Jacksonville tap water is classified as extremely hard. It poses a serious threat to your house plumbing and appliances as well as your family's health. Protect your family’s health and home investment with professional water quality testing that delivers accurate results in minutes, not days.
We perform complete on-site testing during any scheduled technician visit to your home. Our certified technicians use professional-grade digital equipment to measure multiple water quality parameters simultaneously.
The entire process takes less than 5 minutes, and you receive a detailed water quality test report before we leave your property.
When standard test results indicate concern or you have specific questions about contaminants like lead, PFAS, coliform bacteria, or volatile organic compounds, we coordinate specialized lab analysis.
This testing requires a technician equipped with proper lab test kits and involves additional fees. Lab testing provides detection at parts-per-trillion levels for substances that on-site equipment cannot measure accurately.
Donovan thoroughly analyzes your water to detect a wide range of contaminants that can affect your health and home. From common minerals to harmful bacteria and chemicals, our comprehensive testing ensures you know exactly what’s in your drinking water.
Identifies scale buildup risk that affects appliances, plumbing, skin, and hair by measuring the concentration of calcium and magnesium minerals in your water. High levels of these minerals, commonly referred to as water hardness, can lead to the formation of scale deposits inside pipes and on fixtures, reducing water flow and efficiency.
This buildup not only shortens the lifespan of appliances like water heaters and dishwashers but can also cause dryness and irritation to skin and hair during daily use. Understanding hardness levels helps determine the need for water softening treatments to protect both your home’s plumbing system and your family’s comfort.
Measures combined minerals, salts, and metals that impact taste and overall water safety. Total dissolved solids include a variety of substances such as calcium, sodium, magnesium, potassium, bicarbonates, chlorides, and sulfates.
Elevated levels of TDS can affect the taste, odor, and clarity of your water, often resulting in a salty, bitter, or metallic flavor. High TDS levels may also indicate the presence of harmful contaminants or excessive minerals that can lead to scaling in pipes and appliances, reducing their efficiency and lifespan.
These disinfectants, primarily chlorine and chloramine, are essential for killing harmful bacteria and viruses in public drinking water supplies, ensuring regulatory compliance with safety standards.
However, their presence can lead to noticeable effects such as a distinct chemical taste and odor in tap water, as well as skin and hair dryness during consumption and daily use. Monitoring the levels of these disinfectants helps balance effective microbial control with minimizing unpleasant sensory impacts.
Additionally, excessive disinfectant concentrations can react with organic matter in water to form disinfection byproducts, some of which may pose health risks over long-term exposure. Our water quality testing evaluates these concentrations to recommend appropriate treatment solutions.
Assesses whether water is acidic or alkaline, which impacts pipe corrosion and drinking water taste. The pH level is a crucial indicator of water quality because water that is too acidic (low pH) can corrode metal pipes, leading to the leaching of harmful metals such as lead and copper into your drinking water.
On the other hand, water that is too alkaline (high pH) can cause scale buildup, resulting in cloudy water and potential damage to plumbing fixtures and appliances. Maintaining a balanced pH level, around 6.5, helps ensure the safety, taste, and longevity of your water system.
Elevated iron concentrations in water can lead to significant aesthetic and functional problems in your home. Apart from the characteristic orange or reddish-brown stains, high iron levels may cause unpleasant metallic tastes and odors in your drinking water.
Over time, iron deposits can accumulate inside plumbing systems and appliances, reducing water flow and efficiency. This buildup can also promote the growth of iron bacteria, which form slimy coatings and cause foul odors, further compromising water quality.
Detecting and managing iron levels is essential not only for maintaining the appearance of your fixtures and laundry but also for preserving the longevity and performance of your home's plumbing.
Lead, total coliform bacteria, E. coli, PFAS, nitrates, and other heavy metals can be tested through lab analysis when specifically necessary.
Throughout the Greater Jacksonville area—from Atlantic Beach and Neptune Beach to St. Augustine, Orange Park, Fleming Island, and Ponte Vedra—our water comes from the Floridan Aquifer, located about 1,000 feet underground. While local water utilities work hard to meet EPA standards, homeowners across Duval, Clay, St. Johns, and Nassau Counties face several water quality challenges unique to our region:
Hard Water with High Mineral Content: Northeast Florida has some of the hardest water in the state. The limestone aquifer naturally adds calcium, magnesium, and sulfates to our water—which is why residents in Jacksonville Beach, Mandarin, Southside, and throughout the First Coast see white scale on faucets and cloudy ice cubes.
?$Wrench_New$ "Do You Know What's In Your Water?")
Our certified technician collects water samples using proper techniques during your scheduled visit. Correct sampling methods ensure accurate results that reflect your actual water quality.
Tests are performed immediately using professional digital meters that measure multiple parameters. Unlike DIY test strips that rely on subjective color matching, our equipment provides precise readings with documented accuracy.
All findings are recorded in a comprehensive water quality test report. The report details measured values compared against Environmental Protection Agency’s standards, clearly flagging any parameters that exceed recommended levels.
Based on your specific test results, we provide customized recommendations for water treatment solutions. Whether you need a water softener for hardness, carbon filtration for chlorine removal, or reverse osmosis for safe drinking water, our guidance addresses your exact water quality challenges.
Your drinking water travels through miles of aging pipes before reaching your tap, picking up minerals, chemicals, and other contaminants along the way.
Professional water testing identifies exactly what’s in your water supply so you can address problems before they affect your health or damage your home.
Professional water treatment equipment delivers measurable improvements in your water quality:
Safe drinking water is our top priority for you and your family. For this reason, we always recommend installing a reverse osmosis filtration system.
Reverse osmosis filtration removes up to 90+ contaminants including lead, bacteria, pesticides, and other chemicals. We can help you with filter installation too!
Don’t guess what’s in your water. Know for certain.
Our professional water testing identifies exactly what’s affecting your drinking water.
Standard on-site testing is completed in less than 5 minutes using professional digital equipment. You will receive your detailed test report with results before the technician leaves your home.
Yes, our technicians can perform water quality testing during any scheduled visit to your property. No separate appointment is necessary for standard testing, making it convenient to add water analysis to routine maintenance calls.
Specialized testing for lead, PFAS, bacteria, and other trace contaminants is available upon request. This requires coordination with a technician equipped with the proper lab test kit, and additional fees apply for laboratory analysis. Most people concerned about aging infrastructure, private wells, or specific health risks benefit from this extended testing.
Professional testing uses calibrated digital meters that provide precise numerical readings, while DIY strips rely on color matching that can produce errors up to 20%. Our equipment measures more parameters simultaneously and delivers immediate, documented results suitable for treatment planning.
Absolutely. While public water supplies meet regulatory compliance standards when leaving the treatment plant, water quality can change as it travels through aging pipes to your home. Homes with older plumbing may have lead present from pre-1986 solder, and municipal disinfectants like chlorine affect taste and cause dryness that many homeowners want to address.
Water quality testing involves several key steps to assess the safety and composition of drinking water. First, a certified technician collects water samples using proper techniques to avoid contamination. On-site testing is often performed immediately with professional digital meters that measure parameters such as pH, total dissolved solids (TDS), hardness (calcium and magnesium), chlorine levels, and iron concentration. These tests provide quick, accurate data on common water quality indicators.
For more detailed analysis, especially for contaminants like lead, PFAS, coliform bacteria, E. coli, nitrates, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), samples are sent to certified laboratories. Lab testing detects contaminants at very low concentrations, sometimes parts per trillion, which on-site equipment cannot measure. Test results are compared against Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards to identify any health risks or safety concerns.
Yes, you can test water quality at home using DIY water test kits. However, home kits often have limitations in accuracy and scope, potentially missing many contaminants or providing subjective results. For comprehensive and precise analysis—especially for bacteria, volatile organic compounds, or trace chemicals like PFAS—professional testing with certified laboratories is recommended.
Here! Donovan will conduct a free basic water quality test for you totally free of cost.
Tap water in Jacksonville, FL meets federal EPA drinking water standards, but it is considered very hard and often has a strong chlorine smell or taste. Meaning it can still be harmful. In fact, Florida's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) had to conduct more testing in Jax, where they found PFAS (forever chemicals) at high levels in some of the wells.
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