Drinking well water?

[Hobby_Man22]

Can you drink well water? I have a 82 gallon well tank and I know the water doesn't get cycled out of it very often. Probably takes a month to use up all the water in the tank since it doesn't get used much. Makes me water if I get algae in the tank and such. I'm afraid to drink it.

 

[Rc_Guy]

what do you think we drink that don't live in a city?

 

[jhelrey]

Legionella is very much a concern with stagnate water. I'd try using more H20 watering the lawn, etc.

 

[thammel]

And why is it that you don't use 82 gallons very frequently? I'm on a well and the water is fantastic! But of course, we probably use 50-100 gallons every day or more. Ours goes through a neutralizer, then a softener, then a final filter.

 

[The Cobbler]

to start with, I would do a water sample test to see if the freshly pumped water is potable, then go from there

 

[Jarwop]

Good place to get info: https://privatewellclass.org/

 

[Spire]

Water Testing

Click here to edit the dot navigation module. This text is only for editing and will not appear after you publish the changes. Water Is Precious - Know

xperiential.com

 

[larry_g]

You don't use much water?? Do you bathe, wash cloths, dishes, cook, flush toilets or wash your hands. Your probably cycling that tank much more than you think.

Residential Pressure Tank Size Guide | H2O Equipment Co., Inc.

Find the right residential well pressure tank size for optimal system performance. Read H2O Equipment Co., Inc.’s blog for details.

www.h2oequipment.com

from the web site above:

What most people don’t realize is that pressure tanks don’t hold that much water. A general guideline is that 1/3 of the tank holds water and the rest is air. Why air?

I'm perty sure that you are changing the water in that tank every couple of days. If the system is in good condition then it is sealed and not supseptable to outside germs. I've been on well water most of my life, 69 years, and have no fear of it.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[Walkers]

Algae won’t grow in no light conditions. So long as the tank is opaque you should be fine. By all means send off a sample for testing. Is this a pressure tank, or non pressurized storage tank?

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Pressurized.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

what do you think we drink that don't live in a city?

Bottled water.

 

[finn]

Your county health department can help you get your well tested.

Nobody with a well drinks bottled water here. Our well water tastes better.

Besides, where do you think bottled water comes from....wells.

 

[jar944]

Bottled water.

Are you afraid of all well water, or just your well water?

 

[jar944]

Nobody with a well drinks bottled water here. Our well water tastes better.

This..

 

[u3b3rg33k]

Can you drink well water? I have a 82 gallon well tank and I know the water doesn't get cycled out of it very often. Probably takes a month to use up all the water in the tank since it doesn't get used much. Makes me water if I get algae in the tank and such. I'm afraid to drink it.

an "82" gallon precharge tank only holds 9 working gallons at a 40/60 switch setting. I don't think i'd lose too much sleep on this.

https://www.zoellerpumps.com/content/literature/fm2491.pdf

 

[Metal-Marc]

Nobody with a well drinks bottled water here. Our well water tastes better.

Besides, where do you think bottled water comes from....wells.

Just bottle your own water at home, then drink it?

 

[rayra]

The answer is Filtration, Mandrake.

 

[Buckgnarly]

Buy a bottle at the store, pour it down the drain, then refill from your tap.....do people out there really think people with wells use bottled water?!?!

 

[PelicanPines]

I'm another Water Softener-->Neutralizer-->Filter home. The well water is fantastic. Get yours tested.

 

[JAYoung]

Call me a commie, but I've always blamed the rotten state of my dental health on the fact I drank unfluoridized well water in my formative years.

 

[BillK]

Does this well supply your entire house or is it just an old one used for watering plants etc ? If it is not your primary water source then I think I would want to have it checked before drinking it.

 

[FMB4]

You can purchase DIY water test kits at W*lmart and H*me D*pot, etc. Some of these kits test only for various bacteria, while others test for hardness and lead, etc. They run anywhere from 10-$20. There are also systems that ad a metered amount of 'bleach' to your well water (most all water utilities ad 'bleach' the water).

 

[Kirk T]

I have a well that doesn't get used very much. It gets to smelling like sulfur. I shocked the system with Clorox, circulated, let the system set with the chlorine in it for 24 hours, then ran a lot of water out on the grass to flush the system. If you know you have a problem this is an option but I think it would be wise to have the water tested after this process. Shock Chlorinate Water Well - Clean Water Made Easy Podcast Episode 7 - How to Shock Chlorinate and Sanitize your Water Well (cleanwaterstore.com)

 

[AngryBeaver]

I honestly can’t believe there is people out there that think people don’t drink well water

 

[PelicanPines]

In my ute I used to drink a lot of well beer... straight out of the tap. I had my own keg on the side with a pump up keg-a-rator spigot. I tested it daily for purity.

I will add... Spend the coin for a neutralizer if your water is Acidic... it's amazing all the illnesses associated with drinking Acid water from copper pipes...

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

Have it tested. Many areas have a county department that will do it and offer advice on treatment.

 

[dcg9381]

Can you drink well water? I have a 82 gallon well tank and I know the water doesn't get cycled out of it very often. Probably takes a month to use up all the water in the tank since it doesn't get used much. Makes me water if I get algae in the tank and such. I'm afraid to drink it.

No one can answer this for you. You need to have the water tested. I used Stephens Ecology:

https://shop.stevensecology.com/Standard-Water-Analysis-WSTD.htm

Anyone who tells you well water is great, horrible, safe, or unsafe - they are potentially wrong and potentially right. Well water varies tremendously depending on a bunch of things. It's "probably" safe if your neighbors are drinking it and have similar wells, but the only way to tell for sure is to have the water tested.

Lots of ways water can be off for drinking (but still safe) - and you need the test results to be able to treat it.

 

[CraigStu]

I would stay away from authorities. Get it tested w/o them being involved so you don't get forced to do something drastic if your water tests are a little off.

 

[Rc_Guy]

what do you think we drink that don't live in a city?

Bottled water.

Where do you think bottled water comes from.

You know what else I do, I'll even drink it out of the garden hose when I'm outside.

 

[Showkey]

As mentioned…….Have it tested for the 10 time. Was the well not tested when you purchased the property ?
Well and septic tests are common if not required at time for sae I most areas ( banks often require it for a mortgage as home with “bad water has a serious value problem”.)

I know you posted flooded septic tank issues prior.


“A little off” like Arsenic, nitrates, E. coli, nitrogen and phosphorus……….these can show in the so called best water.
As for the authorities:
If the well has issues it really not going away and the consequences to you health are serious. If you find it bad or know its bad water after the test then bottled water is the temporary fix.

Testing is simple but you must follow the directions to the letter……..because you perfect water may test bad because you or container or method of sampling contaminated the sample. Clean container, flame the faucet, run the water, sample close to the source as possible are part of the proces.

Shocking the well is a DIY for some problems but will not fix chemical.

 

[billconner]

Those that understand the particulars of testing, do you need to retest? We had it tested when we bought house in 2019. Is it good forever? 10 years?

Thank you!

 

[Showkey]

CDC says:
You should have your well tested once a year for total coliform bacteria, nitrates, total dissolved solids, and pH levels. If you suspect other contaminants, you should test for those as well.


Many county Heath depts do it for free or small fee.


I do mine every two or three years.

 

[glentre]

Is your water a deep drilled well or a shallow dug well, the type with a 3 ft diameter concrete pipe extending out of the ground? Deep wells unlikely contain organic bacteria but may taste or smell bad because of sulfur or other minerals. A shallow well (20 to 40 ft deep) could be a problem. Because of ground settling and shifting over time, the sections of pipe in our well separated enough to allow ground water to seep in. The result was brownish water and bacteria, making the water unsafe to drink until we had the pipe seams grouted so our water could come from the bottom of the pipe at the water table rather than at the sides where surface water could enter.

Glen

 

[FMB4]

Most well water systems have nowhere near the level of filtration and disinfection that most municipal water departments employ. Some well water systems have none of the above at all.

 

[tymbo]

I have well water and drink bottled water, with flouride, very common in my area.

 

[dcg9381]

Those that understand the particulars of testing, do you need to retest? We had it tested when we bought house in 2019. Is it good forever? 10 years?

Thank you!

I didn't do it every year. We had deep wells (500') - typical problems were coliform and very hard water and I assumed the other possible contaminants were pretty static as we were rural. We'd "shock" the well every couple of months (chlorine). We treated it so it was "safe" via UV exposure which would kill any residual coliform. This particular well water was so hard that we used commercial softeners, but drinking it - we basically did reverse osmosis, which is the only way to get the dissolved solids out of it.

Most of the wells in my area are like this, so when I built a shop, I used the roof for water collection. As it turns out for us, rain water was much easier to deal with.

 

[Walkers]

Where do you think bottled water comes from.

You know what else I do, I'll even drink it out of the garden hose when I'm outside.

An Artesian spring in the Himalayas?!? Duh.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

Supposedly it's a 100ft down. I don't think the guy I bought the place from knew. It's a balancing act though. My water is real rusty. Had a float get stuck on a toilet we don't use. It was hung up with rust build up on the stand pipe thinking and wouldn't let the bowl fill up. I'm the city you would be surprised all the filtration systems people put on. Hard water filters etc. I'm a hose drinker too. Tastes good.

 

[RPH]

Thumb of Michigan large ag presence surrounding. Mainly crops but some beef production. With the chemicals used throughout the area we choose to get the water bottles. Yes, it’s well water that’s filtered, sanitized, and corrected if needed. The well at this farm is shallow and the water does everything but get drank. Bottled water is too cheap to worry about the well having potential intermittent issues. 20 years experience.

 

[Hobby_Man22]

I don't think many people were out where I lived 20 or 30 years ago, so neither the well or septic had a permit. It's a small city. They probably didn't care back then either.