Conditions or Nearby Activities	Recommended Test
Recurrent gastrointestinal illness	Coliform bacteria
Household plumbing contains lead	pH, alkalinity, total hardness, lead, copper
Radon present in indoor air or region	Radon
Scaly residues, soaps don’t lather	Total hardness
Water softener to treat hardness	Manganese, iron
Stained plumbing fixtures, laundry	Iron, copper, manganese
Bad taste or smell	Hydrogen sulfide, pH, alkalinity, total hardness, metals
Water is cloudy, frothy or colored	Color, detergents
Corrosion of pipes, plumbing	pH, alkalinity, total hardness
Rapid wear of water treatment equipment	Nitrate, pesticides, coliform bacteria
Nearby coal, other mining operation	Metals, pH, cyanide
Gas drilling operation nearby	Chloride, sodium, barium, strontium
Gasoline or fuel oil odor	Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
Dump, landfill, factory nearby	VOCs, pH, sulfate, chloride, metals
Salty taste or heavily salted roadway nearby	Chloride, TDS, sodium

Most information in the tables above and below extracted from: http://deq.state.wy.us/wqd/testingLabs.htm

The link above also featured a list of potential reason for one to test their water. See below, please, and keep in mind that neither the list above nor the list below serves as an all-inclusive list of reason to test one’s water supply. Many other hazardous water quality situations exist other than the ones in this article!

Suspected Contaminant	When to Test
Arsenic	Obtain baseline test results, follow up with (at least) annual testing, and test sfter installation of treatment system to ensure proper function
Bacteria	At least annually, if a newborn or elderly person resides in the home, after installation/service of well equipment, and any time the well casing may have gotten compromised
Iron	Water has a reddish hue or leaves reddish, rusty stains on fixtures
Nitrate	Shouldget tested (at least) annually, in agricultural areaseas, and if pregnant women or very young children reside in the home
Uranium	Shallow wells in areas known to contain bedrock with a lot of uranium
Radon	Most areas require this testing before the sale of a home may get completed
Sulfur & Manganese	Water has a bitter taste and/or rotten egg odor

ST. PAUL – The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) and Washington County Department of Public Health and Environment will offer a free nitrate water-testing clinic from 4 to 7 p.m. June 5 at the Scandia Town Hall.

…

“Nitrates in drinking water can be a risk to human health,” MDA Commissioner Dave Frederickson said. “Public drinking water supplies are monitored for nitrates, but it’s important for homeowners with private wells to check their water and take action if their water has high nitrates levels.”

…

Samples will be analyzed on the spot since the process usually takes less than five minutes. Results will be given directly to the homeowner. If the nitrate level in a sample is elevated, clinic staff can refer the homeowner to certified labs that will retest the water.

The Scandia Town Hall is at 14727 209th St. North, in Scandia. Contact Wendy Griffin at 651-275-1136, ext. 24 for details. ( source )

Owners of private wells need to stay vigilant when it comes to monitoring nitrate levels in their well water — especially if the wells service homes containing small children and/or pregnant women. Scientists have positively linked elevated nitrate levels in drinking water to incidents of methemoglobinemia, or blue baby syndrome.

In cases of blue baby syndrome, the nitrates get absorbed into the blood by hemoglobin (the oxygen-carrying component of blood) which gets converted to methemoglobin… and methemoglobin does not carry oxygen nearly as efficiently as hemoglobin. This, in turn, results in lowered oxygen levels in the bloodstream and organs such as the brain then receive lower than needed amounts of oxygen.

Prolonged deprivation of oxygen flowing to the brain becomes particularly problematic for infants and young children since their blood cannot convert the methemoglobin back to hemoglobin and the brain, in extreme cases, can become damaged.

In truly extreme cases of blue baby syndrome the brain, and its owner, can die.

Protecting your drinking water source

A study conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency roughly 20 years ago found that more than 50 percent of the private wells tested had traces of nitrates in their water — and we highly doubt that number has decreased since that time.

While the majority of nitrate contamination incidents take place in or around rural areas occupied by agricultural industries and activities, improperly installed or poorly placed wells in non-agricultural areas often get contaminated, as well.

When considering the location for a new well make certain the well will not reside within 100 feet of feed areas, regions that will get treated with fertilizers on a regular basis, barns, livestock pens, septic tanks, sewage discharge pipes, or places where chemicals of any kind will get stored. Oh, and PLEASE do not forget to place the well UPHILL from any of the aforementioned potential contamination sources.

Got a well on your property that no longer gets used? Did you know that it could easily serve as an entry point for unwanted contamination if not properly sealed or capped? Making sure old and/or abandoned wells have the correct protection over them will help ensure that the aquifer below remains untainted by contaminants on the surface near the well heads.

And finally, do not over-fertilize lawns, crops, etc. Nutrients not absorbed by the plants will wind up in runoff that will eventually find its way into the ground water supply.

Removing nitrates from drinking water?

Not all drinking water filters sold will remove nitrates and/or nitrites from ground, well and drinking water. The models below range from a simple disposable counter top model for nitrate removal all the way up to a whole house filter for nitrate removal.