There is no single solution to all water-quality concerns; the best response is the safest and most cost-effective approach for your facility. When questions about water quality arise, the first step is diagnosis. Start by getting a free copy of the latest water-quality report from the local water supplier. The report should note any contaminants that are in excess of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards.
To find out more, have a professional such as a water specialist certified by the Water Quality Association (WQA) analyze your water for aesthetic problems such as taste, odor, or hardness. A state-certified or other laboratory can test water for health-related contaminants such as lead, nitrates, and bacteria.
Once you've determined the problem, the next step is to select the most appropriate solution. Generally, there are three approaches: drinking fountains, bottled water, and filtration devices. Possibly the most common option, drinking fountains suffer from a bad rap. While they are increasingly adaptable to filtration systems that help ensure clean water, many consumers worry about sanitation because hands and mouths directly touch the faucet.
Bottled water, by contrast, tops the list of consumer favorites. Bottled water is protected by a multi-barrier approach that is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), according to the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA). Water coolers can provide cool and hot water as well as spring, filtered, distilled, and even carbonated water. They are effective even in the event of a water system shutdown. And coolers can be placed anywhere in the building, regardless of structural constraints. But this flexibility can create logistical nightmares for the delivery person or maintenance, who may have to maneuver around a series of docks, elevator banks, and corridors to deliver the 20-gallon bottles. Plus, bottled water is often the most expensive option, especially when you add in the cost of a maintenance agreement to sanitize dispensers, which helps prevent bacterial growth.
While the water is purified, once the bottles are open, germs can enter as the bottle is uncapped and as it bubbles, sucking in nearby air and airborne germs. The IBWA recommends cleaning the dispenser every two to three months. Filtration devices can treat the water as it enters the facility (called Point of Entry or POE) or at the individual tap (known as Point of Use or POU). POE equipment typically takes care of health contaminants such as Volatile organic compounds (VOC) and provides water softening. POUs generally treat health contaminants like lead and aesthetic contaminants such as sulfur, explains the WQA. A variety of technologies provide filtration solutions, but no one device treats every problem. Facility managers should pick the most cost-effective solution for the type of water problem at the facility. Also, be sure to choose a product or system that has been tested by an independent regulatory agency such as the National Sanitation Foundation.
Like bottled water dispensers, POE/POU systems require regular maintenance, including sanitizing the cooler and changing the filters; manufacturers provide detailed information. We recommend using an appliance with a pressurized system and no reservoir-and changing the filters regularly to prevent bacterial growth.
While it may seem like a daunting project, all it takes is a little research and some expert advice to tap into safe, clean drinking water.
Common water problems, according to the WQA, include:
• Aesthetics (harmless contaminants that affect taste, color, and odor);
• Hardness (excessive levels of calcium and magnesium that shorten the life of plumbing and water-using appliances and decrease the efficiency of water heaters);
• Lead (linked to learning disabilities in young children and hypertension in adults);
• Biological pathogens (waterborne organisms which can cause minor intestinal disorders or can pose a significant threat to the immune impaired);
• Nitrates (can interfere with the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood, and are linked to high incidences of miscarriages);
• Heavy metals (can cause physiological damage to the body, especially the central nervous system);
• Low/high pH (can be corrosive or cause aesthetic problems); and
• Other items linked to cancer (e.g., radium/radon, volatile organic compounds,etc)
The most common water treatment technologies are:
• Carbon/granular activated carbon filters (absorbs or screens chlorine, sulfur, iron, manganese, lead and other heavy metals, radon, some pesticides and fungicides, volatile organic compounds,etc);
• Reverse osmosis or RO (forces pressurized water through a semi-permeable membrane to get rid of organic compounds, ferrous iron, chlorine, fluoride, nitrate, heavy metals, and unpleasant odors and tastes);
• Distillation (heats the raw water to steam and then condenses it back into water to eliminate heavy metals, nitrates, some pesticides and fungicides, some organic compounds, and some bacteria); and
• Ultraviolet (particularly effective on bacteria and micro-organisms, most common in developing countries).
Julian Arhire is a Manager with DtiCorp.com - DtiCorp.com carries more than 35,000 HVAC products, including industrial, commercial and residential parts and equipment from Honeywell, Johnson Contols, Robertshaw, Jandy, Grundfos, Armstrong and more.
