Finding your dream home is one of the most exciting processes that you will go through with your family. From a kitchen that will be big enough for all of your culinary adventures to a cozy living room where your family can gather each night, the perfect home for you will have everything that you need. While the surface-level of a home matters, there are other more hidden issues that you also need to consider when buying a new home.
At Atlantic Blue Water Services, we have worked with many home buyers who think that they found “the one” only to discover major water safety issues. Unfortunately, water testing is not a normal part of the home inspection process. We help to ensure that you walk into your real estate transaction fully informed and that you don’t miss any of the steps that you should consider when buying a new home.
Why Should You Have Water Testing Done at a New Home?
Even if your new property is a new construction, you will never know about existing water quality issues until you have testing done or you are experiencing the issues firsthand. This is even more important if your new home has a private well. One of the biggest things to consider when buying a new home that uses well water is how much treatment and filtration will be necessary to keep the well water safe and potable.
By having water testing performed before you purchase the home you will be aware of issues and have time to decide whether or not you want to make the financial investment into treating and filtering the water. If you discover problems during the testing process, you can include the costs of mitigation in the contract for the purchase of the home. We can provide you with our estimate of which systems and procedures will fix the problem, and you can work with your real estate agent to determine the best solution.
What Factors Impact a Home’s Water Quality?
If the home uses a private well or public treated water, there are many different factors that can influence the water quality. Even when the water has been filtered, tested and treated on the way to the house, the quality of the pipes and other issues can cause it to accumulate contaminants on the way to your home. It’s also important to consider that the only things that are removed from your water are things that are considered to be a direct threat to your health and safety. Things like hard water minerals can be hazardous to your plumbing over time, but that doesn’t mean they will be removed on the way to your house.
Another factor that you should consider when buying a new home is the age of the home and the plumbing inside of it. Older houses can have pipes and plumbing fixtures that contain lead and directly influence water quality. We can inspect your property in addition to our water testing services to assess whether or not existing filtration is effective and if pipes could be contributing to your water quality issues.
What Are Some of the Signs That a Home Might Need Water Treatment?
- Water That Isn’t Clear: Fresh and clean water that has been treated should be completely clear. Water that is discolored can indicate a problem with the pipes or the presence of bacteria. Once we pinpoint the problem causing the discoloration, we can make recommendations to improve the quality of your water.
- Water With an Earthy Taste: Water that tastes like moss or earth can indicate algae growth somewhere in the water system.
- Water With a Metallic Taste: Water that smells or tastes metallic often means that pipes somewhere between the water treatment facility and your faucet are dissolving. It can also indicate that the water is too acidic and eating away at the metal.
- Water With an Egg Smell: This easily-identifiable scent means that the water contains high levels of hydrogen sulfide. If you have this issue present, one of the things that you should consider when buying a new home is the cost of backwashing filters and aeration devices to improve water quality.
- Water With a Chlorine Taste or Smell: While chlorine is commonly and safely used to treat water, enough present in the water that it smells and tastes off can require additional carbon filtration in your home.
Other problems, like health problems, clothes staining and discoloration might not be apparent until you’ve moved into the home. Our water testing can pinpoint the exact issues present and equip you with the knowledge that you need to consider when buying a new home.
Call Atlantic Blue Water Services for a Water Test to Consider When Buying a New Home
Atlantic Blue Water Services is here to help homeowners, home sellers, home buyers and business owners in need of a quality water test in Pikesville, MD. Call us today to schedule your water testing at 410-840-2583.