The public water system serving Frederick County, Maryland, called NEW DESIGN, provides water sourced from surface water supplies. Government records from the EPA indicate no health-based violations have occurred in this system, which supplies over 74,000 people through more than 22,000 connections.
If Your Water Source Is Surface Water Like Frederick’s System
Water sourced from surface supplies often undergoes treatment steps designed to control microbial and chemical characteristics. For chlorine, which is commonly used as a disinfectant, the concentration can fluctuate depending on treatment protocols and distribution system conditions. Because the source is surface water, chlorine presence is expected as part of maintaining water safety and quality across the network. However, individual household equipment failure can affect how this chlorine is perceived or removed at the tap.
If You Have Recently Tested Chlorine Levels With a Certified Laboratory
A certified laboratory test for chlorine in household water measures free and total chlorine concentrations. Reading these results requires knowing whether residual chlorine was present at sampling and how that compares to typical ranges. The public water system record does not provide specific chlorine concentration figures but confirms that the system operates without health violations related to chlorine use. Testing your own household water will reveal how your equipment failure may be impacting chlorine taste or smell.
If You Consult Seasonal or Multi-Year Water Quality Data
The public record for Frederick’s water system includes treatment procedure codes but no individual chlorine concentration trends over time. Seasonal variations can affect chlorine levels, typically increasing in warmer months due to higher microbial activity requiring more disinfection. While the system’s record shows compliance over time, household water quality can vary seasonally, especially if equipment controlling chlorine has failed.
If You Compare Your Household’s Water Demand to Treatment Capacity
Understanding your household’s daily water use helps determine appropriate treatment solutions. The public system supplies a large population through extensive connections, indicating robust treatment capacity at the system level. However, after equipment failure within your home’s treatment setup, capacity to reduce chlorine taste and smell must match your actual household usage to be effective. Measuring daily water consumption along with chlorine presence guides choosing a filter aligned with your demand.
If You Consider the Number of Samples and Wells Behind System Data
The system serves tens of thousands of residents with data representing numerous sampling points across surface water sources and distribution lines. This wide sampling supports the record’s reliability for regional water quality but cannot specify chlorine levels at an individual tap. A limited number of well or tap samples from your household will provide precise data to address your specific equipment and water concerns after failure.
If You Reflect on Differences Between Public System Records and Private Well Testing
Public system records from the EPA provide an overall picture of water quality delivered to the community but do not substitute for testing private well or household plumbing water. After equipment failure, private testing is critical to determine exact chlorine levels at your tap. This informs whether a point-of-use or point-of-entry filter is needed to remove chlorine taste and smell effectively for your household.
For households in Frederick County facing chlorine taste and smell issues due to failed equipment, the Autotrol Chlorine Taste & Smell Filter ships ready to configure and can address daily household water demand effectively. Using this filter matched to your measured water use offers a documented solution to restore the quality of your tap water.
Where this information comes from
Source: EPA SDWIS public water system record. Sampled 2019-12-31. These figures describe the public water system's record, not the plumbing inside any individual building.
On record: EPA SDWIS record for NEW DESIGN - FREDERICK COUNTY (MD0100030), surface water supply, serving 74911 people: 0 health-based violations of 5 total; lead 90th percentile 0.003 mg/L