Well water testing

Testing domestic well water is the most important part of preparing your own water intake. Only water of adequate quality can be safely consumed by people and used in the household. Water of poor quality poses a direct threat to health. It can also cause damage to sanitary and heating systems and appliances.

Water from your own well

Water from one’s own intake is an excellent source of water for every household. Its availability is often more reliable than that of tap water. The reasonableness of building one’s own well is unquestionable, even if connection to the water supply system is not a problem. In many cases, a domestic well is the only source of water for a household. This is particularly often the case in the construction of new houses/neighbourhoods that are significantly distant from the existing municipal or communal network. The cost of building a water supply connection often exceeds several times the cost of building an own intake together with the entire water treatment system. Small municipal water supply systems often experience problems with water supply, especially during periods of drought and increased consumption, e.g. around Christmas.

Well water contamination

Any naturally occurring water contains many inorganic compounds, the concentration of which depends on environmental factors. These compounds are often found in quantities that exceed the limit values for drinking water. The most common compounds exceeding the recommended standards are iron and manganese compounds. In this case, it is difficult to speak of water pollution as the presence of these substances is quite natural. Artificial contaminants, originating from human activity, may have much more serious consequences. The most common pollutants in this case are organic compounds from agricultural activities (pesticides, herbicides) and heavy metals. Massive animal husbandry also brings contaminants that have not previously been considered at all. The intensive use of pharmaceuticals in livestock farming means that we are increasingly looking at the antibiotic content of groundwater. Research in this area is now being carried out in many countries, including Poland.

Well water testing

The safe consumption of well water requires, first and foremost, knowledge of its composition. Only on the basis of laboratory results can water treatment technology be properly designed and selected. In some cases, water from one’s own well may be suitable for direct consumption, but this is rare nowadays and only occurs in non-urbanised regions. If you are building your own water intake, you generally have to consider the purchase of treatment technology straight away.

Scope of well water testing

Testing of well water is divided into two scopes: microbiological testing and physicochemical testing. The microbiological test determines the content of pathogenic bacteria in the water, such as Escherichia coli, enterococci, and Costridium perfringens. In addition, the test can be extended to include Pseudomonas aeruginosa and the total number of microorganisms.

The physico-chemical examination consists of determinations of inorganic compounds such as iron, manganese, hardness, nitrates, nitrites, ammonium ion, chlorides, sulphates, oxidisability and the basic physico-chemical parameters pH, colour, turbidity.

For the offer of well water testing, please contact the Customer Service Office at 22 379 25 20 71 738 20 25 or biuro@ekolabos.pl