Best Management Practices for Private Water Wells

Why protect your private well?

In Pennsylvania, there are no state regulations that require private well owners to maintain their well or test their drinking water. Improperly constructed or poorly maintained wells can create a pathway for pollutants into your home drinking water. The owner of a private water well may be the only line of defense against contamination of that water supply. Preventing contaminated water supplies protects the health of you and your family and is less expensive and easier than fixing a water quality problem after it has already occurred. Learning about proper well maintenance is your best line of defense against a polluted water source.

Potential Contaminants

Routine Tests

Additional tests for specific problems

Test your water

To ensure your drinking water is healthy, have your water tested every year. There are many tests that can be done on your water and having all of them done is usually not necessary. It is a good idea to have your water tested annually for coliform bacteria and every three years for pH and total dissolved solids. However, if you can determine what potential contaminants are threats to your water supply, you can more carefully select the type of tests and analyses that will need to be done to ensure the safety of your water. Have your water tested by a certified laboratory. It is also important to test the water in a home with a private well before purchase. If you have questions about what to test your water for or you want to locate a local certified testing lab, contact your county extension educator.

Interpreting Your Water Test Results

The results of your water test(s) will tell you the level of each of the tested substances that were found in your water supply. The presence of any specific substance does not necessarily indicate a danger to your health. Comparing your results to the state or federal drinking water standards will help you determine how problematic your results really are to the safety of your family. For help with interpretation of a water test report, go to the Drinking Water Interpretation Tool (DWIT) webpage.

Inspect your well

Every year, homeowners should do a thorough inspection of their home water well.

• Keep the area around your well clean and make sure it is always accessible.
• Limit activities like using fertilizers or pesticides within 100 feet of the well.
• Be aware of local activities that may impact your well water.
• Complete a visual inspection of your well casing to detect any cracks, holes, or corrosion.
• Replace a standard well cap with a sanitary well cap to keep out insects, small mammals, and other surface contamination.
• Check the wiring for the pump to make sure it is secured in an electric conduit pipe.
• If you have not taken measures to prevent backflow, contact a plumbing supplier to take advantage of inexpensive backflow prevention devices.

Maintaining your well is essential to protecting your family’s health on a day-to-day basis. However, even with proper annual maintenance, well materials and equipment will eventually need to be replaced. For preventive maintenance, get your well inspected at least every 10 years by a qualified professional.

Keep good records

Well record books are a great way to keep track of your well’s installation, maintenance, inspections, repairs, and water tests. Having this log of activity will assist you in detecting problems early and noticing changes over time. If something does go wrong, contact a local expert and show them your well’s records for a diagnosis. Well record books can also  be helpful to any future owners of the home.

Source Water Protection Starts at Home

Over three million people in Pennsylvania get their water from a private water system (well, spring, or cistern). Families on private water supplies need to be aware of changing water quality issues and the best methods to protect their water supply.

Unlike public drinking water systems, homeowners with private wells do not have assistance with managing water supply (including routine maintenance, water testing, and solving water quality and quantity problems). All private water system owners need to take the time to ensure everything is working correctly and that their water is always healthy to drink.

For more information on proper management of private water systems, contact a Penn State Extension educator or a volunteer from the Master Well Owner Network today!

About the Master Well Owner Network

Working through Penn State Extension, this program educates private water system owners throughout Pennsylvania. Trained volunteers help form a network to connect with community members. To find out more, visit the MWON website.

Source Water Protection Starts at Home

Over 3 million people in Pennsylvania get their water from a private water system (well, spring, or cistern). Families on private water supplies, need to be aware of changing water quality issues and the best methods to protect their water supply.

Unlike public drinking water systems, homeowners with private wells do not have assistance with the management of their water supply (including routine maintenance, water testing, and solving water quality and quantity problems). All private water system owners need to take the time to make sure everything is working correctly and ensure that their water is always healthy to drink.

For more information on proper management of private water systems, contact a Penn State Extension educator or become part of the Master Well Owner Network today!

What is the Master Well Owner Network

It is a program designed to train 240 volunteers throughout Pennsylvania about private water system management. If you are the owner of a private water system and/or you are interested in educating others in your community, become part of the network. Call us at 814-863-0194 or email jrf21@psu.edu.

Resources

Penn State Extension Master Well Owner Network

Penn State Extension Water Resources

National Ground Water Association (NGWA)

Wellowner.org

Pennsylvania Department of Environmental  Protection (DEP)

Pennsylvania Ground Water Association (PGWA)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Safe Drinking Water Hotline
1-800-426-4791

This material is based upon work supported by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Integrated Water Quality Program, Under Agreement No. 2003-04892.