft view of your metal problem since several different metals may resemble the 'taste of iron' when dissolved in drinking water.  We suggest using a general metals testing product such as the SenSafe Heavy Metals Check which detects a broad spectrum of dissolved heavy metals and gives a total concentration of all the metals it detects (Note: The product will not identify individual metals or tell you how much of each metal it detected in a water sample).
• Focusing on Iron -- If you feel certain you have iron in your water, then the WaterWorks Visual Iron Test Kit may work well for you.  It differs from most iron tests in that it detects 'total iron' by converting Fe+3 iron to Fe+2 so the test reagent can detect it.  Most pool test kits we have seen, unless you get into troubleshooting versions, will only detect Fe+2.  Please note, however, that if your water does not contain iron at all (in either form), this test will also show blank results.
• Thorough (Laboratory) Well Water Analysis -- As a general rule, we believe newly dug wells should get tested for a full battery of tests before getting put into use.  Companies like National Testing Laboratories offer a number of mail-in water testing packages and typically provide results in about a week to ten days. Before running off and ordering the most expensive test package possible, though, you may want to contact your local Department of the Environment and ask them what sort of well water contaminants or issues they know of in your area... and choose a testing package based on the information they provide.

Once you get your iron in water and/or metals in water problem resolved, please keep one thing in mind: Many contaminants in well water -- some of them harmful -- have no associated taste, appearance or odor.

Only periodic testing of the water will let you know if a water quality aspect of your well water has changed.

Lead in Water Test

Water Metals Test Strips

Total Iron Visual Test Kit