To schedule one of our plumbers to do a water test for you, Please contact Steiner Plumbing at 715-425-5544.

Water test leads to urgent message

By Jeff Holmquist, New Richmond News

Dave Johnson had a bit of a scare recently and he wants to encourage rural homeowners to avoid a similar frightening situation.

 After owning his rural New Richmond home for about six years, Johnson said he decided to test his well water to see if there was any contamination. He sent his sample off to a laboratory in Stevens Point and waited for the results to be sent back.  “I never dreamt that we would find anything,” he said. “I thought it would come back clean.”  The water testing lab sent back an expedited preliminary report to Johnson letting him know that the nitrate levels in his home’s water were very high. “I just about fell on the floor,” he said.  Johnson said his home is surrounded by farm fields and a neighbor spreads a lot of manure on his property, wondering if that is the source for his water’s contamination.  The testing lab sent an alert to Johnson telling the homeowner that high levels of nitrates in water are not good for babies under 6 months old. Johnson has his daughter and 10-month-old granddaughter living with him at this time.  If pregnant women drink water that has high levels of nitrates in it, birth defects are possible, Johnson said. High nitrate levels are also deemed cancer causing.  “This is very serious,” he said. “I had no idea about the possible health effects.”  

To solve the problem, Johnson said he needs to install a special filtering system on his water supply.  As he works to correct the situation, Johnson said he wants to alert others about the potential problem. He said few people regularly test their well water and that could lead to issues.  “This is a big thing,” he said. “It’s an awareness thing. People should know.”  Johnson said he, along with many people he’s talked to, never knew that public health recommendations suggest that well water testing should be completed on an annual basis.  “It seems like people with private wells are just left out in the cold,” he said. “Nitrates have been a problem for years, but people are unaware. They need to know that testing is a good idea, and not just put a notice in the fifth page of a newsletter somewhere.”  

Ed Thurman, environmental health specialist for St. Croix County, said standard health officials generally recommend that people test their well water annually.  Thurman said that recommendation is rarely followed, and many people have never had their well water tested.  Thurman said people who have never had their water tested, and homes that have babies or pregnant women living in them should get their water tested right away.  Nitrates have often been found at high levels in the “big triangle” of St. Croix County (from New Richmond, west to Hudson and east to Hammond). “It doesn’t surprise me when a water test from that area comes in high for nitrates,” he said.  Any residence within that triangle should be aware of the issue and have their water tested regularly, Thurman said. Water with more than 10 parts per million of nitrates is deemed unsafe for infants under 6 months of age. Any water over 20 part per million of nitrates is recommended to install a reverse osmosis filtering system, Thurman said.

 Johnson’s well water tested above the 20 level, Thurman noted.

 Thurman said his office offers free or low-cost water testing kits at various events in the county to encourage homeowners and businesses to test their wells.  “I know there is a risk out there and I do whatever it takes to get people to test,” he said. “Sometimes, if they know a free test is available, they’ll actually do it.”

 For more information, contact Thurman at 715-246-8370.

To schedule one of our plumbers to do a water test done for you, Please contact Steiner Plumbing at 715-425-5544.

While marching in the parade Paul Steiner (Owner), David Sutton (Field Operations Manager), and Orv Handy (HVAC Technician) donned  superhero capes and a Steiner emblem on their shirts. Jack the dog even had his own Steiner emblem cape to wear. Although a very hot day to be walking in a parade, the water spraying out of the “busted pipe” provided a refreshing relief from the heat to onlookers who wanted to be sprayed.

The winners of the River Falls Days Parade were noted in the July 21st River Falls Journal. Our float was chosen as the Most Humorous Unit. This is the second time we have received that honor; in 2007 we won Most Humorous Unit in the “Pirates on the Kinni” themed parade. In 2008 we won the Best Use of Theme (commercial) in the “Yippie-Kai-Yay on the Kinni” themed parade.

Pictures of our float can be seen below.

Jim Scheide has over 10 years of HVAC service experience with Steiner Inc. Please call him at 715-425-5544 for any questions you may have regarding your Geo-Thermal system or to arrange for a quote of a future system.

The North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners or NABCEP solar thermal installer certification is a certification that provides a set of national standards by which solar thermal installers with skills and experience can distinguish themselves from their competition. Certification provides a measure of protection to the public by giving them a credential for judging the competency of practitioners.

**The Need for certification in the renewables industry;

1.Certification provides a measure of protection to the public by giving them a credential for judging the competency of practitioners;
2.Certification provides practitioners with a way to distinguish themselves from their competition; and
3.By potentially improving quality, certification improves the public perception of the given occupation, helping increase the industry’s prominence.

In its 15th year, the National Solar Tour is an opportunity for people to check out homes and businesses who have chosen to install renewable energy systems. This event is coordinated nationally by the nonprofit American Solar Energy Society. Visit the nationalsolartour.org for more details.

Locally the Midwest Renewable Energy Association coordinates the Saturday, October 2, tour for Wisconsin. Our company will once again be part of the tour. A list of the homes and businesses participating in the event can be found at the MREA’s Wisconsin Solar Tour page.

Earlier this week we loaded up a barge with our equipment and everything for our customer’s septic system. After a four hour tug boat ride down the St. Croix River our barge was on site and ready for us to unload and install the system. When we say customer satisfaction is a top priority we mean it. We make every effort to accommodate our customers’ needs…even if that means renting a barge and having it towed down a river!

The pictures below help illustrate what an operation this was.

Renewable Energy Systems completed so far:
10 wind generator systems = 220 kilowatts
37 solar photovoltaic systems = 315 kilowatts
25 solar thermal systems

With many more renewable energy projects on the way these numbers keep climbing!

Turn off the water in your home any time you will be gone for over 24 hours to save yourself from costly water damage. It is a very simple task that can save you from a big headache and a big bill. At a young age Paul’s children knew how to turn off the water in their home; that is how easy of a task it is.

A couple gone Memorial Day weekend came home to water running out of their garage. The water was coming from a broken toilet on the second floor. Damages amounted to about $350,000! The average cost for water damages can range anywhere from $40,000 to $100,000.

Below are some pictures of what happened at a home when the water was left on with no one at home for over 24 hours. The picture to the right shows that the water in this basement is almost 2 feet deep!

A simple tune-up and inspection of your A/C can reduce energy use and save you money. River Falls Municipal Utilities is offering $50 cash back to every customer who has an A/C tune-up performed by a professional service technician. The incentive is only applicable to tune-ups performed by September 30, 2010 so schedule a tune-up with us today!

This incentive is available to residential customers with a valid River Falls Municipal Utilities electric account. Only Central air conditioning units of 5 tons or less that have not had a tune-up within the last 3 years are eligible. To see the full eligibility requirements and how to apply visit River Falls Municipal Utilities incentive application page.