USPW TESTS ~ Performed in Novato Headquarters, OR at The Water Store
We can test for the following IN-Store; The Basic Test is FREE to USPW dealers and customers. It includes TDS, Hardness, Iron, Turbidity, pH.
Other items listed are tested at a small fee as follows.
Test Charge Test Charge
Nitrates $15.00 Lead $15.00
Sodium $30.00 Silica $15.00
Chloramines $10.00 Manganese $20.00
Chlorine $10.00 Hydrogen Sulfide $15.00 + 39.50 residential ($49.50 Comm.) (must be performed on site)
How to Collect Water for Samples:
For our Basic Test: We need 4-6 oz. each sample (if you need only this test.)
For Lead Test: Take 1 qrt from tap, hot water, first thing in the morning (for worst case scenario). Don't let the water run, take first output from faucet. Collect in a plastic container.
For Nitrates, Sodium, Manganese, Iron and Silica Tests: Take one quart off tap.
we will call them within 4 working days (usually sooner) with results.
How To Collect Water for a Water Test For TDS and Chlorine:
In a clean container, cup to quart sized (PLEASE use a plastic container) please collect water from a faucet that hot water comes out of. The best time to collect the sample is after the water has sat there overnight or quite a few hours.
Do not wait for the water to get hot, just take the first water that comes out of the tap.
Seal container and bring to our shop for testing, or send to us by UPS or US Mail. If you are sending us water samples, please make sure the container is sealed and no water leaks when you turn it upside down. Please make sure it is PACKED VERY WELL .
We test for lead here with Hach test equipment.
Each test for each different sample is $15.00.
If you are shipping a sample to us, please enclose a check or money order for $15.00, or a note to call for your credit card number. Enclose your name, address, phone number and whether you would like your containers to be returned.
We ask you to take the sample from the hot tap side because it is the best chance of finding lead in your water. This way, if we do not find any lead traces, you know that the highest chance for lead has been investigated.
Houses built after 1986 should be more lead free due to legislation surrounding this issue.
BRELJE & RACE LABORATORIEs For bacteriological Tests
Bacteria test (coloform, E Coli etc.) - $50 for the test + minimum service charge if we go out and collect. B&R can pick upMonday, Wednesday and Friday. We must call for pick up by 12 Noon. Water must be less than 12 hours old when picked up. They test all samples at either 8am or 1 pm. No extra Charge to customer for pick up if they drop it off here. Use only B&Rs special sanitized bottles for samples. Don't send on Fridays or Saturdays.
BRELJE & RACE LABORATORIEs For bacteriological Tests
Bacteria test (coloform, E Coli etc.) - $50 for the test + minimum service charge if we go out and collect. B&R can pick upMonday, Wednesday and Friday. We must call for pick up by 12 Noon. Water must be less than 12 hours old when picked up. They test all samples at either 8am or 1 pm. No extra Charge to customer for pick up if they drop it off here. Use only B&Rs special sanitized bottles for samples.
NATIONAL TESTING LABS-Water Check Test Kits for full spectrum testing
NTL tests for all of the following and more:
Metals:
Aluminum, Arsenic, Barium, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Iron, Lead, Manganese, Mercury, Nickel, Selenium, Silver, Sodium, Zinc,
Inorganic Chemicals:
Alkalinity, Chloride, Flouride, Nitrate, Nitrite, Sulfate, Hardness, pH, TDS, Turbidity, Organic Chemicals:
Bromoform, Bromodichloromethane, Chloroform, total THM's, Benzene, Binyl Chloride, Carbon Tetrachloride and about 25 others.
Organic Chemicals-Pesticides, Herbicides and PBCs:
Alachlor, Atrazine, Chlordane, Aldrin, Dichloran, Dieldrin, Endrin, Heptachlor, Hexachlorobenzene, Lindane, Methoxychlor, PCBs Pentachloronitrobenzene, Silvex, Simazine, Toxaphene Trifluralin and some others.
Our Procedures: When you sell a test kit and labor to customer, write out receipt for cust. and put a copy in Receivables income box. Write it up as one lump sum, although we break it out as follows in our item data. (The kit is an inventory item and the labor is not.)
WATERCHECK, Standard $130.00
WATERCHECK with Pesticide Test $170.00
Rush (7 day turn around) ADD $100.00
Test sample can be sent in to NTL, by us or by you, Next Day Air, M-Th. (no holiday next day)-it must arrive within 24 hours of the time the sample was taken. The results should always be sent to us. To ensure this, put our name, U.S. Pure Water, in the Dealer Box. Put the customer's name in the 'Buyer Box'. Be sure to put your name and phone number on the paperwork.
TDS meter readings
TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) are minerals and metals that have dissolved into a liquid form, and are therefore very hard to remove. (But of coarse, RO gets 'em.) They are measured in parts per million.
Rejection Rate
Rejection rate refers to the percentage removal of the dissolved solids that are in the water to start with. Of the TDS in the water, what percentage of them are removed/ rejected?
To get the TDS readings using the Hach TDS Meter:
PURE WATER Press the blue button and read the blue numbers
SOURCE WATER Press the red button and read the yellow numbers
To find the rejection rate for the a particular membrane:
1.) Divide Product water reading by source water reading
Example:
Pure Water TDS Reading 25 / 180 (Source Water TDS Reading) = .14
2.) Move Decimal point over 2 to the Right = 14.
3.) Subtract from 100 ie; 100 - 14 = 86% rejection
When Should The Membrane Be Changed?
o Normal membrane rejection on a new system is 90-96% for CTAs and 93-99% for TFCs.
o Membranes last 2-5 years, depending on feed water TDS, temp, hardness, Ph, usage (more usage actually prolongs membrane life), design and care of system. In Marin, they will sometimes last more than 5 years.
o A customer may be happy with 75%-85% rejection in an area of relatively good start water, & wish to postpone membrane change for financial reasons. Give the customer the choice and the information they need.
o The thing to look for is rapid decline in percent rejection. Although 85% rejection is ok in many cases, if it went from 95% to 85% in just 6 months, the membrane may have reached that point in its life span where the whole thing is going to deteriorate very rapidly. You might recommend that the customer have their water tested in 3 months rather than 6, if they want to stretch it out rather than change right away. If it stays steady at 85% for 6 mos-1 year, fine.
How to take TDS samples
o If a technician is at a customers house, he can flush the membrane by by passing the flow restrictor to wash away collected impurities. T his might improve the reading and also give the membrane a little longer life.
o Everytime the system is used, it flushes the membrane surface. Therefore the best time to take a TDS reading is after the system has been used. (If it sits, you may get "TDS Creep"-tap water that sits on the membrane will migrate in small qntys. If you are getting a poor reading, but would like to squeeze a little more life out of the membrane, you can have the customer drain the tank and let it refill and then take a reading. Or a technician can by pass the flow restrictor to flush the membrane.
We can test for the following IN-Store; The Basic Test is FREE to USPW dealers and customers. It includes TDS, Hardness, Iron, Turbidity, pH.
Other items listed are tested at a small fee as follows.
Test Charge Test Charge
Nitrates $15.00 Lead $15.00
Sodium $30.00 Silica $15.00
Chloramines $10.00 Manganese $20.00
Chlorine $10.00 Hydrogen Sulfide $15.00 + 39.50 residential ($49.50 Comm.) (must be performed on site)
How to Collect Water for Samples:
For our Basic Test: We need 4-6 oz. each sample (if you need only this test.)
For Lead Test: Take 1 qrt from tap, hot water, first thing in the morning (for worst case scenario). Don't let the water run, take first output from faucet. Collect in a plastic container.
For Nitrates, Sodium, Manganese, Iron and Silica Tests: Take one quart off tap.
we will call them within 4 working days (usually sooner) with results.
How To Collect Water for a Water Test For TDS and Chlorine:
In a clean container, cup to quart sized (PLEASE use a plastic container) please collect water from a faucet that hot water comes out of. The best time to collect the sample is after the water has sat there overnight or quite a few hours.
Do not wait for the water to get hot, just take the first water that comes out of the tap.
Seal container and bring to our shop for testing, or send to us by UPS or US Mail. If you are sending us water samples, please make sure the container is sealed and no water leaks when you turn it upside down. Please make sure it is PACKED VERY WELL .
We test for lead here with Hach test equipment.
Each test for each different sample is $15.00.
If you are shipping a sample to us, please enclose a check or money order for $15.00, or a note to call for your credit card number. Enclose your name, address, phone number and whether you would like your containers to be returned.
We ask you to take the sample from the hot tap side because it is the best chance of finding lead in your water. This way, if we do not find any lead traces, you know that the highest chance for lead has been investigated.
Houses built after 1986 should be more lead free due to legislation surrounding this issue.
BRELJE & RACE LABORATORIEs For bacteriological Tests
Bacteria test (coloform, E Coli etc.) - $50 for the test + minimum service charge if we go out and collect. B&R can pick upMonday, Wednesday and Friday. We must call for pick up by 12 Noon. Water must be less than 12 hours old when picked up. They test all samples at either 8am or 1 pm. No extra Charge to customer for pick up if they drop it off here. Use only B&Rs special sanitized bottles for samples. Don't send on Fridays or Saturdays.
BRELJE & RACE LABORATORIEs For bacteriological Tests
Bacteria test (coloform, E Coli etc.) - $50 for the test + minimum service charge if we go out and collect. B&R can pick upMonday, Wednesday and Friday. We must call for pick up by 12 Noon. Water must be less than 12 hours old when picked up. They test all samples at either 8am or 1 pm. No extra Charge to customer for pick up if they drop it off here. Use only B&Rs special sanitized bottles for samples.
NATIONAL TESTING LABS-Water Check Test Kits for full spectrum testing
NTL tests for all of the following and more:
Metals:
Aluminum, Arsenic, Barium, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Iron, Lead, Manganese, Mercury, Nickel, Selenium, Silver, Sodium, Zinc,
Inorganic Chemicals:
Alkalinity, Chloride, Flouride, Nitrate, Nitrite, Sulfate, Hardness, pH, TDS, Turbidity, Organic Chemicals:
Bromoform, Bromodichloromethane, Chloroform, total THM's, Benzene, Binyl Chloride, Carbon Tetrachloride and about 25 others.
Organic Chemicals-Pesticides, Herbicides and PBCs:
Alachlor, Atrazine, Chlordane, Aldrin, Dichloran, Dieldrin, Endrin, Heptachlor, Hexachlorobenzene, Lindane, Methoxychlor, PCBs Pentachloronitrobenzene, Silvex, Simazine, Toxaphene Trifluralin and some others.
Our Procedures: When you sell a test kit and labor to customer, write out receipt for cust. and put a copy in Receivables income box. Write it up as one lump sum, although we break it out as follows in our item data. (The kit is an inventory item and the labor is not.)
WATERCHECK, Standard $130.00
WATERCHECK with Pesticide Test $170.00
Rush (7 day turn around) ADD $100.00
Test sample can be sent in to NTL, by us or by you, Next Day Air, M-Th. (no holiday next day)-it must arrive within 24 hours of the time the sample was taken. The results should always be sent to us. To ensure this, put our name, U.S. Pure Water, in the Dealer Box. Put the customer's name in the 'Buyer Box'. Be sure to put your name and phone number on the paperwork.
TDS meter readings
TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) are minerals and metals that have dissolved into a liquid form, and are therefore very hard to remove. (But of coarse, RO gets 'em.) They are measured in parts per million.
Rejection Rate
Rejection rate refers to the percentage removal of the dissolved solids that are in the water to start with. Of the TDS in the water, what percentage of them are removed/ rejected?
To get the TDS readings using the Hach TDS Meter:
PURE WATER Press the blue button and read the blue numbers
SOURCE WATER Press the red button and read the yellow numbers
To find the rejection rate for the a particular membrane:
1.) Divide Product water reading by source water reading
Example:
Pure Water TDS Reading 25 / 180 (Source Water TDS Reading) = .14
2.) Move Decimal point over 2 to the Right = 14.
3.) Subtract from 100 ie; 100 - 14 = 86% rejection
When Should The Membrane Be Changed?
o Normal membrane rejection on a new system is 90-96% for CTAs and 93-99% for TFCs.
o Membranes last 2-5 years, depending on feed water TDS, temp, hardness, Ph, usage (more usage actually prolongs membrane life), design and care of system. In Marin, they will sometimes last more than 5 years.
o A customer may be happy with 75%-85% rejection in an area of relatively good start water, & wish to postpone membrane change for financial reasons. Give the customer the choice and the information they need.
o The thing to look for is rapid decline in percent rejection. Although 85% rejection is ok in many cases, if it went from 95% to 85% in just 6 months, the membrane may have reached that point in its life span where the whole thing is going to deteriorate very rapidly. You might recommend that the customer have their water tested in 3 months rather than 6, if they want to stretch it out rather than change right away. If it stays steady at 85% for 6 mos-1 year, fine.
How to take TDS samples
o If a technician is at a customers house, he can flush the membrane by by passing the flow restrictor to wash away collected impurities. T his might improve the reading and also give the membrane a little longer life.
o Everytime the system is used, it flushes the membrane surface. Therefore the best time to take a TDS reading is after the system has been used. (If it sits, you may get "TDS Creep"-tap water that sits on the membrane will migrate in small qntys. If you are getting a poor reading, but would like to squeeze a little more life out of the membrane, you can have the customer drain the tank and let it refill and then take a reading. Or a technician can by pass the flow restrictor to flush the membrane.
