HEALTHY HOME WANTS YOU TO HAVE HEALTHY WATER
DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DRINKING?
Healthy Home Environmental Services can tell you. A simple water test can restore your confidence in the safety of you and your family. More importantly, testing may reveal contaminants that you have unknowingly been living with for many years.
Healthy Home Environmental Services offers well water testing for drinking water and well water in the Greater Orlando area. Houses with well water should be tested annually for bacteria and chemical contamination. Drinking water drawn from private wells should be tested for the presence of bacteria at least once a year or any time there is a change in taste, odor, color or appearance of the well water. Testing drinking water for all possible pathogens is complex, time-consuming and expensive. It is relatively easy and inexpensive to test for coliform bacteria and other common metals.
Coliform bacteria are microorganisms found in the intestines of warm-blooded animals as well as in soil, on vegetation, and in surface water runoff. Finding coliform bacteria in a water supply is an indication that there is a potential for disease-producing organisms to be present also.
Total coliform, fecal coliform and E. coli are all indicators of drinking water quality. The total coliform group is a large collection of different kinds of bacteria. Fecal coliforms are types of total coliform that mostly exist in feces. E. coli is a sub-group of fecal coliform. When a water sample is sent to a lab, it is tested for total coliform, fecal coliform and E. coli.
TOTAL COLIFORM BACTERIA are commonly found in the environment and are generally harmless. If only total coliform bacteria are detected in drinking water, the source is probably environmental. Fecal contamination is not likely. However, if environmental contamination can enter the system, there may also be a way for pathogens to enter the system. Therefore, it is important to find the source and resolve the problem.
FECAL COLIFORM BACTERIA are a sub-group of total coliform bacteria. They appear in great quantities in the intestines and feces of people and animals. The presence of fecal coliform in a drinking water sample often indicate recent fecal contamination, meaning that there is a greater risk that pathogens are present than if only total coliform bacteria is detected.
E. COLI is a sub-group of the fecal coliform group. Most E. coli bacteria are harmless and are found in great quantities in the intestines of people and warm-blooded animals. Some strains however, can cause illness. The presence of E. coli in a drinking water sample almost always indicates recent fecel contamination meaning there is a greater risk that pathogens are present.
If coliform organisms are not found, the water is safe to drink at the time of sampling. If total coliform organisms are found, the sample contains bacteria commonly found in runoff or surface water. If E. coli organisms are found, the sample contains bacteria found in sewage which could include other disease producing bacteria. Any water well found to have coliform organisms should be disinfected according to the directions or treated by a well service company and retested. Water in which either total coliforms or E. coli is found should not be used for drinking, bathing, brushing teeth, cleaning wounds, or washing food which is to be eaten raw. It is advisable to use bottled water until the water supply is reported to be safe to use. Contaminated water may be boiled for a minimum of 5 minutes before use.
See Pricing Page for types of water tests we provide and pricing.
