Maintaining Your Well

When well owners service their own wells, they usually fail to solve the problem, or make it worse. Professional contractors use specialized equipment, materials, and techniques to keep well systems operational and water supplies safe.

Every time a well cap comes off, there's potential to unwittingly drop tools down the hole, get the pump stuck, or (with submersible pumps) risk electrocution. Always use a qualified, licensed water well contractor.

A small, easily correctable problem left alone becomes a large, inconvenient, much more expensive one. A simple check of your well and pump system every 3–5 years is usually all it takes. And since you're drinking what comes out of that well, it's a matter of health as much as cost.

A well maintenance check-up should include:

• A short flow test for system output, with water level checks before and during pumping, pump motor performance (amp load, grounding, line voltage), pressure tank and pressure switch check, and general water quality (odour, cloudiness).
• An equipment inspection: is the vermin-proof well lid in good condition, and does everything meet MECP Reg. 903?
• A bacteria test for coliform and E. coli, recommended 3 times a year, and free through your local public health laboratory when submitted as the well owner.

• Always use licensed well drillers and pump installers for construction and service.
• Take a bacterial test according to your local health unit's direction, and test any time taste, odour, or appearance changes.
• Keep hazardous chemicals (paint, fertilizer, pesticides, motor oil) well away from the well.
• Check the well cover or cap periodically; keep it in good repair.
• Maintain proper separation between the well and buildings, waste systems, or chemical storage.
• Don't allow back-siphonage: never put the hose inside the tank when mixing pesticides or fertilizer.
• Keep the top of the well at least 16 inches above grade, with the ground sloped away for drainage.
• Mow and work carefully around the well; don't pile snow, leaves, or materials against it.
• Keep your MECP well record safe. It's a legal document.
• When a well reaches the end of its life, have it properly abandoned.

When your well needs service, look for: an MECP licensed contractor; OGWA membership; equipment in good condition; adequate liability and worker's compensation insurance; familiarity with health and safety codes; a good reputation (ask for references); and a written contract itemizing the work: drilling cost per foot, casing, screen, grouting, development, test pumping, disinfection, and clean-up.

Falling yield can mean a dropping water table, or plugging and mineral encrustation of the screen or formation. Different causes need different fixes. Ask questions until you're satisfied; a good contractor will walk you through the options rather than sell you one.

Old, unused wells are a direct pathway for contamination into the aquifer (often the same one you drink from), and hand-dug wells are a physical danger. Clues to their location: pipes sticking out of the ground, small buildings that may have been a well house, depressions, covered vaults or pits, and out-of-use windmills.

Once a well has no future use, a licensed contractor must properly abandon it under Reg. 903: special grout, filled bottom-up. We do not recommend attempting this yourself.

Testing water from a dirty well system leads to false positives. Before sampling, make sure the well system, including the sample tap, is clean, and flush the pressure tank and filters. Sometimes chlorine alone won't clean a well: debris must be removed from the entire well before disinfection can work. If tests show E. coli or coliform, or you have cloudy water or taste and odour problems, have the well cleaned and disinfected by a licensed contractor first.