WHAT IS 'TOTAL DISSOLVED SOLIDS'?
Total Dissolved Solids or 'TDS' is a measure of how much material is in a 1 litre
water sample. The material could be organic (e.g. bacteria) or inorganic (e.g. chemicals)
and is measured in parts per million ('ppm').
1ppm is equivalent to 1 milligram of solids in 1 litre of water
WHY MEASURE TOTAL DISSOLVED SOLIDS?
TDS is a good indicator of the amount of scale in water, particularly in hard water
areas. The higher the TDS rating, the harder the water and the more likely it is to
foul or block pipes, valves, boilers and filters with scale.
HOW ARE TOTAL DISSOLVED SOLIDS MEASURED?
An electronic meter is used to measure the conductivity of a water sample and convert
the result into a 'ppm' reading.
Because organic material such as bacteria have little effect on conductivity the test
will give a reasonable indication of the non-organic (i.e. chemical) solids dissolved
in a water sample.
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