Drinking Water Interpretation Tool

This website provides an interpretation of drinking water test results you have received from a water testing laboratory. Enter your results into the boxes below and click "Submit" to get an interpretation of your water test results. If you are visiting this site and have not had your water tested, you should arrange to have your water tested through a state-certified water testing laboratory. A list of certified labs is available from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. For recommended water tests and testing strategies, consult our water testing fact sheet. For more information on each contaminant listed here, consult the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency website.

Helpful Tips for Submitting Your Drinking Water Test Results

Enter numerical values - ONLY ENTER NUMBERS - DO NOT ENTER LETTERS .

If you do not have a value for a particular parameter, leave the space blank.
If you have a result larger than 999 do not enter commas.
If your water test results contain either ND (not detected) or BD (below detection) enter a zero in the form for that chemical parameter.
If your microbial test results are reported as either P (present) or A (absent), enter a zero for A and 10 for P. If you received only presence/absence bacteria results, you might want to consider asking the water testing laboratory to provide you with numerical results in the future. Numerical results provide important clues to the severity and possible causes of bacterial contamination.
Primary or Health-related standards - enforceable standards for contaminants that can pose negative human health effects.
Secondary or Aesthetic standards - non-enforceable guidelines for contaminants that may cause cosmetic effects (such as skin or tooth discoloration) or aesthetic effects (such as taste, odor, or color) in drinking water.

NOTE: Results reported in ppm units are equal to mg/L units; Standards in mg/L can be converted to µg/L units by multiplying by 1,000.

Enter Microbial Results with Health-related Standards

Total Coliform Bacteria (bacteria per 100 mL)

Fecal Coliform Bacteria (bacteria per 100 mL)

E.Coli (bacteria per 100 mL)

Giardia lamblia (oocysts)

Cryptosporidium parvum (oocysts)

Enter Inorganic Chemicals with Health-related Standards

Arsenic (mg/L)

Barium (mg/L)

Cadmium (mg/L)

Chromium (mg/L)

Copper (mg/L)

Cyanide (mg/L)

Fluoride (mg/L)

Lead (mg/L)

Mercury (mg/L)

Nitrate (NO3-N) (mg/L)

Selenium (mg/L)

Thallium (mg/L)

Turbidity (Total Suspended Sediment) (NTU)

Enter Inorganic Chemicals with Aesthetic Standards

Acidity (mg/L)

Alkalinity (mg/L)

Aluminum (mg/L)

Chloride (mg/L)

Color (color units)

Corrosivity

Surfactants, Methylene Blue Active Substances (MBAS) (mg/L)

Hardness (mg/L)

Iron (mg/L)

Manganese (mg/L)

Odor (T.O.N.)

pH (pH units)

Silver (mg/L)

Sulfate (mg/L)

Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) (mg/L)

Zinc (mg/L)

Enter PFAS with Health-related Standards

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) (ng/L)

Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) (ng/L)

Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) (ng/L)*

Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) (ng/L)*

Hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA)
(commonly referred to as a GenX chemicals) (ng/L)*

*At least two fields are required to calculate the Hazard Index

Enter Volatile Organic Chemicals with Health-related Standards

Benzene (mg/L)

Carbon Tetrachloride (mg/L)

MTBE (Methyl Tert-Butyl Ether) (mg/L)

Styrene (mg/L)

Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) (mg/L)

Toulene (mg/L)

Trichloroethane (TCE) (mg/L)

Total Trihalomethanes (mg/L)

Vinyl Chloride (mg/L)

Xylenes (total) (mg/L)

Enter Synthetic Organic Chemicals with Health-related Standards

2,4-D (2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid)(mg/L)

Atrazine (mg/L)

Carbofuran (mg/L)

Chlorodane (mg/L)

DBCP (Dibromochloropropane) (mg/L)

Dioxin (2,3,7,8-TCDD) (µg/L)

Diquat (mg/L)

Endothall (mg/L)

Endrin (mg/L)

Ethylene Dibromide (EDB) (mg/L)

Glyphosate (mg/L)

Lindane (mg/L)

Methoxychlor (mg/L)

PCBs (Polychlorinated Biphenyls) (mg/L)

Silvex (2,4,5-TP) (mg/L)

Simazine (mg/L)

Enter Radionuclides with Health-related Standards

Radium 226 + 228 (pCi/L)

Radon (proposed) (pCi/L)

Uranium (µg/L)

When you have entered all of the values from your water test, use the submit button to run the analysis. If you need to start over, or wish to enter data for a new water sample, click the reset button to clear the information you have entered.

Drinking WaterInterpretation Tool