WhatispHindrinkingwater?
ThepHlevelofyourdrinkingwaterreflectshowacidicitis.pHstandsfor“potential
hydrogen,”referringtotheamountofhydrogenmixedwiththewater.pHismeasured
onascalethatrunsfrom0-14.Sevenisneutral,indicatingthereisnoacidoralkalinity
present.Ameasurementbelow7indicatesacidispresentandameasurementabove7
indicatesalkalinity.
ThenormalrangeforpHingroundwaterliesbetween6and8.5.Bycomparison,vinegar
measures3pH,beermeasuresbetween4and5,whilemilkmeasuresaround6.4pH.
WaterwithalowpHcanbeacidic,softandcorrosive.Thiswatercanleachmetalsfrom
pipesandfixtures,suchascopper,iron,lead,manganeseandzinc.Itcanalsocausedamage
tometalpipesandaestheticproblems,suchasametallicorsourtaste,laundrystainingor
blue-greenstainsinsinksanddrains.
WaterthatcontainselevatedlevelsoftoxicmetalscouldalsoshowalowpHlevel.
DrinkingwaterwithapHlevelabove8.5couldindicatethatthewaterishard.Hardness
doesnotposeahealthrisk,butcancauseaestheticproblems,suchasanalkalitastetothe
waterthatmakescoffeetastebitter;build-upofscaleonpipesandfixturesthancanlead
tolowerwaterpressure;build-upofdepositsondishes,utensilsandlaundrybasins;difficulty
ingettingsoapanddetergenttofoam;andloweredefficiencyofelectricwaterheaters.
WhatarethehealtheffectsofpH?
TheU.S.EnvironmentalProtectionAgency(EPA)doesnotregulatethepHlevelindrinking
water.Itisclassifiedasasecondarydrinkingwatercontaminantwhoseimpactisconsidered
aesthetic.However,theEPArecommendsthatpublicwatersystemsmaintainpHlevelsof
between6.5and8.5,agoodguideforindividualwellowners.
HowdoItestforpH?
Contactyourlocalhealthdepartmentforalistofstate-certifiedlaboratoriesthatcantest
thepHlevelofyourwater.Ifitisacidic,lessthan7pH,youmayhaveproblemswithleaching
ofcopperandleadfromyourplumbing.ConsidertestingforleadifthepHtestshows
yourwaterishighlyacidic.
wellcare?infoonpHinDrinkingWaterJuly2004
wellcare?informationforyouabout
pHinDrinkingWater
Wellwaternaturallybetter…Contactyourlocalwaterwellprofessional
wellcare?informationonpHinDrinkingWaterPage2
WhatisthetreatmentforpHindrinkingwater?
Treattheproblemofacidic,lowpHdrinkingwaterwithaneutralizer.Theneutralizerfeeds
asolution,typicallyusingsodaash,intothewatertopreventthewaterfromreactingwith
thehouseplumbingorcontributingtocorrosion,whichcanleachmetalsintothewater.
Note:neutralizingwithsodaashincreasesthesodiumcontentofthewater,whichmaypose
additionalhealthconcernsforyourhousehold.
TreathardwaterwithahighpHwithanion-exchangesystemortheadditionofalime-soda
ashmixture.Theseprocessesalsocanincreasethesodiumcontentofthewater.Contactyour
waterwellprofessionaloryourlocalorstatehealthdepartmentforguidance.
FormoreinformationaboutpHandotherdrinkingwatercontaminants
U.S.EPA,SecondaryDrinkingWaterStandards:
www.epa.gov/safewater/consumer/2ndstandards.html
NSFInternational,WellWater:
www.nsf.org/consumer/drinking_water/dw_well.asp?program=WaterTre
WilkesUniversity,CenterforEnvironmentalQuality,GeoEnvironmentalSciencesand
EngineeringDepartment,pHoftheWater:http://wilkes1.wilkes.edu/~eqc/ph.htm
Formoreinformationonyourdrinkingwater