Water Facts & Figures

What is in our drinking water?
Drinking water, like every other substance, contains small amounts of bacteria. Most of these bacteria are common ones and they are generally not harmful. Chlorine is usually added to drinking water to prevent bacterial growth while the water streams through pipelines. This is why drinking water also contains minimal amounts of chlorine.
Water mostly consists of minerals and other inorganic compounds, such as calcium.
If you want to find out what substances your tap water consists of and whether it is totally safe to drink you can have a free water analysis from Hall's Culligan.

What dangers can there be in drinking water?
There are several problems that can endanger the quality of drinking water. Coliform bacteria are a group of microrganisms that are normally found in the intestinal tract of humans and other warm-blooded animals, and in surface water. When these organisms are detected in drinking water this suggests contamination from a subsurface source such as barnyard runoff. Yeasts and viruses can also endanger the quality of drinking water. They are microbial contaminants that are usually found in surface water. Examples are Giardia and Cryptosporidium. Nitrate in drinking water can cause cyanosis, a reduction of the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood. This is particularly dangerous to infants under six months of age. Lead can enter the water supply as it leaches from copper pipelines. As the water streams through the pipes, small amounts of lead will dissolve in the water, so that it becomes contaminated. Lead is a toxic substance that can be quickly absorbed in the human systems, particularly those of small children. It causes lead poisoning. Legionella is a bacterium that grows rapidly when water is maintained at a temperature between 30 and 40 degrees for a longer period of time. This bacterium can be inhaled when water evaporates as it enters the human body with aerosols. The bacteria can cause a sort of flu, known as Pontiac fever, but it can also cause the more serious deathly illness known as legionellosis.

What is hard water?
When water is referred to as 'hard' this means it contains more minerals than ordinary water, especially calcium and magnesium. The degree of hardness of the water increases, when more calcium and magnesium dissolves. These minerals are positively charged ions. Because of their presence, other positively charged ions will dissolve less easily in hard water than in water that does not contain calcium and magnesium. This is the cause of the fact that soap doesn't really dissolve in hard water.

Is softened water any help for dry skin conditions?
There are cases to be noted, in which people with dry skin conditions have benefited from water softening, because soft water is kinder to the hair and skin.

My Water Stinks! What can I Do?
To correctly analyze your problem, locate the smell after you have been away from home for a few hours. Go to an outside spigot - one that the raw, untreated water flows from. Turn it on, let it run a few minutes, then smell it. If it smells the problem is in your water coming to the house, or the raw water. However, many smells are not in the raw water at all, they are introduced into the water inside the house. Go to a cold, treated water spigot inside the house, turn it on and let it run a minute; then smell. If this water smells, and the outside, untreated water didn't, your problem could be a device (cartridge filter, water softener, etc.) in the water line that needs to be cleaned and sanitized.

Minor, musty smell: The best way to solve this is a water filtration system on your incoming water line to filter all of the water inside your home.

Strong, rotten-egg smell: Strong, rotten-egg odors in the raw water is usually the result of the decomposition of decaying underground organic deposits. As water is drawn to the surface, hydrogen sulfide gas can be released to the atmosphere. In strong concentrations, this gas is flammable and poisonous. It rapidly tarnishes silver, turning it black. It is toxic to aquarium fish in sufficient quantities. As little as 0.5 ppm hydrogen sulfide can be tasted in your tap water.

The best way to detect why you have an odor in your tap water is by ordering a free water analysis to find out exactly what your water contains.

HALL'S CULLIGAN
Corporate Offices:
10821 E. 26th St. N.
WIchita, KS 67226
1-800-626-1703
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