Water Quality

Water quality testing can reduce exposure to pathogens and contaminants found in water, reducing rates of disease and preventing adverse health effects.

Key Terms

• A Water Management Program is a series of steps that reduce the risk of drinking water contamination. Through these steps, hazardous conditions within a building’s water system can be identified and addressed, contributing to diminished risk of waterborne disease among regular occupants.

For full strategy and documentation requirements, please refer to the digital scorecard made available on the Fitwel Platform.

Strategy Insights

• Fitwel’s Water Quality strategy offers three possible pathways to demonstrate compliance:
  • Conduct regular water quality testing for projects that have water fixtures connected to a building’s main water supply.
  • Confirm delivery of potable water for projects that have independent water supplies not connected to a building’s main water supply.
  • Establish a water management program that meets or exceeds Fitwel’s available standard.
• For the water quality testing pathway:
  • Projects must show that they test at least twice annually and after any major construction or renovation in which the building’s water system has been significantly impacted.
  • Testing must occur prior to occupancy in all required areas under control of the building owner/manager. 
  • Testing must occur on at least one drinking fixture (water or tap) per floor of the project, and that drinking fixture must be the one located farthest from the floor’s connection to the building’s water system. 
    • When using the Multi-tenant Base Building (MTBB) scorecard, Fitwel requires water quality testing be conducted on each floor with an owner-controlled or owner-managed water supply, not just the floors that are regularly occupied. 
  • Municipal water quality tests/reports do not qualify. Testing must occur within the building as outlined above. This is because contaminants and bacteria may still collect within the piping system of the building, and water taps and faucets are specifically susceptible to bacteria. 
  • Testing must occur on each owner-occupied/managed floors with drinking supplies [Note: Drinking water supplies identified in WP 9.1 and 9.2 must be tested]. In commercial properties, this includes any floor – including those with tenants – in which owner-controlled/managed spaces offer drinking supplies, including elevator call areas, lobbies, hallways, and common areas. In residential properties, this similarly includes all elevator call areas, lobbies, hallways, and common areas. 
  • Testing for chloride is not a substitute for Vinyl Chloride. Results showing only chloride will be rejected. 
  • Similarly, testing for legionella only does not qualify, as this does not include all required elements as outlined in the strategy requirements.
  • Testing conducted in restrooms or other non-drinking water supplies is not relevant for this strategy. The intent is to attest water quality for potable drinking water sources.
• For the water management program pathway, Fitwel requires the submission of both the program and a detailed graphic and written description of the submitting property’s building system.

Documentation Guidance 

• Please submit the water quality testing report with all values (for the Built Certification Pathway), rather than a summary stating the project meets Fitwel water quality compliance.
• In the annotated plans, please indicate the location of the building's connection to the water source.