Living with a well in the country
- col-conservation-corner
- December 9, 2023
- 464
In two previous columns, I wrote about the issues related to the proper development of a private water well. Today, I want to discuss the care and maintenance of your water supply. As we noted before, nothing can ruin a perfectly good day more than turning on the faucet and having nothing come out.
However, there are other issues that a homeowner may face related to his water supply that have nothing to do with how the well was drilled. Almost daily, homeowners are facing issues of low yield wells; quantity issues, and water issues related to some sort of contamination, either naturally occurring or possibly man-made in origin; quality issues.
Issues of Quality
Water well quality issues can be both easy and extremely hard to identify, depending upon the nature and source of contaminant. Hydrogen Sulfide, the rotten egg smell, is exceedingly easy to identify. You can smell it as soon as the faucet is turned on. Other contaminants, like synthetic or organic chemicals, are undetectable unless analyzed in a lab.
At present, the Ohio EPA can test for over 600 separate parameters that can be found in drinking water. But due, in part, to the relative high cost of most of these water tests coupled with the low statistical likelihood that most of these compounds would be found in a private water supply, the Ohio Department of Health currently tests new wells for bacteria and nitrates only.
“How do I know what is in my water? How do I find out?”
Testing, as was just mentioned above, is the only way to know what is in your water. But there are ways of testing for selected parameters that may have a greater likelihood of being found in your water.
For instance, if you live in an area where there was a history of mining, it may be wise to check for various mining parameters like iron, sulfur, manganese, etc. If you live near the site of an old gas station or an old dry cleaner, you could test for volatile organic compounds or synthetic organic compounds.
Ohio State University has produced a Fact Sheet, called “Water Testing” that gives some excellent guidance as to the “ins and and outs” of water testing, with guidance as to which parameters to test for in what situation. The link to this document is at ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/aex-314. Other water well fact sheets can be found here at setll.osu.edu/node/12/water-supply.
Further, OSU has a “Know Your Water Well” page that has a tool that can also help assess water quality issues with your well at ohiowatersheds.osu.edu/know-your-well-water.
This testing guidance fact sheet also touches on legal issues related to water testing. If you suspect that someone or some company may have contaminated your water supply, it is important the water betested by a disinterested third party, that is, a water testing lab/firm that would come in and collect the sample. This would be crucial for any legal case, especially since there are certain EPA protocols that may need to be followed for proper testing and analysis of the sample, something that only a certified lab can do. Typically, for a court case, courts tend to frown on owner-collected samples.
Considerations Related to Your Water Supply: a Final Consideration
If, in the course of your testing or investigation into an issue with your water well, you suspect there is an issue that may be related to improper construction, you can call your local health department for a well investigation.
The Ohio Department of Health does have state officials in Columbus who are trained in investigating improper construction and other well-related issues. At present, ODH has three down-hole cameras that can be used for investigations of well-related issues. If a construction defect is found, a well driller’s bond may be forfeit to affect repairs on your well.
Again, I have only touched very briefly upon some of the more important issues related to private water well quality and quantity. If more information is needed, you can contact your local SWCD office, your local extension office, or your local health department.If you have trouble locating the OSU Fact Sheet mentioned above, I will be happy to assist you. Contact the Tuscarawas SWCD at 330-339-7976.
Lee Carl Finley is a district resource specialist with the Tuscarawas Soil and Water Conservation District and coordinates the floodplain program for the Tuscarawas County Commissioners.