You must use a bottle that has been sterilized by an autoclave. These can be obtained from a local lab. Labs that do bacteria testing can provide you with the proper bottles. Failure to use approved bottles with give questionable results.

	One - pick a faucet. It is recommended that you sample from a fixed indoor faucet. Avoid faucets that swivel (because bacteria can live in joints of faucet) and avoid outdoor faucets ( because these tend to be dirty).
	Two - Remove strainers from faucet (Bacteria can grow on the strainers. Then wipe thee faucet with a rag that has bleach on it. This will kill any bacteria on the faucet.
	Three - Run faucet on full for 5 min. This will give you fresh water out of your well, not water sitting in your pipes
	Four - Slow the flow .
	Five- Fill the bottle to fill line. (Note: The lab needs a min. of 100ml of sample)
	Six - Get the sample to the lab within 30 hrs. of collection. The EPA requires that all samples be analyized

  NOTE: All sample must be received at the lab within 30 hrs. of collection and contain at least 100 mL, or the samples will be discarded.

Back to My Environmental Science Page

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page