City Water

If you’re on city water, the truth is your water doesn’t change very often unless something unusual is going on. Really, the only time you need to test city water is when something suddenly tastes weird, when something smells off, when the color changes, or when you’re getting a new water system and need to program it correctly.

All city water has a similar pattern. It’s usually hard, it tastes like chemicals, and it smells like chemicals. That’s normal for untreated tap water. The city is required by law to provide safe drinking water, and they usually take out the things that could hurt you — bacteria, parasites, etc.

They are not obligated to change the hardness. Hardness is not considered a safety issue, so they leave it in.

However — and I see this every day — there is iron in city water, even though you often don’t taste it. When I cut into people’s pipes, especially plastic pipes, you can see the orange coating inside. And when somebody has a water softener, you can see the difference clearly: orange coating on the incoming line, and a clean line coming out of the system.

Why the chemicals are there

Now let’s talk about the chemicals in city water, because this part is important for people to understand.

The chlorine and ammonia (combined into chloramines) are there because the city must keep disinfectant levels high enough at multiple points throughout the system. It’s not optional — it’s the law. Those chemicals are necessary to protect you from far worse things.

Nobody loves drinking chlorine or chloramines. But they protect you from bacteria, viruses, parasites, biofilm, and other contaminants that would make you very sick.

These chemicals are mandatory for the city — but they are not mandatory for you to drink.

You have every right to take them out right before you use the water. That’s exactly why people install water systems: to remove the chemicals, remove the hardness, remove the smell and taste, and turn “city water” into clean, soft, beautiful water that feels good, smells good, and tastes good.

Well Water

Now, if you’re on a well, your answer is different. You pretty much know your water all the time. It doesn’t randomly change unless something around you changes.

If they’re drilling nearby, if dumping is happening, if construction is disturbing the ground, if you suspect contamination, that’s when you test.

If you start getting sick, you might have bacteria in the well. In that case you go buy a bacteria test kit, follow the instructions carefully, send the sample in, and they’ll tell you whether you have E. coli or any other harmful bacteria.

Bottom Line

So the best answer to “How often should I test my home’s water quality?” is this:

Test when something changes around you.

Test when something tastes or smells wrong.

Test when you’re programming or adjusting a water system.

Test when you’re on a well and you have a reason to suspect contamination.

Otherwise, water quality doesn’t usually change unless something around it changes.