smellslike$tome

I tested the water pressure at a clients house yesterday and it was high so I went to find the prv in the cs. When I opened the door to the cs I saw that it was flooded. It had the odor and appearance of effluent water. I asked the tenants and they said they knew about the water but that it was rain water and the owner came by to pump it out periodically. We have had some recent rains but I do not believe for one second that this is rain water although it could possibly be.

So here is the question. Is there a way to confirm by on site testing whether the water is from the sanitary or simply rain water? I certainly could be wrong but I don't want to start off arguing with a new client about the nature of this water. Ordinarily I wouldn't mind about arguing with a landlord (I typically don't keep them very long anyway) but this guy seems pretty decent so far and appears to have the best interest of his tenants at heart as well as protecting the value of his property. In any event, I can't do anything until it's pumped out which he will be doing himself.

If anyone knows of a test kit or method to determine what the nature of the water is, I'd like to know. I can't even enter the cs at this point but even after it is drained I'd like to be able to know what precautions I need to take. Now I realize that someone will say "why not just inspect the system for leaks after the cs is drained" which of course I could do, but I would still have to enter the cs in order to do that, not knowing for sure what I was dealing with. Also, this is not the first time I have ever encountered this. A couple of years ago (at another rent house) there was a "swimming pool" of sewer water in an excavated basement, just sitting there with nowhere to go. If my memory serves me correctly it was about 4' deep. The owner just wanted to argue and tell me that it wasn't what it was or as bad as it was. He of course was not present but I know that he had already been aware of the situation and just didn't want to do anything about it. Shameful!

Airgap

Whenever we have questions about water quality, we just take a sample to the local water authority. We use bags that are specifically designed to take samples for biological testing. Nasco is the name of the manufacturer of the bags.

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AG..Keepin' the good water from the bad water....

Plumbus

Taste test!

para1

GRAINGER sells some good test kits. check for Ecoli / coliform bacteria.
Call your local EPA office for advice.

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