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Well Chlorination
A PROFESSIONAL IS RECOMMENDED
- U.S. Water & Air Testing DOES NOT offer well shocking/chlorination service (no conflict of interest).
- Although many water wells are sanitized by the well owners themselves, we recommended that you have a professional perform this service for you such as a plumber familiar with wells or well pump professional.
- Chlorinating a well may involve some degrees of plumbing and possibly electrical connections.
- The amount of chlorine used will need to be determined by your well casing diameter and depth of your well along with the amount of standing water within the well.
- Flushing your well requires monitoring to assure the well does not run dry which may cause a costly repair or replacement if the pump burns out.
1. PREPARATION
- During the well chlorination process the building/dwelling will be without water for 24-48 hours. During this period you will not be able to drink, cook, wash or bathe with the water from the well. Consider making the necessary arrangements to be without well water for this period.
- Water will be needed in 5 gallon buckets to dissolve or dilute the product that will be used to shock the well, you will need to fill these buckets before shutting off power to the well.
- Determine if you will need to bypass any existing filter system according to the manufacturers recommendations.
2. PROTECT YOURSELF
- Wear personal protection which would involve safety glasses/goggles, rubber gloves and breathing mask. Cover yourself to protect from the possibility of products splashing onto skin and clothing.
- A tarp around the well and mix area is also recommended for possible splashing and spills.
3. OBTAIN A PRODUCT TO DISINFECT THE WELL
- A chlorinated product is recommended. Commonly a non scented chlorine bleach is used due to it being readily available which is most likely the reason why it is recommended by the EPA and Agricultural Universities. However, there are some products that are designed specifically for well sanitation which can be purchased at stores like Tractor Supply and rural area hardware stores.
- The amount/dosage of chlorine needed will vary depending on the product used, diameter of the well casing, depth of well and standing water level within the well.
4. ACCESSING THE WELL
- Turn the electric off to the well at the breaker panel.
- Locate and determine how the liquid sanitation will be poured into the well. Many well heads have a plug that can be removed or an air vent that can be removed. If the well cap itself needs to be removed this might involve some plumbing and/or electrical. If it is a shallow dug well, typically the lid can simply be removed.
5. POUR THE SANITIZING LIQUID INTO THE WELL
- Some wells have obstructions that may prevent solid or powder products from getting to the water within the well. So, if a powder or pellet product was purchased it needs to be dissolved in water within 5 gallon buckets to pour into the well. A liquid product should be diluted with water within 5 gallon buckets.
- A clean funnel is needed to carefully pour the liquid through the access that was previously determined.
6. CHLORINATION DISBURSEMENT
- The electric will have to be turned back on for the next step, do so safely.
- Connect a hose from the building and route it to the well. Run water through the hose until the chlorination can be smelled coming out of the hose. Run the chlorinated water back down into the well, rinse the walls of the well casing if possible. After a few minutes turn the hose off.
- Run water through each faucet until the chlorinated odor is detected, then shut the faucet off immediately. Too much of the chlorinated water through the drains can lower the beneficial bacteria within the septic system.
7. WAITING AND FLUSHING
- Wait 24–48 hours before flushing the well and plumbing system. It is important not to drink, cook, bathe or wash with the water during this period, as it will contain high levels of chlorine.
- Once the waiting period is over, turn on an outside spicket with a hose attached and run the water to a safe area where it will not disturb plants, lakes, streams or septic systems and away from the building's foundation.
- Run the water in intervals of 15–20 minutes on and then off until there is no longer a chlorine odor. You may see some discoloration of the water which is typically caused by mineral sediment that were held by the biofilm buildup within the well walls.
- During any time of the flushing process if the water volume becomes reduced you should stop the flow of water immediately and wait longer intervals between running the water and run the water in shorter intervals to prevent the well from running dry.
- Run water through the interior fixtures after the exterior flush until there is no longer a chlorine odor. The major flushing of the water should be done on the exterior to minimize the amount of chlorination entering the septic system. A septic system bacteria restoration product is recommended to be used after to help restore any bacteria that may have been reduced within the septic system.
8. RETESTING
- The system should now be disinfected.
- Retesting the water should be done if bacteria was present before the well was disinfected to assure that all bacteria has been removed before the well water is used for drinking, cooking, washing and bathing.
- Normal household water use can be resumed if this was only a routine disinfecting.