If you live off well water in the Midwest, being knowledgeable about how flooding can contaminate your well water is imperative. For one, there are three major threats you and your family face when dealing with a flooded well. They are as follows:
- Flooding can cause contamination of bacteria, viruses, and parasites.
- Electrical shock,
- Other damages to well pump.
In short, if your well is not properly and tightly sealed, water can enter into your well carrying with it sediment, bacteria, viruses, and parasites. This, in turn, goes straight into your tap water and into your family’s’ bodies. If that isn’t enough, fast-moving floodwater carries with it large debris which can damage your well. Debris and sediment in your well can damage your well by causing pumping problems whereas sewage from septic tanks, chemicals from farms and other contaminants can also cause your well to be contaminated.
How To Tell if Your Well Water is Safe to Drink
If your well is covered by water, do NOT drink it! The good news is there are professionals in and around Springfield, Mo., Bentonville, AR, Joplin, Mo., and Jefferson City who can come out and work on your well for you to see what exactly is in your water and whether or not it is contaminated. Aquasani is one such company whose water technicians are highly skilled and trained to handle such matters while educating people the right information to ensure they take the right course of action after flooding occurs.
You can receive a free water test by going to your county’s health department and getting a water test kit. Not only will they provide you with all the instructions on how to use it (it is quite simple, actually) but you get to see exactly what is in your water.
One Way to Clean Your Well Water
Shock chlorination is one way you can clean your well water. Before doing this, check the condition of the well. Even if you utilize a shock chlorination procedure, this doesn’t mean that your well is clean. Yes, it will kill bacteria, viruses, and parasites – but if you haven’t stopped the source of the bacteria, your well will be contaminated again.
Shock chlorination is the process of using either a strong chlorine solution, pool chlorine or household bleach to kill bacteria and certain viruses. Keep in mind, shock chlorination can loosen up scale, iron deposits and other materials within your piping which can clog fixtures, such as your shower heads and faucets, as well as your appliances.
Other Important Facts About Flooding & Your Well
- Just because you disinfect your well doesn’t mean it is free of heavy metals, pesticides, and other contaminants. Oftentimes, special treatment is required.
- There is always a danger of electrical shock from electrical devices which have been flooded. Be sure you have a well water professional to handle the situation.
- After a flood, septic systems should not be used immediately. Underground water must first recede – keep in mind the septic lines may have broken.
- If you don’t have access to bottled water, boiled water is safer to drink. Boiling water for 5 to 10 minutes kills off any bacteria and viruses.
Keep in mind that there are several different sorts of water purification systems you can utilize if such an emergency arises. It may be in your best interest to purchase one today!
About Aquasani in Springfield, Mo.
Aquasani is an authorized dealer for Rainsoft, WaterLogic, & JavaSmart. Based in Springfield, Mo., Aquasani services areas in the Ozarks including Jefferson City, Springfield, Mo., Ozark, Nixa, Rogersville, Republic, Joplin, Branson and even Harrison, Arkansas, and Bentonville. In essence, we service Mid-Missouri, Southwest Missouri, and Northwest Arkansas, and have been servicing these areas since 2004. We offer home water softener systems, drinking water filtration systems, whole house air cleaner systems, problem-solving water filtration systems and we also offer a coffee service to businesses in these above-mentioned areas as well.
The coffee service business is simple: an office purchases coffee from us, and we provide the coffee maker/dispenser (including Keurig coffee makers), deliver the coffee to the office as often as needed, and we even clean the coffee makers monthly.
We specialize in water filtration and purification for both commercial businesses and residential homes. If that isn’t enough, we provide free trials for our coffee and water cooler services. If you would like a free estimate, schedule an appointment with us by calling (417) 881-4000 or fill out the form below and one of our Aquasani teammates will sort you out!
