T. L. Provin, Extension Soil Chemist
J. L. Pitt, Extension Associate
The Texas A&M University System

That water you’re drinking — or
sprinkling onto your flowers, or
using to irrigate your crops, or
providing to your livestock — what’s in
it? Is it safe? Does it taste good? Is it beneficial
for people, plants and animals? If
not, what can be done to improve it?
One way to learn about the contents
of your water is to send a sample to a
laboratory to be analyzed. The lab will
test the water and send you a report
about its contents. Water analysis is conducted
by governmental agencies and
by private companies.
But sometimes it is difficult to understand
the reports that labs send to consumers.
What do the results mean?
What characteristics of your water can
cause problems? And what can be done
to make it safer, tastier or more usable?
To help you understand the lab analysis
of your water, on the following pages
are tables of common components and
properties measured in water. The tables
include the sources of water contaminants,
problems that can be caused by
those contaminants, suggestions for how
to correct them and the safe levels of
each in water for household use, for irrigation
and for livestock. After the tables
are explanations of commonly used
terms and water treatment methods.
The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) has set safety standards
for drinking water. The EPA Primary
Drinking Water Standard is a legally

What’s inside:
Common water contaminants
The problems they cause
Treatment methods
Water terms
Hardness ratings
Salinity limits
Where to get more information

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