Homeowner Information & Resources
This collection of resources provides information related to questions commonly received from private homeowners and members of the public. Information related to water testing, home treatment systems, wells, source water protection and water related emergencies can be found here.
Visit our online library’s main webpage to find more resources on topics related to drinking water.
Water Testing
- Well Water Testing (Private Drinking Water) – Public Health Units provide testing for the presence of the bacterial indicators of contamination, E. coli and total coliforms in private drinking water systems.
- Public Health Units – Find your local Public Health Unit in this directory for information on local water testing programs.
- Testing Your Water – A video demonstrating how to collect a water sample for the Public Health Unit’s bacterial indicator testing program.
- List of Licensed Labs – A directory of labs licensed to test drinking water in the province of Ontario if you would like to pay for private testing.
- Drinking Water Quality – Indicator Bacteria (Total Coliforms and E. Coli) – A fact sheet describing the Public Health Unit’s test for bacterial indicators of contamination.
- How Do I Get My Drinking Water Tested? – A fact sheet made by the Walkerton Clean Water Centre summarizing how a homeowner can go about testing their water.
- Instructions for well owners who have e. coli and total coliforms in their well sample results – Public Health guidance for unacceptable test results.
- Testing and Treating Private Water Wells – A Government of Ontario guide for private well owners.
- Well Aware booklet – Guides you through the life cycle of a well, how to maintain your well, and shows you how your well affects water quality.
- Well Water Contaminants of Concern – Information on common groundwater contaminants from Wellowner.org.
Home Water Treatment
- A Guide to Drinking Water Treatment Technologies for Household Use – A fact sheet produced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the effectiveness of point-of-use or point-of-entry drinking water treatment technologies for household use against different contaminants.
- A Guide to Water Filters – This guide was produced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for filtering tap water (previously treated water).
- Choosing Home Water Filters & Other Water Treatment Systems – This guide was produced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- Contaminant Reduction Claims Guide – This guide was produced by NSF International who certifies purification systems designed to reduce contaminants. This directory shows which systems they have certified to reduce lead, arsenic, bacteria, cysts, viruses, chlorine, chloramine, chromium, fluoride, nitrate/nitrite, PFOA/PFOS, trihalomethanes and volatile organic compounds.
- Do I Need to Use Certified Products or Materials for my Drinking Water? – A Walkerton Clean Water Centre fact sheet providing information on how to select plumbing products and treatment systems for your drinking water at home.
- Drinking Water Safety – Cisterns – A fact sheet produced by Haldimand and Norfolk Health and Social Services about maintaining, cleaning and disinfecting a cistern.
- Drinking Water Treatability Database – Presents referenced information on the control of contaminants in drinking water. After selecting ‘Find a Contaminant’ you will find a ‘Treatment Processes’ tab that lists the treatment processes with literature on the log or percent removal, water quality conditions and operational parameters references in the ‘Data’ tab.
- Hard Water at Home – A homeowner’s guide to hard water and similar issues produced by a real estate company.
- Home Water Treatment System Selection – A guide for selecting a home water treatment system produced by NSF International.
- Rainwater Collection – Tips and information for homeowners interested in collecting rainwater to conserve resources by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- Ultimate Guide to Well Water Treatment – A guide to understanding well water and possible methods of treatment written by a plumber.
Plumbing
- Flushing Your Home: How to Flush an Entire House Plumbing System– A step-by-step guide produced by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to flush the plumbing in your home.
- How Much Water Does a Leaky Toilet Waste? – A video experiment showing you how much water is wasted by a leaky toilet in your home.
- How to Drain Your Water Heater – Step-by-step instructions produced by the District of Columbia for draining your water heater.
- How to Find Your Water Shut Off Valve – This video demonstrates how to locate and operate your water shut off valve to prevent further water damage during an emergency.
- How to Fix a Bathtub Faucet with EPCOR’s Blue Bucket Crew – Step-by-step video instructions to replace a leaky cartridge in a bathtub faucet.
- How to Fix a Double-Stem Faucet with EPCOR’s Blue Bucket Crew – Step-by-step video instructions to fix a leaky double-stem faucet.
- How to Fix a Leaky Toilet with EPCOR’s Blue Bucket Crew – Step-by-step video instructions to fix a leaky toilet.
- How to Fix a Single-Stem Faucet with EPCOR’s Blue Bucket Crew – Step-by-step video instructions to fix a leaky single-stem faucet.
- How to flush your own (drinking water) pipes at home – A video made by the Green Bay Utility demonstrating how to flush all the plumbing in a typical home.
- How to Identify Lead Free Certification Marks for Drinking Water System and Plumbing Products – A fact sheet produced by the United States Environmental Protection Agency for sourcing lead free certified products to be used for drinking water systems.
- How to Prevent Your Pipes from Freezing – A video demonstrating how to prevent frozen water lines to keep the water flowing in your home.
- Do I Need to Use Certified Products or Materials for my Drinking Water? – A Walkerton Clean Water Centre fact sheet providing information on how to select plumbing products and treatment systems for your drinking water at home.
- How to Install a Water Softener– A video produced by US Water Systems providing general directions for installing a water softener.
Water Meters
- How to Read Your Water Meter: Automated Model – A video demonstrating how to read your automated water meter.
- How to Read Your Water Meter: Dial Model (Manual)– A video demonstrating how to read your manual dial-type water meter.
Wells
View these other posts on the WCWC online library for more information.
- Private Wells
- Well Aware and Well Wise Program Resources for Homeowners
- Wells Help Desk and Well Records in Ontario
- Well Construction and Licensing
Source Water Protection
View this post on the WCWC online library for more information.
Emergency Disinfection
- Chlorine Dilution Calculator
- Disinfecting Wells After a Disaster
- Well Disinfection Tool
- What to do After the Flood
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