How To Check Water TDS At Home? 3 Easy Methods You Should KnOwN

You must have heard about TDS levels in drinking water, but do you know what TDS is and how to calculate the TDS of your water purifier? Here, we'll be discussing what TDS is and how to calculate TDS.

In this post, we'll be sharing the complete details about TDS and how you can measure it, so you must read this post till the end. Let's get started 

How To Check TDS At Home

1.      What Is TDS

2.      Why Should We Check The Water TDS Level

3.      Major Substance Causing High TDS Level In Water

4.      How TO Calculate Water TDS At Home

4.1. How To Check Water TDS Using Digital TDS Meter?

4.2. How To Check Water TDS Using Filter Paper & A Scale

4.3. How To Check Water TDS Using Electrical Conductivity

5.     How Much Water TDS Is Suitable For Consumption

6.     Is 200 TDS Water Safe For Drinking?

7.    What Is the Difference Between TDS And Hardness?

 

What Is TDS?

It is referred to as Total Dissolved Solids, and it is the measure of total organic and inorganic substances dissolved in water. Being the natural solvent, water can dissolve almost everything in it. The most common inorganic compound present in water is Calcium, Magnesium, and Potassium. Although these substances are essential for our body, these substances are considered safe under a certain level. But anything higher than that certain level is considered unsafe for human consumption.

Why Should We Check The Water TDS Level?

According to the BIS, i.e. Bureau Of Indian Standard, the recommended TDS level in water is 500 mg/litres. However, WHO recommends that water with a TDS level less than 300 mg/litre is safe for human consumption. However, various water purifier industry experts suggest to maintain a TDS level of 50-150 mg/litre.

At Doctor Fresh, We Suggest You Avoid Drinking Water Having TDS Less Than 50 mg/litre

Major Substance Causing High TDS Level In Water

Calcium	Potassium
Magnesium	Chloride
Zinc	Aluminium
Lead	Copper
Arsenic	Iron
Sodium	Fluoride
Chlorine	Bicarbonates
Sulfates	Pesticides
Herbicides	Bromide

Now you must be thinking about why a low TDS level is necessary for water? Aren't you?

Drinking polluted water leads to various kinds of waterborne diseases, and a higher TDS level means a higher chance of getting waterborne diseases. Moreover, globally millions of people lose their life due to drinking contaminated water; thus, maintaining low TDS levels in water is necessary but ensure your drinking water TDS level is not less than 50 mg/litre.

How To Calculate Water TDS At Home?

There are various methods to check water TDS at home. Here we'll be discussing the 2 most crucial and widely accepted methods to check water TDS at home, which are

1. Using Digital TDS meter
2. Using Filter Paper & Scale
3. Using Electrical Conductivity

#1. How To Check Water TDS Using Digital TDS Meter?

Digital meter is one of the simplest methods to check water TDS, and it is a widely accepted method globally, and the main reason for this is, it does not require mathematical calculation to get an accurate reading. A digital TDS meter brings instant results.

Steps To Follow While Calculating Water TDS Using Digital TDS Meter

• Remove the protective cap of the Digital TDS meter and switch it “ON”
• Dip the Digital TDS meter in the water up to the maximum immersion level (Marking is used to indicating the immersion level in the Digital TDS meter)
• Stir the Digital TDS meter to remove the air bubbles if present in the water. Stirring will remove the air bubble from the water
• Now, wait for 10-15 seconds after placing the Digital TDS meter inside the water to measure the TDS level of the water
• Few brands digital TDS meters bring the reading by multiplying it by 10, but in some TDS meters, you need to multiply the value by 10
• After calculating the TDS level of the water, shake off the excess water from the digital meter and replace the protective cap

Precaution needs To Be Taken While Using TDS Meter

There are few precaution which you need to take while measuring water TDS at your house using a digital TDS meter, and these are

• Don't dip the digital TDS meter beyond the maximum immersion level. Although a digital TDS meter is watertight, still you need to ensure that you have dipped the TDS meter only up to the maximum immersion level
• Don't explore the digital TDS meter directly in the sunlight

#2. How To Check TDS Using Filter Paper & A Scale?

It is one of the conventional methods to check water TDS level, and methods need no equipment, but it needs few apparatus. Below we have listed steps that need to be followed for measuring water TDS using Filter paper & a Scale.

But before you start discussing crucial steps, let's discuss which apparatus are needed for measuring water TDS using Filter Paper & a Scale

Required Apparatus

• A clean & sanitized glass container
• Water sample for TDS determination
• Filter paper or Layers of Cotton
• Evaporating dish
• A sterile stirring stick
• A pipette to take 50ml water sample
• A weighing machine or scale

Steps To Follow For Measuring Water TDS Using Filter Paper & A Scale

Below we have listed complete steps that will help you in measuring water TDS levels.

• Weigh The Evaporating Dish: Measure the evaporating dish using a weighing machine and note the reading in mg. Before you measure the weight of the evaporating, ensure that the dish is completely empty, dry, and free from any extraneous matter
• Stir The Water Sample: Stir the water sample vigorously so that the matter present in the water can be dispersed equally throughout the water sample
• Collect The Water Sample: Take a 50ml water sample using a pipette. While taking the water sample, ensure that no matters are settled down on the container bottom. If the matter is settled down on the container's bottom, stir the water sample and then take a sample. Because if the matter is not dispersed equally, then reading will not be accurate
• Extract The Filtrate: Now, pour the water sample into the container through the filter paper. Repeat this process at least 3 times to ensure that the matter is entirely collected in the filter paper and transfer to the evaporating dish
• Weigh The Evaporating Dish With The Filtrate: Allow the present matter to dry completely, then weigh evaporating dish with extracted filtrate and note the reading in mg and calculate the TDS value

#3. How To Check Water TDS Using Electrical Conductivity

Electrical conductivity is quite a standard method to check the water TDS at home. Here we’ll discuss complete steps that will help you measure water TDS levels at home.

Apparatus Required

• A sterilized glass beaker, free of dust
• Water sample
• An electrical conductivity

Note- An electrical conductivity meter release the electrical current into the water and measure the resistance.

Steps To Follow For Measuring The Conductivity

• Place the beaker on the flat surface and switch “ON” the electrical conductivity meter and insert the measuring lead into the water sample
• Initially, the reading will fluctuate for a few seconds, so wait for a while and let the reading stabilize. Now note down the reading. This reading is in µS (micro Siemens)
• This reading indicates the purity of water. Low the reading, the higher the purity.

Note- The pure water has 0 µS electrical conductivity

Note- The co-relation factor depends upon various factors, such as the nature and temperature of the liquid. This factor also depends upon the atmospheric condition. Usually, the value of KE ranges between 0.55 to 0.8.

Using this formula, you can measure the TDS level in almost all the liquids. However, each liquid will have a specific KE value. For example, the KE value of water at 250C is 0.67

How Much Water TDS Is Suitable For Consumption

According to WHO, water TDS less than 300 mg/l is considered excellent, and Water TDS between 300 mg/l to 600 mg/l is considered good for consumption. But according to the water purifier expert, water having TDS 50-150mg/l is ideal for consumption. Below we have listed drinking water rating according to the TDS concentration in the water.

 

 

Excellent- Water is considered excellent for drinking when the water TDS ranges between 50-150

Good- In this conditioner, water TDS range 150-250

Fair- When Water TDS is in between 250-300

Poor- When the Water TDS is in Between 300-500

Worse- When the water TDS in between 500-1200

Unacceptable- When water TDS is more than equal to 1201