We know that man-made chemicals, the majority of which were introduced into society after World War II, have been poisoning our surface drinking water supplies for years. Over the decades they have filtered down and contaminated our vital underground drinking sources as well.
Some experts believe the toxins in our drinking water are the number one health threat causing cancer, heart disease and lead poisoning. Such chronic illnesses are brought on by the body’s absorption. Water contaminants not only affect our health, but they can also corrode fixtures, stain and deteriorate clothing and household surfaces, alter the taste of food and drinking water, and slowly turn hair orange.
PRO-LAB® Test Kits are available to the general public at over 40,000 leading home centers, hardware stores, pharmacy chains, supermarkets, and a wide category of specialty outlets. Stores include The Home Depot, Lowe’s, Menards, Ace Hardware, True Value, Do It Best, Kroger, Fred Meyer, Giant Eagle, and CVS.
If you cannot find the PRO-LAB® Water Quality Test Kit in any of the stores above, please call 954-384-4446 to purchase or click here to order online.
Chlorine
Chlorinating water is necessary for disinfecting; however, over-chlorination produces by-products known as trihalomethanes. One trihalomethane, chloroform, is a known carcinogen.
Nitrate/Nitrite
Nitrate/Nitrite is a chemical that seeps our drinking water from fertilizer, sewage, feed lots and other geological elements. Nitrate over 10 ppm reduces the amount of oxygen available to the fetus in pregnant women causing “Blue Baby Syndrome” (methemoglobulinemia). It is also considered an immediate threat to children 6 months to 1 year old, and is a major health threat to adults.
Iron
Iron is a mineral found in the ground that leaches into drinking water. Although a certain amount of iron is essential to good health, iron levels above .3 ppm cause water to taste bitter, stain and discolor our laundry, fixtures and hair. It is listed under the secondary standards for water.
Water Hardness
Water hardness is a measure of calcium and magnesium in water, neither of which are potential health risks in and of themselves. But hard water above 125 ppm tends to form scales inside pipes that, over time, can actually help to form a barrier from a dangerous lead contaminating drinking water from surrounding lead pipes. However, too much hard water buildup can clog pipes and heaters making cleaning operations much more difficult.
Low water hardness of less than 54 ppm can be corrosive to plumbing and should only be considered a problem if you have lead soldered pipes.
Water Acidity (pH)
Measurements below 7 indicate that the water is corrosive to plumbing, resulting in lead leaching into your tap water.
A desirable reading is between 7 and 7.5.
With PRO-LAB’s kit you can easily test for all of these water quality problems. All five tests should take less than 5 minutes and will provide accurate and reliable results.
The PRO-LAB Professional Water Quality Test Kit contains eight (8) individually foil wrapped, laboratory grade test strips (patented), allowing you to perform a total of sixteen (16) water tests, (2 or each test) in order to determine the quality of your water. There are also directions on this page, to check for two (2) additional contaminates, iron bacteria and hydrogen sulfide. Each test has its own directions. For accurate results, you must follow the directions exactly.
pH is a measure of the acidic or basic character of water. Results below 7 indicate acidity and one above 7 indicates alkalinity. Water with low pH can be corrosive to plumbing fixtures, hot water systems, and leave red stains on galvanized pipe, blue-green stains on copper, and may also release harmful amounts of lead into your water from solder joints and pipes.
Total Alkalinity is the ability of water to resist change in pH. A low total alkalinity may cause your water to appear cloudy and contribute to scaling. When the total alkalinity is too high the pH tends to be high as well.