What Should You Test for When Buying a Home With a Well in East Texas?
Buying a home with a private well is a little different than buying a home connected to city water.
With a municipal water supply, the water is treated and monitored by the water utility. With a private well, you are responsible for the water coming out of the ground and the equipment used to treat it.
That's why one of the smartest things you can do before buying a home with a well is have the water tested.
In East Texas, we regularly see homeowners dealing with a handful of common well-water problems: iron, manganese, hardness, bacteria, and low pH.
Some of these problems affect the safety of the water, while others primarily cause staining, scale, odors, corrosion, or problems with plumbing and appliances.
Here's what we recommend looking at before you buy.
1. Test for Bacteria
Bacteria should be at the top of the list when evaluating a private well.
A well can produce water that looks completely clear and still have bacterial contamination.
At a minimum, we recommend testing for:
Total coliform bacteria
E. coli
A positive bacteria test doesn't necessarily mean the well is permanently contaminated or unusable. There can be several causes, including problems with the well, surface water entering the well, plumbing issues, or other sources of contamination.
The important thing is to identify the problem before you purchase the property.
If a home has an existing UV system or other disinfection equipment, that equipment should also be evaluated to make sure it is functioning properly.
2. Test for Iron
If you've lived with well water in East Texas, you've probably seen the effects of iron.
Iron is one of the most common problems we encounter.
It can cause:
Orange or rusty stains in toilets and sinks
Yellow or orange staining on laundry
Metallic taste
Staining around fixtures
Sediment or buildup
Problems with appliances
Clogged fixtures over time
One important thing about iron is that it doesn't always show up the same way.
Some well water comes out of the faucet clear and develops an orange color after sitting. Other water may have visible sediment or discoloration immediately.
The type and concentration of iron matter because they help determine what type of treatment system is appropriate.
That's why we don't recommend buying an iron filter simply because someone tells you, "This filter removes iron."
Test the water first.
3. Test for Manganese
Manganese is another mineral we commonly see in well-water treatment.
At higher levels, manganese can cause:
Dark or black staining
Discoloration
Metallic taste
Buildup on fixtures
Manganese can also be more difficult to remove than homeowners expect.
If you're buying a home with an existing iron filter, don't assume it is also effectively removing manganese.
Have both tested.
Knowing the iron and manganese levels before you buy can help determine whether the existing equipment is adequate or whether the system may need to be modified or replaced.
4. Test the Hardness
Hardness is another common East Texas well-water issue.
Hard water contains dissolved calcium and magnesium. While hardness isn't generally considered a health concern, it can create plenty of problems around the house.
Hard water can cause:
White scale on faucets
Mineral deposits on shower doors
Scale inside water heaters
Spotting on dishes and fixtures
Reduced soap performance
Buildup in plumbing
Shorter life of certain appliances
If the home has a water softener, test the hardness before and after the softener if possible.
That tells you two things:
How hard the raw well water actually is.
Whether the existing softener is doing its job.
A water softener that's sitting in the garage doesn't necessarily mean you have properly softened water.
5. Test the pH
pH is one of the most important numbers to know when evaluating East Texas well water.
Low-pH water can be aggressive toward plumbing and can contribute to corrosion.
It can also affect how other water-treatment equipment performs.
For example, the pH of the water can have a significant impact on the effectiveness of certain iron-removal systems.
That's why we don't look at iron by itself.
Iron + pH + hardness + manganese + flow rate can tell us much more about what type of treatment system the home actually needs.
If you're buying a home with an existing treatment system, knowing the pH can also help explain why the equipment may or may not be performing properly.
6. Don't Just Test the Water—Look at the Treatment Equipment
This is an important part of buying a home with a well that many buyers overlook.
You may walk into the garage and see several tanks, a softener, a UV system, or a chemical injection system.
It can look impressive.
But what matters is whether the equipment is correctly sized, properly maintained, and actually treating the water.
Before buying, find out:
What equipment is installed?
How old is it?
When was it last serviced?
What type of media is inside the tanks?
When was the media last replaced?
Is the softener working?
Is the iron filter working?
Is the UV lamp working?
Has the UV sleeve been cleaned?
Is the chemical injection system operating correctly?
Are the filters being maintained?
Is the equipment sized appropriately for the home?
A treatment system can be several years old and still work perfectly.
Or it can be several years old and be overdue for maintenance or replacement.
The only way to know is to evaluate it.
7. Test the Raw Well Water
If the home already has water treatment equipment, make sure you know what you're testing.
If possible, test the raw well water before it goes through the treatment system.
This gives you a baseline for the water coming out of the well.
For example, you may find:
Raw well water:
Iron: elevated
Manganese: elevated
Hardness: elevated
pH: low
Bacteria: negative
Then you can determine whether the existing equipment is properly treating those conditions.
Testing only a faucet after all of the treatment equipment may tell you that the water currently looks good, but it doesn't tell you what the well is producing or how much work the treatment equipment is doing.
8. Don't Assume Clear Water Is Good Water
This is probably one of the biggest misconceptions we see.
Clear water isn't necessarily good water.
Water can look perfectly clear while containing:
Bacteria
Iron
Manganese
Hardness
Low pH
Some problems won't become obvious until the water has been sitting in a toilet tank, water heater, washing machine, or glass for several hours.
That's why a water test is much more useful than simply turning on the faucet and looking at the water.
What If the House Already Has a Water Treatment System?
Don't automatically assume you'll need to replace everything.
Sometimes the existing system is perfectly capable of treating the water.
It may simply need:
A service
New filter cartridges
A new UV lamp
Cleaning
A new media bed
Valve repair
Proper programming
Adjusted settings
Or routine maintenance
In other cases, the equipment may be outdated or improperly sized for the water conditions.
Test first. Then make a decision.
Buying a Home With a Well? Test Before You Close.
A private well can provide an excellent water supply, but you should know what you're buying.
Before closing on a home with a well, we recommend having the water tested and taking a close look at the existing well and treatment equipment.
For East Texas homeowners, iron, manganese, hardness, bacteria, and pH are some of the most important things to understand.
A water test performed before closing could save you from discovering a major water problem after you've already moved in.
Buying a Home With a Well in East Texas?
Russell Custom Water Systems can help you understand what's actually in your well water and whether the existing treatment equipment is doing its job.
We can evaluate your water, identify the problems, and help you determine what treatment is actually necessary.
Don't guess at your well water. Test it first.
Russell Custom Water Systems
Licensed Water Treatment Specialists serving East Texas
www.russellwater.com
