How do I treat well water that tested bad in BC?

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Find why the water is bad first: bacteria call for fixing the wellhead, disinfecting the well and testing again; a lasting problem calls for treatment certified for what it removes. A well test that finds bacteria or a metal over its limit says what is wrong, not what to do. Bacteria most often mean water is getting into the well from the surface, which disinfecting it treats only until the cause is fixed; a contaminant from the rock calls for treatment fitted to it and kept up for as long as the house uses the well. Look up the address or PID on PlaceDossier to see the record for that lot. Fix the wellhead first: If coliforms or E. coli keep turning up, the Province's well disinfection brochure says to look first for sewage nearby (manure or compost piles, a septic field), ground sloping or ponding toward the well, a missing or damaged cap, a casing standing less than 30 cm above the ground or the pump house floor, and a gap or cracks where the surface seal should be, and to fix those before disinfecting, or the well stays open to contamination. Only a registered well driller or pump installer may repair a surface seal or add casing. When a well is disinfected: After a new well is built, a well is altered, or a pump is installed, maintained or repaired, and when the well has tested positive for coliforms or E. coli. Drillers and pump installers must disinfect a well after their own work under the Groundwater Protection Regulation; an owner may disinfect their own well, taking care that it is done safely and well (Province of BC). How the Province's simple method works: Chlorine bleach or tablets made for drinking water are mixed to a 200 ppm solution for the well's diameter and depth of water, poured in and mixed, then drawn through every tap until each smells of chlorine, and left at least 12 hours; filters and softeners are bypassed or back-flushed and carbon filters replaced. The chlorinated water is run off where it won't harm plants or fish, never into the septic system or a ditch, stream or storm drain that reaches fish-bearing water. Chlorine fumes in a pump house, well pit or crawl space are dangerous: work outside where you can. Test again: Sample the water a week after disinfecting, boil it until the result shows it safe to drink, and test again a month after (Province of BC). Disinfecting reaches only the well, its pump and the pipes, not the aquifer; with a source of contamination outside the well it helps only for a while. If bacteria keep coming back or the well was rarely disinfected, the brochure says to hire a registered well driller or pump installer to clean the casing and screen and shock-chlorinate it. Treatment that stays on: Health Canada strongly recommends a treatment device certified to the NSF/ANSI standard for what it claims: 53 for health effects such as cysts, 55 for ultraviolet (Class A disinfects contaminated water; Class B only adds to water already safe to drink), 58 for reverse osmosis, 62 for distillation, 42 for taste and smell, 44 for softeners. Certifiers such as CSA Group, NSF International, UL and the Water Quality Association are accredited by the Standards Council of Canada; look for the mark and the standard on the box, and keep to the maker's maintenance, which Health Canada calls very important. Metals and nitrate: Arsenic, uranium, manganese, fluoride and nitrate need treatment chosen for that contaminant, not chlorine; boiling doesn't remove them. What the wells near a lot tested for is on the well water quality page; after fitting a unit, test the treated water. What it means for a buyer: Ask what treatment the house has, what it is certified for, when it was last serviced and for the water results before and after it. A unit on the water says the well had a problem worth asking about (our reading). A system serving more than one home has duties of its own: see sharing a well.

How do I treat well water that tested bad in BC?

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