Gregory Hillman's Educational Content

Iron water testing does not seem to be very important when determining the how healthy water is to drink in most water systems based upon the information from the CDC and EPA. The EPA offers National Secondary Drinking Water Regulations (NSDWRs or secondary standards) and states that Iron should be below 0.3 mg/L.

http://www.epa.gov/safewater/contaminants/index.html

Iron Health Concerns

It has also been mentioned that people with heterozygous for a hemochromatosis mutation (body not able to absorb Iron like others) may need to stay away from water containing Iron. For most people it may just have an unpleasant metallic taste, rusty color, and may be an indication that your pipes are deteriorating. You also may have high iron from a private well.

I have consistently read that everyone including pregnant women and children need iron in reasonable levels but this is normally found in breast milk, prenatal vitamins, and other typical foods.

Removing Iron

If you have too much iron and want it removed from your drinking water reverse osmosis may be one of the most cost effective ways.  Water softeners have also been mentioned as a way of removing iron but I have not been able to test this to date.

Iron Water Test

I have completed an Iron water test in Los Angeles California that shows very low levels of Iron in the tap water.  The test only takes a few minutes and then will show a reading.  As seen in this photo below the Iron level is well below 0.3 ppm.

Iron Water Test Los Angeles

Would I Drink This Water?

Yes, I would drink this water because I have also done many other tests on it and the iron level is well below the EPA secondary standard.  I also believe that my body can process Iron and it appears that low levels of Iron in drinking water should not cause a health concern.  I am not a water professional and I can not say if it is safe or unsafe for sure but I would suggest putting this water through a reverse osmosis machine so that it smells, tastes, and looks better!

Iron

Symbol: Fe
Latin: ferrum
Atomic Number: 26

Copper water testing is important because too much copper can cause a variety of short term health problems and the CDC mentions long term increased copper exposure could cause liver or kidney damage.  Excess copper can be removed from water in a variety of ways including reverse osmosis.

Silver Lake Research mentions that high levels of copper may cause gastrointestinal distress so today I tested the tap water in Marina del Rey Los Angeles California.

The test took a few minutes to administer and was completed with a strip in some tap water.  After two minutes you can see the results.  The EPA states copper levels should be below 1.3 ppm.

Would I drink this water?

Yes, the copper level does show less than 1.3 ppm as seen in this photo and I have tested the water for a variety of other concerns.  The test may show about 0.7 ppm or less.  The water tastes good!

*Please note I am not an expert or professional water tester and I can not say if water is safe or unsafe to drink.  No test can.

The CDC has some information on Copper that is easy to understand such as:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/healthywater/factsheets/copper.htm

“All living organisms including humans need copper to survive; therefore a trace of copper in our diet is necessary for good health.  However, some forms of copper can also harm you.”

“Corrosion of pipes is by far the greatest cause for concern.”

“Drinking water with high levels of copper for many years could cause liver or kidney damage.”

This test supplies were from Silver Lake Research:

Copper Water Test in Los Angeles

Copper.org offers some current information:

http://www.copper.org/consumers/copperhome/Env_Health/environmentandhealth_drinkingwater.html

“How much is too much copper in water and food?

The NASFNB recommends that you not consume more than 10 mg/day to be safe. The NASFNB has determined that most men, women and children consume less than 1.6 mg/day.”

http://www.doh.wa.gov/ehp/dw/fact_sheets/copper_in_drinking_water.htm

“In Washington, most copper in drinking water comes from corrosion of household plumbing.   Public water supplies are required to conduct treatment to reduce corrosion when more than 10 percent of the tap water samples exceed 1.3 parts per million (ppm) of copper.

Copper from plumbing corrosion can accumulate overnight.  Flushing the water from the tap for 30 to 45 seconds can reduce the copper that can accumulate when the household plumbing is not in use.”

The DOH also mentions this about the amount of copper that is safe.

http://www.doh.wa.gov/ehp/dw/fact_sheets/copper_in_drinking_water.htm

“Copper is an essential mineral in the diet.  Too much copper, however, can cause health problems.  Major food sources of copper are shellfish, nuts, grains, leafy vegetables, and stone fruits. Typical sources of copper from food range from less than 2 milligrams (mg.) to 5 mg. per day.

Health studies have found that copper in drinking water can add 4 to 45 percent more copper to a person’s diet than what is in food sources.”