There are thousands of people in the United States that have to rely on well water instead of a city water system for the water that they both bathe and drink in. While there are some filters that you can have installed onto your well to rid the water supply of rust, soil, or other particle debris, there are not really any filters currently that disinfect your water and rid it of bacteria that may be growing in it, such as E. coli. Cleaning the water yourself manually, though, is always an option by simply using unscented chlorine bleach.
Most people chlorinate their well water to disinfect it after some kind of repair has been done, after the well has not been utilized in a long time (like with a summer or winter home), to get rid of bacteria living in it, or to remove hydrogen sulfide buildup.
Before you start the process of cleaning your well water, you need to get enough water put back in jugs or buckets in your house to last the occupants of it for at least the next 24 hours. The water system in your home should not be used during this 24 hours period at all.
You need to use an unscented bleach for this job. This will have around 3 to 5 percent of sodium chlorite. You will need to use a different amount in your well depending on how deep and how wide your well is. If the well is under 50 feet in depth and about 6 inches in diameter, you will need to use between 3 and 4 liters of bleach.
Your water supply should not smell like chlorine after the 24 hours is up. If it does, you will need to wait longer for the chlorine to be flushed from the system. You should not drink the water until it no longer smells like bleach.
If you notice a significant change for the better in the quality of your water supply after you finish this process, but the issue returns in the next couple of weeks or longer, the process will need to be repeated and you should probably add a bit more bleach to the water. Repeat the process until the results last or seek help from a professional. It will be worth it in the long run when you do not have to worry about the safety of your home’s water supply.
Showing posts with label water sanitation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label water sanitation. Show all posts
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Sanitizing Your Well Water
If you live outside the city limits, you may be among the thousands of people that have to rely on well water to drink and to bathe in. There are filters that can be put on your well to get rid of any mineral deposits, rust, or soil that may get into your water, but actually disinfecting your water if it is contaminated with bacteria is a somewhat different matter. You can clean your well water out by chlorinating it and this process is fairly simple.
Chlorinating well water is usually done to get rid of bacteria, to disinfect after you make some kind of repair to it, to disinfect after it has not been used in a while, such as the well of a vacation home, or the removal of hydrogen sulphide.
The first thing that you need to do is to get enough water saved up in your house by using milk jugs or whatever else you have to put water in to last your home’s needs for at least the next 24 hours.
Depending on how deep your well is, you will want to put a different amount of bleach into the water. The bleach that you will want to use is a simple, unscented household bleach. This should contain about 3 to 5 percent sodium chlorite. As far as just how much bleach you need to use, it varies. If your well is less than 50 feet deep and is 6 inches in diameter, you will want to use 3.5 liters of bleach in it. A well that is 100 feet deep and 6 inches in diameter will require 7.
You should not use the water system of your home for at least 8 hours after doing this. 24 hours is usually the recommended time, but this might not be practical for you if you have a large family.
By the time the process is over, your water should not smell like chlorine. The water may look similar to a tea color, but this will go away after a bit of use. Do not drink the water until the chlorine smell is gone.
If the process helps your water’s quality, but the problem comes back in a few weeks, you will need to repeat this process and possibly add more bleach per application. This should result in a water supply quality that is much better than it was before.
Chlorinating well water is usually done to get rid of bacteria, to disinfect after you make some kind of repair to it, to disinfect after it has not been used in a while, such as the well of a vacation home, or the removal of hydrogen sulphide.
The first thing that you need to do is to get enough water saved up in your house by using milk jugs or whatever else you have to put water in to last your home’s needs for at least the next 24 hours.
Depending on how deep your well is, you will want to put a different amount of bleach into the water. The bleach that you will want to use is a simple, unscented household bleach. This should contain about 3 to 5 percent sodium chlorite. As far as just how much bleach you need to use, it varies. If your well is less than 50 feet deep and is 6 inches in diameter, you will want to use 3.5 liters of bleach in it. A well that is 100 feet deep and 6 inches in diameter will require 7.
You should not use the water system of your home for at least 8 hours after doing this. 24 hours is usually the recommended time, but this might not be practical for you if you have a large family.
By the time the process is over, your water should not smell like chlorine. The water may look similar to a tea color, but this will go away after a bit of use. Do not drink the water until the chlorine smell is gone.
If the process helps your water’s quality, but the problem comes back in a few weeks, you will need to repeat this process and possibly add more bleach per application. This should result in a water supply quality that is much better than it was before.
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