What You Should Know About Your Well Water After a Hurricane

The aftermath of Hurricane Florence has many homeowners throughout the Carolinas scrambling for repairs, relief and assistance of all types. It is natural to focus on some of the more obvious physical damage the storm did to your property, but it’s also important to consider some of the lingering effects the storm can have on your everyday life in your home. For example, heavy flooding can do some damage to your water well, and might introduce some contaminants into your water supply.

Here’s some information you should be aware of about these potential issues, from a company specializing in water well services in Monroe, NC.

Determining if your water is contaminated

The first and most obvious question you’re likely to have is, “How do I even know if my water is contaminated?”

State agencies will monitor the condition of local water supplies that could find themselves susceptible to contamination in the wake of floods and other natural disasters. Therefore, you should keep an eye out for drinking water advisories that come from the state Department of Health.

In addition, if you know you had water that rose above your well cap, then chances are high that the water is contaminated. You are responsible for the condition of the water in any private wells located on your property, so you should have a professional come out and test your well as soon as possible after the flood waters go down to determine officially whether a contamination exists and, if it does, what the extent of that contamination is.

If you do have contaminated well water, you must then find a different source of potable water for drinking, bathing, washing clothes, cleaning and cooking. Bottled water or gallons of water from your local grocery store are going to be the easiest and most reliable options. In some cases, municipalities that have been flooded (or disaster relief agencies tending to those areas) will give out free bottled water to people dealing with contaminated water sources—if this is the case for you, make sure to take advantage of these giveaways.

Otherwise, you can get water from other private sources if you know it is safe and have the permission to do so. You can also simply continue using your well water, and decontaminate it by boiling it for at least five minutes before using it.

What will a well professional do to get your well back into service?

Once your hired well professional comes out to your property, they will first assess the damage that’s been done to the well and check the contamination level. They’ll then engage in repairs and remove any debris in the area. Flushing out the well might also be necessary to remove floodwater located in it. After this, the disinfection process can occur, using a concentrated bleach solution that circulates through the entire well and home plumbing system.

For more information about dealing with your well water in the wake of a hurricane and how professional water well services in Monroe, NC can help, contact Love Well & Pump Supply, LLC today.

Categorised in: Water Well Services

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