Albion Laboratory Services - Water Analysis

There are three types of water tests available:

Water Analysis for Irrigation Purposes (250mls required):

Albion Laboratory Services Irrigation Water Analysis covers the 14 elements listed below, but also gives you important information on the water pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids, sodium absorption, general hardness and carbonate hardness.

Water Analysis for Livestock Purposes: Mineral Analysis (250mls required):

The mineral composition of drinking water can be an important consideration when either formulating diets for ruminants or investigating metabolic disorders. This is because water can provide significant levels of both essential and antagonistic elements.

In recent years, many dairy farmers have taken action to obtain water supplies from local spring or bore sources for economic reasons. In some cases transferring from mains to a local supply, a profound change in the mineral composition of the water has occurred, to the detriment of cow productivity.

Albion Laboratory Services Livestock Water Mineral Analysis covers the 16 elements listed below, but also gives you important information on the water pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids, alkalinity, acidity, general hardness and carbonate hardness. Comments are provided to aid interpretation.

• Nitrate (NO3) • Nitrite (NO2) • Ammonia (NH4) • Calcium (Ca)
• Chloride (Cl) • Magnesium (Mg) • Phosphorus (P) • Potassium (K)
• Sodium (Na) • Sulphate – S (SO4-S) • Aluminium (Al) • Copper (Cu)
• Iron (Fe) • Manganese (Mn) • Zinc (Zn)

Click for PDF File Example - Livestock Water Mineral Analysis


Water Analysis for Livestock Purposes: Microbiological Analysis (1ltr required for short - 1.5ltr for full):

The microbiological composition of drinking water can be an important consideration when investigating the suitability of the water for livestock use and also some metabolic disorders.

This microbiological analytic procedure uses samples of water, determining from these samples the type and concentration of bacteria. It is then possible to draw inferences about the suitability of the water for use from these concentrations.

Coliforms have historically been used as “indicator micro-organisms” to serve as a measure of faecal contamination, and thus the potentially presence of enteric pathogens.

E Coli (Escherichia Coli) is a particular type of bacterium that is occasionally found in the digestive tract of cattle and in cattle manure. The strain of E. Coli that farmers may be most familiar with (K99, K88), can cause scours in calves.

Some types of Salmonella cause serious disease in cattle such as Typhimurium, Dublin and Newport. These three types have the ability to not only cause diarrhoea, but also penetrate the intestines and go into the blood stream and cause disease in other organs of the body such as lungs, brain, joints, liver and spleen.

In more recent times water has been found to be a carrier of Clostridium and Campylobacter microbes both of which have been implicated in animal diseases.

• Total Coliforms • E Coli • Salmonella (Short Microbiological Test)
• Clostridium (perfringens) • Campylobacter • Pseudomonads

Click for PDF File Example - Short Microbiological
Click for PDF File Example - Full Microbiological