Testing Kits in Your Mail Are Not Completely Accurate
Earlier this year, the Hicksville Water District (HWD) began receiving reports from several residents of water testing kits arriving in their mail from a private, locally-based company. Unfortunately, they have begun circulating the community once again, and the District would like to remind residents that, although these mailers say “Hicksville” on the front, the HWD is not a sponsor of theirs and does not support scare tactics in an attempt to sell unnecessary water filters to residents. All water quality testing that is performed by the District is completed by a New York State Health Department-certified laboratory for drinking water. Moreover, home test kits are extremely limited in their scope and can provide inaccurate results due to the minimal amount of water tested.
“Water testing kits like these serve as little more than scare tactics that companies use to try to sell water filters,” said HWD Chairman Karl Schweitzer. “If a resident were to submit a sample to these companies, the results they would receive would likely be inaccurate and push them to spend money on a water filter that they do not need. The Hicksville Water District does not sanction these tests, and we assure you that our state-of-the-art water testing protocols are far more stringent and exhaustive than anything a water filter company could provide.”
The HWD routinely tests its water for more than 170 parameters at treatment facilities designed by engineers and approved by the health department. The District budgets more than $200,000 per year for testing and each round of testing costs over $2,000, all of which are conducted by New York State Health Department Certified Water Plant Operators. The tests conducted by the private companies are not regulated and far from being comprehensive. Therefore, the “free” testing cannot be relied upon for accuracy or for determining the need for any water treatment. All of the water served to HWD residents is in strict compliance with all federal, state and county regulations, allowing the community to rest assured that their water does not contain harmful levels of any contaminants.
Any customers with concerns about their water quality are encouraged to contact the District office at 516-931-0184. For additional information, residents can contact the Nassau County Department of Health at 516-227-9692.
