Home Drinking Water Test Kits?

Cludo on 21/09/2023 - 14:19

I was replacing my Britta filter and while waiting I decided to shudders taste test my tap water from the kitchen.
The water from the tap taste like I filled up a cheap plastic water pistol from the royal show and squirted it into my mouth, or like its coming from a hose pipe. Very plasticky and chlorine tasting.

Got me thinking, what's actually in my water. I see you can buy kits online for $30+ dollars, has anyone had any experience with testing your water? Did you buy a kit or is there some sort of government/water corp promos that offer this sort of service?

Home & Garden

Comments

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 21/09/2023 - 14:34
    +5

    Very plasticky and chlorine tasting.

    Probably due to the chlorine.

  • Protractor on 21/09/2023 - 14:58
    +1

    I doubt a home testing kit will be that accurate. The best it will do is what's already known.
    Start with looking online at what the water company you use treats water with. Pretty sure they'd have to list it somewhere.
    Presuming there's chlorine,fluoride?, (do they use iodine?)
    I think treated desal water tastes different to treated dam and ground water.

    Given how much plastic exists in every nook & cranny, of the planet,maybe you are tasting plastic.

  • KaTst3R on 21/09/2023 - 15:30
    +6

    You are still gonna drink it anyway after testing so why bother. It is not as though you will rip out all the pipes under the house to get a better tasting water. Best advice is to buy a new house and do remember to taste the water during house inspection. Ignore the weird looks the REA will give you.

  • GordonD on 21/09/2023 - 15:36
    +11

    With the exception of remote and outback locations that rely on bore water, Australia has tap water of the best quality in the world.

    You don't need to test it. It already has been tested. By the water authority. And they test for a lot more things than a $30 home test kit is going to test for.

    • jjjaar on 21/09/2023 - 16:05

      Very, very important exceptions there.

  • Drakesy on 21/09/2023 - 15:40

    I think you need to get out more,

    Maybe taste test India's water. Our tap water is strictly controlled by health standards. Just get used to the taste. Brita and all that make their money off fearmongering and unfortunately they've got you hook line and sinker.

    The only way you'll get fresh water is from a rain tank or running stream. Even bottled water has some impurities from storage.

  • Bid Sniper on 21/09/2023 - 16:35
    +3

    I done my own water testing for work, depends on what you're looking for can be rather expensive.

    The water we have is actually really good. We have industrial water filters, I found in my project those filters made the water much worse. Plasticizers from the filters leech out and the filter units themselves will disintegrate over time.

    What do you think you're filtering out exactly? My advices run the water out the tap without any these BS. Are the pipes new?

  • outlander on 21/09/2023 - 16:42

    At one point I think there was some council or university scheme to test water.. or that might have been soil. Who knows

    You can try swimming pool tests for the chlorine.

    A TDS meter is super cheap ($5) and will tell you how much salt is in the water

    As for plastic, not sure how they'd test that. Looks like most of it involves spectrography, which kind of puts it out of reach of the average citizen.

  • Mechz on 21/09/2023 - 18:10

    OP, where do you live (roughly)?

    I've been to a lot of places on the east coast of Australia and never had tap water that tasted bad.

  • deme on 21/09/2023 - 18:14
    -2

    Very plasticky and chlorine tasting.

    Email or call https://www.watercorporation.com.au/About-us/Contact-us

    This is not normal.

  • SBOB on 21/09/2023 - 18:48
    +1

    Go to your local council of water authorities web site. You'll likely be able to find details on the water quality within your distribution area.

    Any basic cheap testing kit won't tell you much but you could grab some basic test strip kits and see your water pH and alkalinity etc. Mostly pointless but if it satisfies your curiosity

    The taste you will be sensing will likely be due to the chlorine, hypochlorite or chloramine used for disinfection (ie bug control) within reticulated water systems (due the amount of time the water may be in the network from filtration through to consumption). It's in harmless quantities but can vary depending on where your supply is within the distribution and possible redisinfection locations within the network.

    A basic carbon filter will likely remove the taste and odour (along with any particulate etc within your supply or pipes) to a sufficient level and is a very cheap option.

    As your details say Perth, start here and go looking through the information and yearly reports
    https://www.watercorporation.com.au/About-us/Our-performance…

  • AustriaBargain on 21/09/2023 - 19:02
    +1

    The water from mains is treated to keep it safe. And it's better for you than highly filtered or spring water, as it has fluoride in it which keeps your teeth strong or whatever. But I do use an RO filter myself. It makes the water taste like nothing which has grown on me. I should stop, but I use it so I don't have to descale the coffee machine.

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