Wondering if your well water is safe? A good first step is to have your water tested at a certified lab, but lab test results are not always easy to interpret. To help you out, OSU Extension has created this website to help drinking water well owners test, understand and protect their well water.
The Ohio State University in conjunction with the Ohio Department of Health and Ohio EPA has developed a well interpretation tool. This tool provides interpretation of water test results you have received from a water testing laboratory.
Getting Started with the Tool
1. Get your laboratory report.
2. Look for the columns labeled "parameter" or "analyte" and "result."
3. Go to the Well Water Interpretation Tool.
4. Simply enter your results for each parameter or analyte from the laboratory report into the boxes following the tool instructions. (Click Tool Instructions.) Select the report unit for your result (i.e., ppm = mglL or ppb = µg/L). The parameters (in the well interpretation tool) are organized by type which is often how water sample results are grouped on a laboratory report.
5. Click "Submit" at the bottom of the page to get an interpretation of your results.