Your water should be safe to drink and acceptable for all other household uses. In addition to illness, a variety of less serious problems such as taste, color, odor and staining of clothes or fixtures are symptoms of water quality problems. Even water that appears problem-free may not necessarily be safe or acceptable.

Not everyone needs to test their water and it is impractical and unnecessary to test for all possible contaminants.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency:

"If you have your own well, you are responsible for making sure that your water is safe to drink. Private wells should be tested annually for nitrate and coliform bacteria to detect contamination problems early. Test more frequently and for other contaminants, such as radon or pesticides." 

If your water comes from a public or municipal water system it is regularly tested for contaminants regulated by Federal and state standards, such as pathogens, radioactive elements and certain toxic chemicals. However, the water could be contaminated in transit between the treatment facility and your house, when a municipal water main is broken, when a distribution pipe within your property is broken, etc.

Even if water comes from a public or municipal water system, you want peace-of-mind that you and your family are drinking water that is safe.

Many people spend hundreds of dollars installing water filters without knowing if their water is contaminated or they install ineffective water filters because they do not know which contaminants need to be eliminated.

Potomac Homes collects samples of tap water and sends them to specialized micro-biological laboratories accredited by AIHA for Environmental Microbiology: