water quality check

i have been thinking for the past few days about my water quality. I don't mean the water in my tanks, i'm refering to my local tap water. now i know its a good thing to use RO/DI water but i'm curious.

I live in canada where we have arguably the best drinking water quality. I'd like to know if i'm making a huge expense for myself when i don't need to.

Can i take my tap water somewhere to have it analized and see if i could just use a water conditioner before adding to my tank? I'm only thinking this because i know tap water changes from where you live so tap water in one place might not be good, while i might just be fine with a conditioner.

Or does this not make any sense?

 

TDS meter? probably cheaper to get one then to take it to a lab.. or have a LFS dip their TDS meter in it..
But i think your right in what you have said. even if your water quality is great and you have a great city water treatment center ect... what about your house plumbing and the plumbing in your town? there may be stuff in the pipes that you dont want... like you said. and i have read on other threads here that running additional RO and DI membranes will decrease waste water if that is what you were worried about.

 

The important reading will be the total dissolved solids in your tap water. no matter how good your water is I guarantee there will be some TDS, likely reading @100+ in most municipalities, wells can be far higher.
spend the $30 or so on a meter and confirm for yourself, and remember a good RO/DI will output 0 TDS till it's time to replace the filters.

 

sounds good guys, i am in the process of getting a RO/DI unit, i am currently using RO/DI water thats bottled in 5G jugs....thats where my expense is.

 

An analytical lab will charge you around $150 for a report on the most common things found in drinking water. They usually supply the bottles which you fill and return to them for analysis. For those who have a domestic well I highly recommend having this done every two years or so to ensure your water is safe.

 

yeah forsure as there are lots of litte buggers in well water that can cause serious discomfort like typhoid or daphnia.

one thing i noticed is the water from my tap tastes funny if you drink it as soon as the valve goes on, but if you let it run until you feel it get very cold or very hot it tastes better. So i agree that the pipes may add crap into the water but should be no issue if you let it run to clear out the standing water in the pipes. i'm still going to go with a RO/DI unit when i can afford one but will continue to use bottled water until i get it.

 

No i'm asking about municipal water, well water would be a definite no i'd think.

 

It does not matter the source, the tests and costs are the same. Many municipal sources are wells so the lab does not differentiate between the two. The basic suite is around the $150 and goes up with each test requested above that. The normal tests include things like nitrates, nitrites, arsenic, coliform bacteria, pH, hardness and a few others.

Here is an example of some of the tests. The form says private well but can be any source.
http://www.legend-group.com/files/privatewells.pdf