Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hi, I'm interesting in doing a project about the quality of tap water and bottled water, but I don't know which test kit I should get. I'm hoping to find one that tests for at least a few different things, and that's accurate, but also isn't really expensive. Does anyone know of a good kit I can buy?

Hello. A very interesting and important topic! There are many different aspects to water quality. They are widely categorized as physical, chemical, and biological. You say you want to test for a few different things. Have you thought any further about what you want to test? You probably won't be able to test them all, so I recommend you narrow down what you're going to test for before you decide on what testing kits you need to purchase.

I suggest starting here. This website gives an excellent background on water quality testing, and they also sell kits at what seems to be a reasonable price.
http://sciencefairwater.com/

If you have any further questions, don't hesitate to write back.
Good luck!