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Water Sampling Equipment
Water Sampling Test Kit Information
A variety of water testing kits are available from just about any science
catalog (i.e. Sargent-Welsh, Frey Scientific, Nasco, Boreal/Science Kit
and many others - look in the Environmental Science section.) Kits
are also available from suppliers such as LaMotte, Hach, and Chemetrics,
all specialize in this type of equipment. The test kits range quite
a bit in cost and complexity and you should determine what is most
appropriate for your students and budget.
Web sites for some of the suppliers are shown below:
Using microcomputer based labs (probes) are an alternative to testing
kits. Using a variety of sensors and software, labs can be designed
to examine, temperature, pH, etc.:
The Global Water Sampling Project was originally
developed in 1995 by Ms. Rogers, a teacher at PS #22 in Jersey City,
working in conjunction with Stevens Institute of Technology.
Students used test kits from LaMotte, therefore this project was developed
with those kits in mind, however, kits from other suppliers are
acceptable. The kits from LaMotte range in price from $20 - $70 a test
kit, but there are enough supplies to do at least 50 of each test.
Some (not all) of the kits from LaMotte may be too difficult for very
young students, but again that is subjective. Other suppliers may
offer less expensive kits that are easier to use, but are only a one-time
test and may not give precise results. Some tests can be done simply
with other supplies. For example, the pH test can be done with pH
paper.
The recommended coliform kit is the Kemtec Coliform Test Kit.
If you are not experienced doing water testing, the best advice is to
start simply with a few inexpensive and easy-to-use testing kits to
determine if this is for you and your students. If so, in future years
upgrade your testing equipment and number of tests performed.
Finally, ordering and receiving test supplies can take several weeks or
longer depending on the supplier's back-log.
Other Materials
Other materials that you may find useful include:
- thermometer
- nets, including a kick-net and
plankton nets
- plastic jars with lids, plastic
dispensing bottles, buckets, pans
- incubator
- magnifying glasses field guides,
classification keys
- knee-high boots for wading or waders
- latex gloves for highly polluted
water sources
- paper towels
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