Well Services near you

EPA's baseline is specific and short: test your private well annually for total coliform bacteria, nitrates, total dissolved solids and pH levels, and test for other contaminants as well if you suspect they are present. Your local health department is worth contacting to find out what substances may be common in your area's groundwater, because the useful test is the national baseline plus whatever your own geology and neighbors contribute.

Frequency should follow who drinks the water. EPA advises that you may want to test more frequently if small children or elderly adults live in the house, or if someone in the household is pregnant or nursing, since those groups are often more vulnerable to pollutants than others. EPA also lists conditions that should prompt a targeted test: recurring gastrointestinal illness points to coliform bacteria, nearby areas of intensive agriculture point to nitrate, nitrite, pesticides and coliform bacteria, and a radon-rich region points to radon.

Where you test matters as much as what you test for. EPA says to use only laboratories that are certified to do drinking water testing, found through a state certified laboratory list or your local health department, which may provide private well testing for free. Results should give the concentration of each substance, and may say whether it exceeds a national primary or secondary drinking water standard. If a contaminant exceeds health standards, EPA's advice is to contact your public health department for the steps to follow and to have the well re-tested to confirm the result.

Nitrate is the contaminant most tied to how land around a well is used. EPA's national primary drinking water regulations set the maximum contaminant level for nitrate measured as nitrogen at 10 milligrams per liter and for nitrite at 1 milligram per liter, and describe the sources as runoff from fertilizer use, leaching from septic tanks and sewage, and erosion of natural deposits. The health concern is specific and fast-acting: EPA warns that infants below the age of six months who drink water containing nitrate above the MCL could become seriously ill and, if untreated, may die, with symptoms including shortness of breath and blue-baby syndrome.

Microorganisms are the other routine finding. EPA notes that bacteria, viruses and parasites are found in human sewage and animal waste, and that people who consume drinking water containing them can experience gastrointestinal illnesses and infections. High bacteria concentrations can sometimes be controlled by adding disinfection to a well, and EPA names chlorine, ozone and ultraviolet light among the options, though disinfection treats the symptom and a compromised casing, cap or nearby source needs finding.

Beyond those, EPA's list of potential well water contaminants covers heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead and selenium, which can leach in from natural mineral deposits as well as industry; radionuclides such as uranium and radium, which may be naturally present in groundwater in some areas and can contaminate wells through groundwater flow, wastewater seepage and flooding; and fluoride, which is present in many aquifers and which EPA notes can cause skeletal fluorosis in excess. None of these announce themselves by taste, which is the argument for testing rather than waiting.

Well location is a treatment decision, not just a convenience one. EPA's guidance is that the well should be located so rainwater flows away from it, because rainwater can pick up harmful bacteria and chemicals on the land's surface, and if that water pools near your well it can seep in and potentially cause health problems. A well at the low point of a yard, or downhill of a barn or a drainfield, is working against its own construction.

Construction itself is local. EPA states that appropriate well construction depends on local geologic and groundwater conditions, and that your state water-well contractor licensing agency, your local health department, or a local water system professional can provide information on proper well construction. That is a real answer rather than a deflection: casing depth, grouting and minimum casing length requirements genuinely differ between aquifers and between states.

Septic and well decisions are connected on a rural lot, and EPA treats them together. Its guidance notes that septic systems provide wastewater treatment for many homeowners who also get their drinking water from private wells, and that if a septic system is not working properly or is located too close to a drinking water well, contaminants from the wastewater can end up in the drinking water. High levels of nitrates or coliform bacteria in a drinking water well appear on EPA's list of signs of a failing septic system, which is why a surprising test result should prompt a look at the septic system as well as the well.

There is no federal licence for well work, and EPA's advice reflects that. It tells well owners to make sure any water-well drillers and pump-well installers they work with are bonded and insured, and, if required in their state, to make sure the ground water contractor is licensed and certified. The state water-well contractor licensing agency is the body EPA points to for questions about proper construction, which makes it the natural place to check a contractor before work starts.

Texas shows how firm a state programme can be. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation states that a license is required to drill a water-related well in Texas and to install a pump for a water-related well, and that TDLR regulates private water well drilling and pump installation. It publishes a licence search, well report forms, well construction and plugging specifications, and a complaints and enforcement process, so a Texas homeowner can verify a driller and later find the report filed for their own well.

Minnesota illustrates how much else a state can attach to well work. The Minnesota Department of Health publishes requirements for the construction of wells and borings covering permits, fees, sealing of wells and borings, special construction areas and well disclosure, and maintains a directory of licensed well and boring contractors. The pattern to take from both is the same: find your own state's well programme, check the contractor against it, and make sure the well report or record for your property ends up filed and in your hands.