Although lake homes are beautiful and relaxing investments, it’s important to monitor your home’s water supply if a private well supplies it. This is because a well near an aquifer could be contaminated with harmful chemicals.
Generally, water in an aquifer is clean. Through the sand and rock, it passes through a process that’s designed to remove harmful chemicals. However, the lake’s presence of fungi, bacteria, and chemicals can still contaminate the well water.
Although some lakes start out healthy, the populations around them can increase, resulting in more herbicides, pesticides, and fuels being used near the lake. This could be bad news for well-owners. Uninhabited lake bodies can also contain bacteria, E.coli, and Giardia, which can harm human health.
Testing wells near lakes
A well test is the most important step in determining if a lake or pond is contaminating your water supply. It can be done comprehensively. Understanding the test results is very important to diagnose well water contamination. After collecting the samples, ensure the technicians follow up with the owners to try and identify the cause of the issue.
Ensure that the lab you’re testing your well with understands and has experience with well contamination. For example, ETR Laboratories is both a research and testing lab. This can allow you to test your water and figure out a solution accurately.
There are various types of problems that homeowners might experience with well water contamination.
Fungi
Although some water tests do not include the presence of fungi in their list of contaminants, it’s still important to test for these types of fungi if your home is near a pond or lake. Lakes with high levels of these fungi can contribute to the formation of groundwater contamination. An increase in your level of fertilizer or organic matter can increase fungal growth.
Gasoline
Large bodies of water that can be used for recreation are also prone to be contaminated by the fumes from gasoline-powered boats. The water may have high levels of certain chemicals, such as xylenes, benzene, and toluene. These chemicals can then make their way through the lake’s soil and rock and eventually reach the aquifer.
A study conducted in New Jersey revealed that almost all of the wells near two lakes were contaminated with gasoline additives.
Iron Bacteria
If your well water has an oily film, it could be caused by iron bacteria. These are the types of bacteria that can dissolve deposits of manganese and iron in the water.
If a well is too close to a pond or lake that’s not being treated properly, the iron bacteria can enter your water supply. If the film is not caused by petroleum contamination, it could be slime produced by iron bacteria. A test to check the quantity of manganese and iron in the water can also help identify the cause of the issue.