Well water in Virginia.... (Franklin, Shenandoah: appliances, houses, purchasing)

[beeboah]

I have never owned a house with well water.

I was just wondering if it is generally safe to drink etc.

Also, do I have to be substantially more careful as to what i am doing on my property when spraying pestacides on the lawn or working on my car etc?

Although I am not the "greenest" person on earth, I don't want to contaminate my well.

Thanks

[Electron]

Get a water softener. It has been said, that if Jesus ever wanted to come back and walk on water, he'd come to the Shenandoah Valley, as it has the hardest water on the planet.
Chances are your well will be pretty deep, avoiding contamination. Mine is 400ft, my dad's is 375, and we live three hours apart.

[seanpecor]

Mine is in the area of 400' and I get about 15gpm in Franklin County. We don't find our water to be very hard and our water softener is therefore bypassed. I do however have a 10 micron whole house water filter just in case sand particles make their way into the water supply.

If there are wells on 4 acre or larger parcels then I wouldn't worry too much about contamination - but since water tests are free, you should have them done annually. I'd be more concerned in subdivisions where you might have forty 2 acre lots, each with their own well and septic system. Then those pesticides and chemicals that don't break down easily might survive a 400' trip down into the aquifer in large enough quantities that safety becomes an issue.

Sean

[jballa]

my well is 100' feet deep just on the eastern side of the blue ridge near natural bridge. Hasn't gone dry in 30 years and pumps 3 houses spickets full pressure at any time. guestimate a capability of 20 gpm

However, a close friend has methanel in his water near roanoke in catawba and has a very intracate system to seperate it.

its a crap shoot but water shortages come rarely overall

[EricD]

Generally wells are fine, but a filtering/softening system might be good. (You can have your water tested if you don't have one)

If you have a deep well (over 100', generally it's like 10 inches in diameter with a red cap or something of the likes) then whatever you do shouldn't really affect the well. If you have a shallow well (generally like 25-35 feet) then you need to be really carefull. Shallow wells are usually like 2.5-3 feet in diameter at the surface, and are concrete, with a concrete lid. You can usually lift the lid off (with the help of some friends) and then look straight down into the water.

[Greg the Water Man]

Originally Posted by beeboah

I have never owned a house with well water.

I was just wondering if it is generally safe to drink etc.

Also, do I have to be substantially more careful as to what i am doing on my property when spraying pestacides on the lawn or working on my car etc?

Although I am not the "greenest" person on earth, I don't want to contaminate my well.

Thanks

The good news about owning your own well is that most of the time you water is healthier than many municipal water supplies. The important news is that it is up to you and you alone to make sure your water is the way you want it. The only way to ensure that is to follow most Expert Guidelines (EPA, WellOwner.org, etc.) and have your water tested prior to using the well (or purchasing the property) and then annually after that. The right test to do depends totally on the situation in which the well is located.

Some circumstance include but are not limited to: is it a shallow well or a deep well. How close are your neighbors. Are there commercial, industrial or agricultural properties within a few miles of your home. What is the nature of those businesses. How close is your well to septic, wetlands or similar. Is the well properly constructed.

Owning a well is like owning a car. You either need to know the details of how it works or you have to have a relationship with a professional who can assist you in knowing is your it is working properly.

Myth one. Hard water is harmful. Well that is a yes and know. Rarely is it harmful to you. Often people living in hard water areas are found to live longer than in soft water area. Hard water is a nuisance in operating many modern appliances, so a water softener is often a good choice.

Myth two. Water smells like rotten eggs. It must contain sulfur. Rare the case. Rotten egg smells is most commonly the result of gasses produced by various bacteria. Only quality testing can resolve.

If you would like to discuss solutions for your specific situation, feel free to contact me @ [email]galdrich@etrlabs.com[/email]

Greg
(800) 344-9977

[Bigfoot424]

You've responded to a 2007 post so hopefully they have made their purchases by now.