Connecticut CT Water Quality Sampling by ASHI Certified Home Inspectors
When purchasing a home with a private well water supply, it is vitally important to test the water quality thoroughly before your purchase and inspect the well system.
This is the water the home will use for drinking, cooking, and bathing!
Problems such as bacterial or chemical contamination present serious health risks and in some instances can be severe enough to render the water supply unusable.
It is just as important to test your well water after your purchase on regular basis. Contamination can occur without warning. Ground water that supplies a well may come from miles away from your home. It is impossible to know what is under the ground and in your water supply without frequent testing.
Well water quality testing is required by Connecticut Public Health Code for all real estate transactions. Additionally government backed loans (FHA, CHFA, VA, etc.) may require more extensive testing including well flow and pressure analysis.
JRV Home Inspection Services can perform the following water sampling for certified laboratory testing:
- Bacteria analysis-Total Coliforms. Any positive result is unsatisfactory.
- Chemical / physical profile: turbidity, color, odor, pH, calcium, magnesium, total hardness, nitrate-Nitrogen, nitrite-Nitrogen, sulfate, sodium, chloride, copper, iron, manganese
- VOCs (Volatile Organic Chemicals) -60 EPA targeted pollutants including MtBE
- Radon
- Lead
- Fluoride
- Arsenic
We can also conduct a well water flow and pressure test to help ensure the system is functioning properly and is producing an adequate supply of water.
Drinking Water Contaminants (From the US EPA)
The information below has been edited for content. You may view the complete page by clicking here.
- List of Drinking Water Contaminants & their MCLs
- National Secondary Drinking Water Regulations
- List of Secondary Drinking Water Regulations
National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWRs or primary standards) are legally enforceable standards that apply to public water systems. Primary standards protect public health by limiting the levels of contaminants in drinking water. Visit the list of regulated contaminants with links for more details.
- Setting Standards for Safe Drinking Water to learn about EPA’s standard-setting process
- EPA’s Regulated Contaminant Timeline (PDF)
- National Primary Drinking Water Regulations– The complete regulations regarding these contaminants availible from the Code of Federal Regulations Website
Information on this section
- Alphabetical List (PDF) EPA 816-F-03-016, June 2003
- The links provided below are to either Consumer Fact Sheet, Rule Implementation web sites, or PDF files.
List of Contaminants & their MCLs
- Microorganisms
- Inorganic Chemicals
- Organic Chemicals
Microorganisms
| Contaminant | MCLG1 (mg/L)2 |
MCL or TT1 (mg/L)2 |
Potential Health Effects from Ingestion of Water | Sources of Contaminant in Drinking Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cryptosporidium (pdf file) |
zero
|
TT 3
|
Gastrointestinal illness (e.g., diarrhea, vomiting, cramps) | Human and fecal animal waste |
| Giardia lamblia |
zero
|
TT3
|
Gastrointestinal illness (e.g., diarrhea, vomiting, cramps) | Human and animal fecal waste |
| Heterotrophic plate count |
n/a
|
TT3
|
HPC has no health effects; it is an analytic method used to measure the variety of bacteria that are common in water. The lower the concentration of bacteria in drinking water, the better maintained the water system is. | HPC measures a range of bacteria that are naturally present in the environment |
| Legionella |
zero
|
TT3
|
Legionnaire’s Disease, a type of pneumonia | Found naturally in water; multiplies in heating systems |
|
zero
|
5.0%4
|
Not a health threat in itself; it is used to indicate whether other potentially harmful bacteria may be present5 | Coliforms are naturally present in the environment; as well as feces; fecal coliforms and E. coli only come from human and animal fecal waste. | |
|
n/a
|
TT3
|
Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness of water. It is used to indicate water quality and filtration effectiveness (e.g., whether disease-causing organisms are present). Higher turbidity levels are often associated with higher levels of disease-causing microorganisms such as viruses, parasites and some bacteria. These organisms can cause symptoms such as nausea, cramps, diarrhea, and associated headaches. | Soil runoff |
| Contaminant | MCLG1 (mg/L)2 |
MCL or TT1 (mg/L)2 |
Potential Health Effects from Ingestion of Water | Sources of Contaminant in Drinking Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
07
|
0.010
as of 01/23/06 |
Skin damage or problems with circulatory systems, and may have increased risk of getting cancer | Erosion of natural deposits; runoff from orchards, runoff from glass & electronicsproduction wastes | |
|
1.3
|
TT8;
Action Level=1.3 |
Short term exposure: Gastrointestinal distress
Long term exposure: Liver or kidney damage People with Wilson’s Disease should consult their personal doctor if the amount of copper in their water exceeds the action level |
Corrosion of household plumbing systems; erosion of natural deposits | |
|
4.0
|
4.0
|
Bone disease (pain and tenderness of the bones); Children may get mottled teeth | Water additive which promotes strong teeth; erosion of natural deposits; discharge from fertilizer and aluminum factories | |
|
zero
|
TT8;
Action Level=0.015 |
Infants and children: Delays in physical or mental development; children could show slight deficits in attention span and learning abilities
Adults: Kidney problems; high blood pressure |
Corrosion of household plumbing systems; erosion of natural deposits | |
|
10
|
10
|
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome. | Runoff from fertilizer use; leaching from septic tanks, sewage; erosion of natural deposits | |
|
1
|
1
|
Infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrite in excess of the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die. Symptoms include shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome. | Runoff from fertilizer use; leaching from septic tanks, sewage; erosion of natural deposits |
Organic Chemicals
| Contaminant | MCLG1 (mg/L)2 |
MCL or TT1 (mg/L)2 |
Potential Health Effects from Ingestion of Water
|
Sources of Contaminant in Drinking Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acrylamide |
zero
|
TT9
|
Nervous system or blood problems; increased risk of cancer |
Added to water during sewage/wastewater treatment |
| Alachlor |
zero
|
0.002
|
Eye, liver, kidney or spleen problems; anemia; increased risk of cancer |
Runoff from herbicide used on row crops |
| Atrazine |
0.003
|
0.003
|
Cardiovascular system or reproductive problems |
Runoff from herbicide used on row crops |
| Benzene |
zero
|
0.005
|
Anemia; decrease in blood platelets; increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from factories; leaching from gas storage tanks and landfills |
| Benzo(a)pyrene (PAHs) |
zero
|
0.0002
|
Reproductive difficulties; increased risk of cancer |
Leaching from linings of water storage tanks and distribution lines |
| Carbofuran |
0.04
|
0.04
|
Problems with blood, nervous system, or reproductive system |
Leaching of soil fumigant used on rice and alfalfa |
| Carbon tetrachloride |
zero
|
0.005
|
Liver problems; increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from chemical plants and other industrial activities |
| Chlordane |
zero
|
0.002
|
Liver or nervous system problems; increased risk of cancer |
Residue of banned termiticide |
| Chlorobenzene |
0.1
|
0.1
|
Liver or kidney problems |
Discharge from chemical and agricultural chemical factories |
| 2,4-D |
0.07
|
0.07
|
Kidney, liver, or adrenal gland problems |
Runoff from herbicide used on row crops |
| Dalapon |
0.2
|
0.2
|
Minor kidney changes |
Runoff from herbicide used on rights of way |
| 1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane (DBCP) |
zero
|
0.0002
|
Reproductive difficulties; increased risk of cancer |
Runoff/leaching from soil fumigant used on soybeans, cotton, pineapples, and orchards |
| o-Dichlorobenzene |
0.6
|
0.6
|
Liver, kidney, or circulatory system problems |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories |
| p-Dichlorobenzene |
0.075
|
0.075
|
Anemia; liver, kidney or spleen damage; changes in blood |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories |
| 1,2-Dichloroethane |
zero
|
0.005
|
Increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories |
| 1,1-Dichloroethylene |
0.007
|
0.007
|
Liver problems |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories |
| cis-1,2-Dichloroethylene |
0.07
|
0.07
|
Liver problems |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories |
| trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene |
0.1
|
0.1
|
Liver problems |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories |
| Dichloromethane |
zero
|
0.005
|
Liver problems; increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from drug and chemical factories |
| 1,2-Dichloropropane |
zero
|
0.005
|
Increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories |
| Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate |
0.4
|
0.4
|
Weight loss, liver problems, or possible reproductive difficulties. |
Discharge from chemical factories |
| Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate |
zero
|
0.006
|
Reproductive difficulties; liver problems; increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from rubber and chemical factories |
| Dinoseb |
0.007
|
0.007
|
Reproductive difficulties |
Runoff from herbicide used on soybeans and vegetables |
| Dioxin (2,3,7,8-TCDD) |
zero
|
0.00000003
|
Reproductive difficulties; increased risk of cancer |
Emissions from waste incineration and other combustion; discharge from chemical factories |
| Diquat |
0.02
|
0.02
|
Cataracts |
Runoff from herbicide use |
| Endothall |
0.1
|
0.1
|
Stomach and intestinal problems |
Runoff from herbicide use |
| Endrin |
0.002
|
0.002
|
Liver problems |
Residue of banned insecticide |
| Epichlorohydrin |
zero
|
TT9
|
Increased cancer risk, and over a long period of time, stomach problems |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories; an impurity of some water treatment chemicals |
| Ethylbenzene |
0.7
|
0.7
|
Liver or kidneys problems |
Discharge from petroleum refineries |
| Ethylene dibromide |
zero
|
0.00005
|
Problems with liver, stomach, reproductive system, or kidneys; increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from petroleum refineries |
| Glyphosate |
0.7
|
0.7
|
Kidney problems; reproductive difficulties |
Runoff from herbicide use |
| Heptachlor |
zero
|
0.0004
|
Liver damage; increased risk of cancer |
Residue of banned termiticide |
| Heptachlor epoxide |
zero
|
0.0002
|
Liver damage; increased risk of cancer |
Breakdown of heptachlor |
| Hexachlorobenzene |
zero
|
0.001
|
Liver or kidney problems; reproductive difficulties; increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from metal refineries and agricultural chemical factories |
| Hexachlorocyclopentadiene |
0.05
|
0.05
|
Kidney or stomach problems |
Discharge from chemical factories |
| Lindane |
0.0002
|
0.0002
|
Liver or kidney problems |
Runoff/leaching from insecticide used on cattle, lumber, gardens |
| Methoxychlor |
0.04
|
0.04
|
Reproductive difficulties |
Runoff/leaching from insecticide used on fruits, vegetables, alfalfa, livestock |
| Oxamyl (Vydate) |
0.2
|
0.2
|
Slight nervous system effects |
Runoff/leaching from insecticide used on apples, potatoes, and tomatoes |
| Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) |
zero
|
0.0005
|
Skin changes; thymus gland problems; immune deficiencies; reproductive or nervous system difficulties; increased risk of cancer |
Runoff from landfills; discharge of waste chemicals |
| Pentachlorophenol |
zero
|
0.001
|
Liver or kidney problems; increased cancer risk |
Discharge from wood preserving factories |
| Picloram |
0.5
|
0.5
|
Liver problems |
Herbicide runoff |
| Simazine |
0.004
|
0.004
|
Problems with blood |
Herbicide runoff |
| Styrene |
0.1
|
0.1
|
Liver, kidney, or circulatory system problems |
Discharge from rubber and plastic factories; leaching from landfills |
| Tetrachloroethylene |
zero
|
0.005
|
Liver problems; increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from factories and dry cleaners |
| Toluene |
1
|
1
|
Nervous system, kidney, or liver problems |
Discharge from petroleum factories |
| Toxaphene |
zero
|
0.003
|
Kidney, liver, or thyroid problems; increased risk of cancer |
Runoff/leaching from insecticide used on cotton and cattle |
| 2,4,5-TP (Silvex) |
0.05
|
0.05
|
Liver problems |
Residue of banned herbicide |
| 1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene |
0.07
|
0.07
|
Changes in adrenal glands |
Discharge from textile finishing factories |
| 1,1,1-Trichloroethane |
0.20
|
0.2
|
Liver, nervous system, or circulatory problems |
Discharge from metal degreasing sites and other factories |
| 1,1,2-Trichloroethane |
0.003
|
0.005
|
Liver, kidney, or immune system problems |
Discharge from industrial chemical factories |
| Trichloroethylene |
zero
|
0.005
|
Liver problems; increased risk of cancer |
Discharge from metal degreasing sites and other factories |
| Vinyl chloride |
zero
|
0.002
|
Increased risk of cancer |
Leaching from PVC pipes; discharge from plastic factories |
| Xylenes (total) |
10
|
10
|
Nervous system damage |
Discharge from petroleum factories; discharge from chemical factories |
Notes
1 Definitions:
Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) – The highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. MCLs are set as close to MCLGs as feasible using the best available treatment technology and taking cost into consideration. MCLs are enforceable standards.
Maximum Contaminant Level Goal (MCLG) – The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs allow for a margin of safety and are non-enforceable public health goals.
Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level (MRDL) – The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water. There is convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control of microbial contaminants.
Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level Goal (MRDLG) – The level of a drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MRDLGs do not reflect the benefits of the use of disinfectants to control microbial contaminants.
Treatment Technique – A required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.
2 Units are in milligrams per liter (mg/L) unless otherwise noted. Milligrams per liter are equivalent to parts per million.
3 EPA’s surface water treatment rules require systems using surface water or ground water under the direct influence of surface water to (1) disinfect their water, and (2) filter their water or meet criteria for avoiding filtration so that the following contaminants are controlled at the following levels:
- Cryptosporidium: (as of1/1/02 for systems serving >10,000 and 1/14/05 for systems serving <10,000) 99% removal.
- Giardia lamblia: 99.9% removal/inactivation
- Viruses: 99.99% removal/inactivation
- Legionella: No limit, but EPA believes that if Giardia and viruses are removed/inactivated, Legionella will also be controlled.
- Turbidity: At no time can turbidity (cloudiness of water) go above 5 nephelolometric turbidity units (NTU); systems that filter must ensure that the turbidity go no higher than 1 NTU (0.5 NTU for conventional or direct filtration) in at least 95% of the daily samples in any month. As of January 1, 2002, turbidity may never exceed 1 NTU, and must not exceed 0.3 NTU in 95% of daily samples in any month.
- HPC: No more than 500 bacterial colonies per milliliter.
- Long Term 1 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment (Effective Date: January 14, 2005); Surface water systems or (GWUDI) systems serving fewer than 10,000 people must comply with the applicable Long Term 1 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule provisions (e.g. turbidity standards, individual filter monitoring, Cryptosporidium removal requirements, updated watershed control requirements for unfiltered systems).
- Filter Backwash Recycling; The Filter Backwash Recycling Rule requires systems that recycle to return specific recycle flows through all processes of the system’s existing conventional or direct filtration system or at an alternate location approved by the state.
4 more than 5.0% samples total coliform-positive in a month. (For water systems that collect fewer than 40 routine samples per month, no more than one sample can be total coliform-positive per month.) Every sample that has total coliform must be analyzed for either fecal coliforms or E. coli if two consecutive TC-positive samples, and one is also positive forE.coli fecal coliforms, system has an acute MCL violation.
5 Fecal coliform and E. coli are bacteria whose presence indicates that the water may be contaminated with human or animal wastes. Disease-causing microbes (pathogens) in these wastes can cause diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches, or other symptoms. These pathogens may pose a special health risk for infants, young children, and people with severely compromised immune systems.
6 Although there is no collective MCLG for this contaminant group, there are individual MCLGs for some of the individual contaminants:
- Trihalomethanes: bromodichloromethane (zero); bromoform (zero); dibromochloromethane (0.06 mg/L). Chloroform is regulated with this group but has no MCLG.
- Haloacetic acids: dichloroacetic acid (zero); trichloroacetic acid (0.3 mg/L). Monochloroacetic acid, bromoacetic acid, and dibromoacetic acid are regulated with this group but have no MCLGs.
7 MCLGs were not established before the 1986 Amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act. Therefore, there is no MCLG for this contaminant.
8 Lead and copper are regulated by a Treatment Technique that requires systems to control the corrosiveness of their water. If more than 10% of tap water samples exceed the action level, water systems must take additional steps. For copper, the action level is 1.3 mg/L, and for lead is 0.015 mg/L.
9 Each water system must certify, in writing, to the state (using third-party or manufacturer’s certification) that when acrylamide and epichlorohydrin are used in drinking water systems, the combination (or product) of dose and monomer level does not exceed the levels specified, as follows:
- Acrylamide = 0.05% dosed at 1 mg/L (or equivalent)
- Epichlorohydrin = 0.01% dosed at 20 mg/L (or equivalent)
National Secondary Drinking Water Regulations
National Secondary Drinking Water Regulations (NSDWRs or secondary standards) are non-enforceable guidelines regulating contaminants that may cause cosmetic effects (such as skin or tooth discoloration) or aesthetic effects (such as taste, odor, or color) in drinking water. EPA recommends secondary standards to water systems but does not require systems to comply. However, states may choose to adopt them as enforceable standards.
- National Secondary Drinking Water Regulations – The complete regulations regarding these contaminants availible from the Code of Federal Regulations Web Site.
- For more information, read Secondary Drinking Water Regulations: Guidance for Nuisance Chemicals.
