Moving into a house in St. Louis means inheriting its plumbing, its water source, and whatever habits the last owner left behind. Most of what you need to know about the water can be learned in the first month, without buying anything. This plan walks through what to find out, in what order, and when a test is worth the effort.
Week one: find out where your water comes from
Start with the basic question of supply. Most St. Louis homes are served by a municipal water system, while homes in parts of the surrounding county may rely on a private well. The two situations call for different habits, so confirm which one applies to your address before anything else.
- Check your closing paperwork and the seller's disclosures for any mention of a well, a well permit, or a septic system.
- Look for a recent water bill or ask the seller for copies. A bill shows the provider and gives you a sense of normal use.
- Find your main shutoff valve and turn it once so you know it moves. Note where it sits, since you may need it in a hurry.
- Ask the previous owner about any water treatment equipment, and collect the manuals and service dates if they exist.
Map the plumbing you can see
Walk through the house with a notebook and record the pipe materials you can see at the water heater, under sinks, and at the outdoor hose bibs. Older homes in the region may have galvanized steel supply lines, copper, or in some cases lead service lines or lead solder, while newer homes often use plastic tubing. You don't need to identify every pipe on day one, but the materials shape what you should test for.
Look at the water heater label and note its age. Find the sediment drain valve at the bottom of the tank. Check the refrigerator and ice maker line as well, since those spots often show scale or odor early.
Days two through ten: notice how the water behaves
Pay attention to the water for a week before drawing conclusions. Plain observation tells you a lot.
- Pour a glass and watch it after it sits. Cloudiness that clears from the bottom up often points to dissolved air, while cloudiness that stays suggests particles or minerals.
- Note any taste, smell, or color, and whether it changes between the kitchen and the bathroom.
- Watch for white or crusty deposits around faucet aerators, showerheads, and the rim of the toilet bowl.
- Check whether soap lathers easily and whether dishes come out spotted.
- Run the cold tap for a minute and the hot tap for a minute, and see whether either runs slow or sputters.
Ask the neighbors and the records
Neighbors in older St. Louis neighborhoods often know which blocks have had water main work, which homes run softeners, and whether anyone has seen discolored water after a street repair. Treat what you hear as leads to check, not as facts. Your water provider can explain the supply in general terms and how to request information about your service line. Ask for answers in writing when you can.
Decide which tests are worth ordering
Once you know the source and have walked the house, decide what to test. For a municipal home, a common first step is a basic report that covers hardness, pH, and any contaminants your provider has flagged for the area. For a private well, the usual starting point is a bacteria test, followed by a broader panel if the results or the setup suggest it.
Lead deserves its own check if the home is older or you have seen signs of older plumbing. Lead is a metal that can enter drinking water from pipes, solder, and fixtures, and a lab identifies it from a collected sample. Ask the lab for both a first-draw sample and a flushed sample so you can see where any metal is coming from.
Hardness describes how much calcium and magnesium the water carries. It is a water quality measure, not a health test. Test strips and meters can give you a rough reading at home, while a lab report gives you a more precise result to compare against.
Collecting a sample without guessing
- Use the sample bottle the lab provides, and do not rinse it.
- For a first-draw sample, collect water from the tap after it has sat unused overnight, without running it first.
- For a flushed sample, run the cold tap until it feels noticeably colder, then collect.
- Keep the bottle cool and deliver it on the lab's schedule.
Your first-month checklist
- Confirm your water source and save the provider's contact information.
- Locate the main shutoff and the water heater drain valve.
- Record what you see, smell, and taste over one full week.
- Decide whether a lab test, a home kit, or both fit your situation.
- Schedule service for anything that looks worn, leaking, or unusual.
The first month is about learning, not fixing. Once you have a clear picture of the source, the pipes, and the water itself, you can decide whether the home needs treatment, a retest, or nothing at all. Keep your notes and test results together so you have a record for your next conversation with a provider or contractor.