Is It Safe? - Testing Well Water

Q: I am interested in buying a house on a beautiful rural street. The home’s water supply is its own private well. The home inspector suggests I test the water for radon and bacteria. Is this all that should be tested for? We plan on starting a family and want to make sure the well water is pure and safe for children.

GG: Home purchasing is an excellent time to find out if the water at a house is affected by chemical contaminants. This information may help you decide whether to buy the house or whether you deserve compensation off the sale price because of softeners or filters that may be needed to ensure the water is of high quality. Keep in mind that public water supplies are tested for hundreds of different chemicals at least once per year. So its more than radon and bacteria. And as the private well owner, it is up to you to test your water, no one else will do it for you. The best time to test is before moving in so you know the water quality before you start drinking it.

There is a basic indicators test that covers the most common contaminants such as nitrate (from fertilizer and farm waste), bacteria, manganese sulfate and hardness. However, there are many other types of contaminants that could be in well water. Being in a rural area, there may be farms or garden nurseries nearby. This leads to concerns regarding pesticides that could have contaminated the groundwater that you drink. Therefore running a standard pesticide scan of the water makes sense. Other common man-made contaminants in groundwater are gasoline and heating oil-related chemicals, and industrial solvents like the dry cleaning chemical perchloroethylene. These are all volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) as these chemicals easily form a vapor or gas. Thus a VOC scan is also a good idea. Finally, naturally occurring contaminants can occur just about anywhere in Connecticut and can cause health risks if present. Arsenic, uranium, lead, fluoride, radon and gross alpha radiation are important natural elements to test for. The lab report will indicate whether any detections are above federal or state criteria for drinking water quality.

So, when you get serious about purchasing a home that is on a private well, there are a variety of tests that will give you a good picture of the drinking water at the home. Finding this out and then applying any necessary filters is an important investment in your family’s health

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Dr. Gary Ginsberg is a public health toxicologist in Connecticut and a lecturer at the Yale School of Public Health. He has written a book geared toward the general public, “What’s Toxic, What's Not,” and also has a website, whatstoxic.com, to answer questions about chemicals found in consumer products and in our homes.

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The Yale School of Public Health invites you to submit questions for Dr. Ginsberg as part of this recurring monthly series. Contact us through Facebook or by e-mailing Michael Greenwood at michael.greenwood@yale.edu