Common Water Problems by Peter Duivenvoorden

Water is a clear, colorless, odorless and tasteless liquid. Water has been called "The Universal Solvent". It dissolves some of almost everything it contacts. The purity and safety of our water supply is very important. But knowing the water problems help us identify more how we can avoid and fix this matter. Here are list of common water problems that we encounter. Hard water contains too much level of calcium, minerals and magnesium. Hard water may shorten the life of household plumbing, and appliances that use water that makes are laundering and cleaning task more difficult and also the efficiency of our water heaters decreases gradually. Bacteria. If you have smelly water the most common cause of this is a bacterium which is called the Divibrio Sulfuricans. This bacterium causes the break down of the sulfates that are found in water to sulfides and it combine with hydrogen in the water to form a hydrogen sulfide gas that gives a rotten smell. Lead. Lead is type of heavy metal that dissolves in drinking water. It is odorless, tasteless and it has no color. The source of lead is from plumbing system itself. A home that is old with copper pipe may contain lead. If lead is present in drinking water it can cause long term health effects, especially in children. Does your water stain your fixtures? If it does the color of the stain gives you hint to find out what the problem is. If there is color blue and blue-green stains it means presence of copper in your water supply. Most common source of this problem is corrosion in copper plumbing. Copper affects the taste of drinking water and is poison to aquarium fish. If there is presence of iron in the water it could give reddish stain. Water experts may recommend treatments like water softener and filtration.