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Originally Posted by dscabra
That hasn't been my experience. Each time I've had the tank pumped, there was a 6-8" layer of paper in the tank.
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Even if I only put human waste and tp down there, that's another concern then. Whoa.
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Originally Posted by BMWCCA1
It tastes like . . . water!  |
Haha, I'm sure you're more experienced than me so I'll take your word for it.
I guess it's regional like the below poster said. Honestly, we never had any issue at all and the water never tasted weird in the slight (knock wood) and it tasted like...water...to the best of my knowledge haha (just from comparing w all kinds of bottled water). Maybe Canadian water is somehow better since our country has huge freshwater supplies? I dunno.
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Originally Posted by Maynard
Water quality, and taste is a very regional thing. Wells have much more variability and vulnerability - they draw water from underground aquifers (pools of underground water); If somebody decides to dump toxic waste where it will leach into the aquifer then your water just got polluted; if your neighbor decides to go crazy with a drill and busts up your aquifer then you might run dry. City water is also subject to serious pollution issues, but it has been cleaned, filtered, and decontaminated. Either can be real nasty (look up 'fracking affects local wells' or 'lead pipes leach into drinking water'). City water is much more reliable, and you know pretty much what you are getting region-wide. You'll want to look into this specific to your area, as any combo of personal experience will be true someplace (some have undrinkable well water and nice tap, others have toxic sludge coming from the city and pure well water). Clean aquifers are getting more rare - even back in the 90's there was a superfund site located w/i the borders of every major aquifer in Ohio; that was before fracking.
In NY State they go to great lengths to protect aquifers (prohibit fracking and are stricter with ground polluters), mainly b/c NY City draws all their water from upstate - you can easily find them bragging it up as some of the best on earth, and justified in that. Cleveland, on the other hand, drew their tap water from a port located about a half mile out into Lake Erie (the one that caught fire, where mud from the bottom is classifired as toxic waste when they dredge it). Personally I drink distilled water every place I've lived since then.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vreihen16
I wouldn't take that bet because my DW has worked at both water testing labs and water/wastewater plants from small towns to NYC. They test frequently for the common stuff, but there is no magic Star Trek tricorder that scans for *everything* all at once. Each test requires a different lab procedure, and the bill can quickly run up into 5-figures.
Most homeowners stop with a simple absent/present bacteria test, because it is the minimum required by many health departments. When buying a home, your home inspector should run this water test for you. Mortgage lenders (like FHA?) also require specific water tests before closing, which in our area includes radon, tannins, and bacteria.....
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Those are GREAT points, guys. I'm loving this thread as it's been so educational for me.
It would suck balls if I wanted to spend good money on a nice plot and build a sweet house and then run into those well issues. As a newb, the concept is cool, drilling so deep into the earth to reach a huge pool of water, but it seems like there are many crazy variables to maintain supply/reliably consistent access+pressure and quality, w the onus of water testing being on me...I really wonder whose quality is better: city vs some dude w a well, esp considering an above poster mentioned those tests aren't cheap? I'm nowhere near being one of those doomsday preppers LOL, I dunno if I'm up to the task of doing all that and I'd probably wanna jump into the rabbit-hole of being self-sufficient in electricity too.