How Do I Ensure the Water from My New Well Is Safe to Drink?

How Do I Ensure the Water from My New Well Is Safe to Drink?

Water is a basic necessity for everyone and the quality of water you drink affects your health significantly.

Many of us depend on well water as a primary source for water consumption, while well water can unfortunately be polluted with a number of substances that can prove dangerous to our health. That is why it is crucial that one knows how to improve water quality.

Since well water is a fact of life for us at Boylan Waters, we’re glad to steer you in all the right directions when it comes to the best ways to keep your well clean.

From learning what’s contaminating your water to exploring available treatments and preventative measures, here are four tips for how to treat well water so you can be sure the water you put on your family’s table is not only safe, but of the highest quality.

Why You Need to Test Well Quality Water

The quality of well water (and any water for that matter) matters for several reasons and the first most important reason is health: clean, safe drinking water is a necessity to maintain good health. Well water contaminants can result in mild to severe health problems, such as gastrointestinal illness, reproductive problems and cancer.

Many people use well water for everyday tasks like showering, cooking and cleaning, which means it’s critical that the water is free of any dangerous particles to keep you and your family safe and healthy.

Especially, the well water of poor quality adversely affects the taste, odor and appearance of water that may influence to use this water as well as decrease in property value. That’s why your well water needs to be in great shape for a safe and healthy home.

Signs Your Well Water is Contaminated

There are many dangers posed by a contaminated well, with the potential health risks becoming of prime importance for households.

Some common include:

  • Smell: If the water from your well smells like rotten eggs, it could be an indicator of sulfur or bacteria contamination.
  • Discoloration: The discoloration to yout well water may indicate different pollutants. It water is yellow or brown this can indicate iron or manganese in the water, and if the water is blue green there may be copper or other metals present.
  • Metallic flavor: This can be sourced from Iron, manganese or copper in your well water.
  • Cloudiness: Well water that looks cloudy could be sediment or bacterial contamination.
  • Gastrointestinal Symptoms – Bacterial bacteria food poisoning If you suffer from frequent diarrhea, nausea or vomitting in connection to drinking your well water this could signal bacterial contamination.
  • Skin irritation: Experiencing skin irritations or rashes after bathing or showering in well water can indicate the presence of high levels of minerals such as iron and manganese.
  • Contaminants are present: When you see signs of contamination such as sand, sediment, or particulate matter in your well water it can signal a problem with the well system itself or simply contamination.

Anytime you find the signs mentioned in this article it is key that you figure out what caused your water to be contaminated and employ some strategies on how best to improve well water quality.

How to Prevent Well Water Contamination

Here are a few things that you can do to avoid having Bad Quality Well Water:

  • Good well construction: Good well construction is key to preventing contamination. Your well should be made of corrosion- and decay-resistant materials and placed so as to avoid possible contamination from septic systems, animal pens or chemical storage.
  • Routine maintenance: Your well system’s regular maintenance can stop contamination. This includes routinely checking and cleaning the well, replacing any worn or broken parts, as well as guaranteeing that the well cap is properly locked in place and free of damage.
  • Safe disposal and storage of chemicals: Such as fertilizers, pesticides, and cleansers will help to avoid contaminating the surrounding ground water.
  • Regular water testing: Testing for the quality of your well water must be done periodically in order to easily detect any untold contamination problems. You should test your well water for bacteria, nitrates or other contaminants that may occur where you live at least once a year.
  • Caring for the local environment: The local environment can also affect well water quality. Planting plants around the well may prevent erosion, and avoiding excessive chemicals or fertilizers in the vicinity of the well can avoid contamination of groundwater sources.
  • Disposal of hazardous waste: Appropriate management of hazardous waste helps to avoid groundwater pollution. Remember to adhere to local laws and dump toxic waste correctly.

First thing you need to do in regards to the general health of your well water is minimizing any risk of contamination. There are a number of solutions to avoid well water contamination and ensure the quality of well water supply.

By implementing these tips, you can take the right measures to avoid well-water contamination while maintaining the best quality water flow from your well. It’s also important to play an active role in maintaining your well and continually testing the quality of your well water to ensure that your drinking water is as safe and as good as it can possibly be.

How to Improve Contaminated Well Water Quality

The treatment methods for contaminated well water will vary based upon the particular type of contaminant in the water.

The quality of well water should be tested on a regular basis and consult with a professional that specializes in well water, such as the at Boylan Water Well Services to help determine what type of treatment would be best.

Today, we’re going to show you some options when it comes to improving well water quality if your H2O has been contaminated.

Getting Rid of Bacteria and Viruses in Well Water

UV disinfection/ chlorination can efficiently kill bacteria/virus. UV disinfection relies on UV light to kill bacteria and viruses, while chlorination adds chlorine into the water to exterminate bacteria and other microorganisms.

Treat Nitrates from Well Water

Well water can be treated for nitrates and nitrites through reverse osmosis or ion exchange. Reverse osmosis uses a semi-permeable membrane to remove contaminants, while ion exchange involves exchanging ions in the water to remove contaminants.

Removing Arsenic from Well Water

Arsenic is best removed with reverse osmosis, activated alumina or iron-based media techniques.

Treating Iron and Manganese in Well Water

Aeration and oxidation processes can take out iron and manganese from well water.

Aeration introduces air to the water, which oxidizes the iron and manganese that precipitates out with aeration, while oxidation uses a chemical such as chlorine or potassium permanganate added to the water to remove these contaminants.

Eliminate Sediment from Your Well Water

Sediments may be readily filtered as with activated carbon or sand filters.

How to Improve Non-contaminated Well Water Quality

It doesn’t take contaminates in your well water to make you want to improve it. There are a number of reasons to enhance your well water, from taste and odor issues, to improved quality of your home’s water.

Here, we take a closer look at some of the ways you can make your well water better — even if testing reveals it’s not contaminated. Using these approaches to purify well water can help you enjoy clean, safe and great-tasting drinking water.

Water Softening

Hard water is widespread and can influence taste and well water quality. If the water is hard, installing a water softener can process out minerals like calcium and magnesium that cause hardness.

Activated Carbon Filters

Carbon filters can eliminate powerful chlorine, pollutants and sediments which have bad influence on the peculiar smell of your water.

Aeration

Aeration is the process of adding air to water, which can help to remove soluble gases such as radon and hydrogen sulfide that makes your water taste and smell bad.

Regular Well Maintenance

Regular care of your well can also contribute to good-tasting water. That even means routinely monitoring the well, replacing old or broken parts and making sure nothing is wrong with the well cap.

Benefits of Water Filtration for Quality Well Water

for well water is a technique that eliminates the impurities and contaminants present in water to purify it and make it safe for drinking.

There are many different kinds of contaminants commonly found in well water, from bacteria to viruses, and nitrates and nitrites all the way to arsenic iron manganese and sediment that may not only affect the quality but also the taste or odour of your drinking water.

for well water by moving the water through several types of physical, chemical, and biological treatments to get rid of impurities and contaminants, to leave you with drinking quality water.

The actual type of well water filtration system employed may vary based on the impurities and contaminants in the well water.

Here’s some reasons why you might choose water filtration for quality well water:

  • Taste and odour improvement
  • Elimination of impurities
  • Protection from illness being spread by a water supply
  • Cost-effective
  • Eco-friendly advantages
  • Convenience
  • Better skin, hair health

All in all, well water filtration is a great way to enhance the quality of well water, with the many health, environmental and financial advantages it brings.

Maintenance Tips for Well Water Quality Improvement

Inspections are crucial for your well water quality because they can reveal signs of potential problems with the well system that may be impacting water quality.

There are, however, a number of services that an experienced and reputable Raleigh area well maintenance company – Acme Plumbing Co. can provide:

  • Routine maintenance is essential: By holding regular maintenance services, as a homeowner you are keeping your well system in good working condition and maintaining the high quality of the water. Cleaning services, by a professional can solve the problem of contamination, and help to find out any potential problems.
  • Water testing: Professional well maintenance can also include water testing to determine if there are any contaminants present in the well water. It helps persons drinking well water know that their source of drinking water is safe and free from dangerous elements.
  • Well system repairs and upgrades: If the well system is in need of a repair or upgrade, professionals can assist in providing a solution to fix and maintain clean drinking water.
  • Emergency services: When a well system fails, or you experience any other emergency such as contaminated water, you can use an emergency service to get your well system back up and running with clean, safe drinking water.

Quality well maintenance from a professional is necessary to enjoy safe, clean well water. When you hire a professional that specializes in well repairs, the water system at your home will be kept in good working order, and it will deliver quality water to you and your loved ones.

Contact Our Well Water Quality Experts Today!

If you’re worried about the quality of your well water, then Boylan Water Well Service can help with Santa Fe and the surrounding areas in New Mexico. We provide a variety of services to help keep your well and water quality at their best.

From well to well, our professional well repair and water treatment staff is committed to making sure that your well system is in proper working order and delivering clean safe drinking water into your home.