Sources of water, like rivers and lakes, contain many chemicals, pathogens, and other pollutants. Therefore, it is necessary that the water supplied to homes is purified before being made available for human use. 

The water supply network of the municipal authorities follows the following methods for purification of water.

Water purification at Municipality: 

(a) Sedimentation 

(b) Filiation 

(c) Disinfection 

The water supplied to homes can now be used for domestic purposes but may still not be fit for drinking. Water which is safe for human consumption is called potable water. Potable water is free from pollutants, impurities and pathogens. It is clean, clear, transparent, odourless and pleasant in taste with desire quantity of oxygen and salts dissolved. Since there is no simple way to determine purity of water, it is advisable to purify the water further before drinking.

Some methods used for domestic and industrial purification of water are:

(a) Boiling

(b) Carbon filtering 

(c) Distillation 

(d) Reverse osmosis.