Silver Lake Research Releases Twenty Minute Test for Contaminated Water

Until now, testing drinking water for disease-causing bacteria involved a time-consuming process of collecting samples and transporting them to a laboratory, followed by a wait of up to two days for the results. Meanwhile, the water consumer either risked possible illness or was burdened with using expensive bottled water or the continued boiling of non-bottled sources to ensure his or her safety. Adding to such problems is the fact that water quality constantly changes: what was safe two days ago may be unsafe today. The traditional testing method only gives information about yesterday's water quality, not information about what's currently flowing out of the tap.

Now Silver Lake Research Corp. (SLRC) of Monrovia, Calif., has solved this dilemma with the introduction of the Watersafe(R) Bacteria Test, the world's first truly rapid test kit for bacteria in water. The test can be performed by the average person without scientific training or sophisticated laboratory instruments.

The test procedure is similar to that of a home pregnancy kit: a small amount of water is placed in a vial, and then tested for bacteria by the insertion of a test strip into the sample. The entire process takes less than twenty minutes to complete and will accurately detect the presence of E. coli, Salmonella, Shigella and other bacteria that can cause anything from common diarrhea to typhoid.

The test is highly beneficial to the U.S. Military, environmental agencies and disaster relief organizations. SLRC Vice President of Sales Tom Round reports that the military is currently collaborating with Silver Lake Research to evaluate the test in active war zones such as Afghanistan and Iraq, where contaminated water sources are widespread and the previous 48-hour test-wait time imposed a dangerous moratorium on operations and greatly increased the risk of disease. "When you're a soldier braving 120 degree heat in some war zone like Iraq, the last thing you need to be worrying about is contaminated water," Round said.

Source: Silver Lake Research Corporation