How to Use a Water Test Kit

You can use a water testing kit for a variety of reasons, including testing for contaminants or impurities in your drinking water. You can buy testing kits in hardware stores and they are relatively inexpensive. Most test kits provide testing strips and testing vials to fill with a sample of your drinking water. Routinely testing your water is important to ensure that your water is safe for drinking.

Instructions

Bacteria Testing Kits

• 1

  Let your faucet trickle.

  Take out your water vial from your sample kit. Turn on your faucet at a low level.

• 2

  Don't fill the vial completely.

  Slowly fill your testing vial and fill the vial to just below the top. Put the top on the vial and agitate the vial for a few seconds.

• 3

  Put the vial in a place that will not be disturbed for at least two days. Keep the vial away from direct sunlight. Observe any changes in color with the water sample and refer to the bacteria testing instructions to determine if your water has a positive result.

Lead & Pesticides

• 4

  Use the dropper to fill your vial.

  Take out your kit's supplies. Slowly fill your testing vial with a sample of water, using the dropper provided by your testing kit.

• 5

  Use the test strips provided.

  Gently agitate your testing vial. Take a testing strip provided by your kit and place the strip into your testing vial.

• 6

  Your test strip will change color.

  Wait the set amount of time (according to your kit instructions). Don't touch the testing vial. If your water tests positive for either lead or pesticides, colored lines will appear on your testing strip.

Nitrate & Chlorine

• 7

  Open your testing kit and remove your test strips. Obtain a water sample.

• 8

  Take a testing strip and put the strip into your water sample. Quickly remove the test strip.

• 9

  Look at your kit's instructions.

  Wait a few moments for the testing strip to change color. Refer to your kit's color chart to determine if your water contains nitrates or chlorine.