Sewage in My Home Drinking Water?

Fecal coliform bacteria are naturally present in the human digestive tract but are rare or absent in unpolluted waters. The presence or absence total coliform test detects all bacteria strains and indicates fecal matter. Knowing that this bacteria should not be found in drinking water, I was eager to test the very water I drink at home for it's presence! Using the Coliform Bacteria Test Kit from my Estuary and Marine Monitoring kit, I was able to test the drinking water at my home.

The process looked like this:
-The water sample from my refrigerator was poured into the large test tube containing a tablet (4890) until it was filled to the 10 mL line
-The cap was replaced on the test tube
-The test tube was stood upright, with the tablet flat on the bottom of the tube
-The test tube was incubated by storing it upright, at room temperature, out of direct sunlight, for 48 hours
-The appearance of the liquid inside the test tube was compared to the picture on the coliform color chart

Since the color in the tube most closely resembles the coliform image for negative, the result is no. No coliform was tested in my sample. The result was negative, meaning there was not a coliform bacteria presence in my drinking water.

Coliform bacteria sample after the 48 hour incubation period compared to the color chart

Jenna Fairchild