Drinking Water TDS Level Chart – Know the Ideal Range of TDS

By Consumer Advise Team
Edited On

Due to the rise in water pollution and lowering the level of groundwater, it is hard to get safe drinking water from open sources.

When you’re outside, you probably drink nothing but mineral water. But, have you ever wondered what kind of impurities and dissolved substances the water contains?

Pure water, which has no taste, color, or odor, is a good solvent; and, as a result, it picks up impurities quite easily. So, various organic and inorganic salts (impurities) get added to water. Total Dissolved Solids or TDS are such impurities in the water. These include mostly Calcium and Magnesium that form carbonates and oxide stains on the vessels. The concentration of the essential minerals depends upon the source of water.

To ease your research, you must be wondering about the drinking water TDS level chart to consume water safely. Well, here’s the answer!

TDS is also well-associated with the pH and conductivity of the water. Being positively charged cations, Calcium, and Magnesium increase the conductivity of the water. As a result, the pH is lowered and turns acidic.

Therefore, a safe TDS level of drinking water is quite essential. Here is a chart with a pH scale of 0 to 14 and what they resemble and how they may affect your health.

drinking water pH scale chart

What is Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) in the water?

TDS comprises any kind of mineral, salt, metal, cation, or anion. It includes organic salts in a small amount, along with inorganic salts- bicarbonates, chlorides, and sulfates of calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium.

TDS or Total Dissolved Solids is the measurement of the dissolved impurities made up of heavy metals like calcium and magnesium. It is not good to have water with a too high value above 1000 PPM or too low below 50 PPM. For this reason, we have to know a safe range of TDS in water for human consumption. It is measured in PPM (Parts Per Million). It varies upon the source of water- borewell, municipality, or hand pump. The concentration also varies for different areas.

When it comes to your drinking water, the sources of TDS may be natural. Take for example the water in mineral springs.

Do you know that such water is often found to contain high levels of TDS?

This is because the water usually runs across rocks with high salt content. TDS in water may also originate from sewage, surface runoff due to urbanization and agricultural activities, industrial waste, chemicals in water treatment, plumbing hardware, and piping, etc.

Drinking Water TDS level in PPM

You must remember that levels of TDS present alone in water are not harmful to health. In fact, you will probably enjoy the taste of water with high TDS content. In fact, without them, you’ll find the taste of the water quite bland.

However, TDS can lead to hard water, which can stain and corrode your household fixtures and cause them to wear out faster. In addition, the high concentration of TDS level of water is indicative of the possible presence of other contaminants, especially if the solids are from pollution or human activities.


drinking water TDS level chart

TDS for drinking water

To find out what purposes it can serve and if it is for drinking, cleaning, cooking in the kitchen, etc., you must test the TDS of water in the house. The TDS level present in water is measured by milligrams per liter. Here’s a look at the levels of TDS you may find in different types of water – 

  • Freshwater < 1500 mg/L
  • Brackish water – 1500-5000 mg/L
  • Saline water > 5000 mg/L

Now the big question is, how much TDS in water is good for health?

We often have a misconception that water with low TDS is always good for health. But a too low level of TDS is not good for health. From the chart for ideal TDS level in the water, we can realize to drink safe water for a healthy life.

In a nutshell, a TDS level from 100 ppm to 300 ppm is best for drinking water.

Whereas, water with TDS more than 1200 ppm and less than 50 ppm is unacceptable for drinking. The following table may help you visualize it in more detail. We advise not to drink water with TDS above 500 PPM.

TDS (Low Range)TDS (High Range)Quality Of Drinking Water
050 PPMUnacceptable
51 PPM200 PPMAcceptable
201 PPM400 PPMGood
401 PPM600 PPMFairly Acceptable
601 PPM900 PPMLess Acceptable
901 PPM1200 PPMLeast Acceptable
1201 PPMaboveunacceptable

Importance of Drinking Water TDS and it’s Effect on Health

TDS can cause incrustations or films on fixtures, corrode pipelines, or reduce the efficiency of water filters and heaters in your house. However, water that has no TDS can have a more corrosive effect on your household items. It has the capability to leach harmful metals like copper or lead from pipes and hardware.

Additionally, the two minerals commonly found in TDS are calcium and magnesium, which can lead to water hardness, scale formation, and staining.

TDS can change the taste of water, making it sweeter and more enjoyable for you. You probably remember the sweet taste of mineral water that comes in bottles, right?

However, elevated levels of TDS can lead to a bitter or salty taste. High TDS levels in drinking water, while not necessarily a health hazard, can give you an undesirable brackish taste.

On the other hand, water with low TDS levels often has a flat taste that you will probably not enjoy at all. Moderate amounts of TDS alone in water may be good. In taste tests, such water ranks higher than water that has too high or too low levels of TDS.

Preliminary evidence has suggested that the various substances available in water can be beneficial, as well as harmful to human health. For instance, a decrease in the incidence of tooth decay has been observed as a result of using artificially fluoridated water.

Then again, epidemiological studies in the 1960s in areas with hard water showed lower morbidity and mortality caused by cardiovascular diseases. 

As mentioned above, elevated drinking water TDS level is unlikely to present any health risk unless it is a big change. However, you must remember that such high TDS levels in water indicate the possible presence of heavy metals. In addition, lead, aluminum, copper, nitrates, or even arsenic, can impose a risk to your health.


Drinking Water TDS level

How to measure TDS level of Drinking Water at home?

Wondering if you can measure the level of TDS in the water at home? Well, the good news is that you can! Take a look at the following methods to measure the TDS.

1. Using Paper Filter and Scale:

You can measure the TDS level of drinking water at home, using this conventional method. For this process, you will only need

  • sterilized beaker
  • filter paper
  • pipette (with a capacity of 50 ml)
  • stirring stick
  • evaporating dish
  • measuring scale
  • water sample in the beaker.

Step 1

The process begins with you weighing the evaporating dish (in mg). Ensure that the dish is clean and empty; This will indicate that weight is that of the dish only, and not of the impurities. Now, note down the measurement as “A”.

Step 2

Now, take the stirring stick and stir the water in the beaker vigorously. This will help to agitate the liquid, and the particles in the liquid will be equally distributed.

Step 3

Next, pour 50 ml of the stirred water into the pipette. Don’t forget to continue stirring the water even as you pour it into the pipette.

Step 4

Then, you need to extract the water you’ve collected in the pipette onto the filter paper. You have to repeat this step thrice. You should be able to observe that the paper has collected some of the sediments of the water. In that case, you’ll need to transfer it to the empty evaporating dish.

Step 5

Now, it’s time to wait for the filtrate in the dish to dry completely. Once that happens, you can measure the weight of the dish with the dry filtrate once again. Note the result as “B”, which is the total weight of the dish and the filtrate.

Step 6

It’s time for some math. To find the level of TDS in water alone, subtract A from B. Calculate the TDS level of water by using the formula –

TDS=[(A-B)x1000]/ml.

2. Using Digital TDS Meter

The digital TDS meter is a reliable device to measure TDS levels in the water. And, if you live in India, then you can easily find digital TDS meters on any leading online store.

Once you get hold of it, all you need to do is to turn on the TDS meter. You’ll find the ON/OFF switch on the panel. Now, dip the meter into the water; and, check if the water has reached the maximum immersion level, which is 2″. Then, stir the device gently and burst all the tiny air bubbles.

Now, it’s time to wait for about 10 seconds, during which the reading will stabilize. Next, you have to press the HOLD button before you take the device out to take a look at the reading on it, which indicates the TDS level of the water. It’s just that simple if you have a digital TDS meter! (After use, don’t forget to shake the excess water off of the meter and replace the cap!)

Wondering if you can find a pocket-friendly digital TDS meter?

If you think that the device will burn a hole in your pocket, then you’re absolutely wrong! It is possible to find a pocket-friendly digital TDS meter.

This take-anywhere water testing tool offers high precision and sensitivity, which results in fast and on-the-spot readings. What’s more, it has a large screen, as well as clear calibrations for the level of TDS, temperature, and parts per million (PPM). Yes, you can measure temperature with the device’s built-in thermometer.

You can use it in your household water filters and purifiers. You can also monitor the quality of food and beverages.


How to Control the TDS level in the water?

Now you know how to measure the levels of TDS or total dissolved solids in water; so, it’s time to find out how to reduce drinking water TDS levels at home. In some cases, the water may only have excess levels of calcium and/or magnesium.

All you need, then, is a water softener. This will soften the water supply in your house. However, this will only make the water fit for your household appliances; it will effectively treat your tap water.

Take a look at the following ways that will make water fit for drinking –

1. Reverse Osmosis (RO)

Reverse Osmosis, or RO, is a popular method of purifying water and remove TDS. In fact, you’re probably already familiar with the term because the water purifier in your house uses this method to reduce the TDS levels of the water in your house.

In the water purification process, water passes through a fine membrane that has microscopic pores. This helps to filter out even the smallest particles. You’ll be surprised to know that only atoms smaller than 0.0001 microns can pass through this membrane. You can probably imagine how all the other solids or salts stay behind in the membrane; and, you will be left with the purified water.

The best water purifiers in India can take care of the water quality easily. Most of them also come with RO Water Purifier Technology that helps to get healthier water for drinking. A water purifier is a bit costly product but you will have no hassle getting a great quality of water. RO Water Purifiers are now essential household appliances as they purify water in a safe TDS range.

A RO water purifier comes with a TDS controller. If you are tight with the budget, you might like the cheapest water purifiers from Aqua Ultra, an Indian Brand.

2. Deionisation (DI)

In the process of deionization, the water passes through a specially manufactured electrochemical cell, i.e. electrode. This will help to separate the positively charged ions from the water, as the negative electrode will attract them. As a result, you will get highly pure, deionized water.

Since this process involves an electrode, DI is also referred to as Electrodeionization or EDI. Unlike the regular version of DI, EDI is not a chemical process, but an electric one, as it uses electric currents. It works best when the water goes through an RO unit first. This helps to remove TDS with non-ionic contaminants that are organic in nature.  

3. Distillation

You must have read about distillation in science classes in school. This is an excellent process to help you reduce the TDS level. You have to start by boiling the water to turn it into vapor. Once the vapor rises above and touches a cold surface, it condenses back to its liquid form, which you have to collect safely. However, the dissolved solids cannot evaporate during the process of boiling.

So, this process completely separates the solids which settle at the bottle of the container in which you are boiling the water, giving you pure water. This is a popular and age-old method that does not require water filters or purifiers. However, you do need to store this water in sterilized containers, to prevent bacteria.


Final Words

Now that you know about the level of TDS or total dissolved solids, you must not forget that these substances form essential for the quality of your drinking water. It tells you whether the water is too turbid to drink, or if it lacks the essential minerals that your body needs.

Don’t worry if you find that the water has a high TDS level. It doesn’t necessarily mean that the water is unfit for consumption, though it can harm your household appliances over a prolonged period, or may even taste a little bitter or salty. However, high TDS levels in water may also be a sign of the presence of trace metals.

Just follow the drinking water TDS level chart we have mentioned above to know the ideal TDS range.

Again, you should also avoid water that is deficient in TDS level; such water can be corrosive in nature and harm your plumbing, leading to the leakage of toxins. So, it is a good idea to ensure to have a moderate level of TDS in drinking water, for the sake of your own health, as well as the health of your pipelines and household devices!


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