Laboratory Control for Water Works

The operation and control of any plant is tremendously simplified if it is built to handle satisfactorily the water that must be treated. Chemical, bacteriological and microscopical analyses, and studies of a proposed supply should, therefore, be made before the plant is built. These tests are especially necessary if the water of the proposed supply is highly turbid, highly colored, or, resistant to coagulation or water softening precipitation. The information obtained from these analyses and tests is of use not only in helping to design the right kind of a plant, but in making a choice if more than one supply is available. A permanent record of the results of complete analyses of the alternate supplies may be of considerable value to the water department. Special care should be exercised in selecting samples that show the character of the supply under unusual as well as under normal conditions. If the water is to be taken from more than one well, each well should be tested separately, because the results of analyses of water from different wells in the same underground supply and drilled to the same depths, often show great differences in mineral content.