Private wells
Well water treatment that starts with what your well actually contains
Why a private well isn't like city water
A city utility treats its water, samples it on a schedule and publishes the results every year. You can read yours with our utility water lookup or in the Charlotte-area water report. A private well has none of that. North Carolina's health agency puts it plainly: as a well owner, testing your water is up to you.[source]
The state does require one test. A newly constructed private well must be sampled within 30 days after the county issues its certificate of completion.[source] After that first test there's no required schedule. NC DHHS recommends testing for coliform bacteria every year, for metals, nitrate, nitrite, lead and copper every two years, and for pesticides and volatile organic compounds every five years.[source] Many wells around here were drilled before the testing rule took effect on July 1, 2008, so they may never have been tested at all.[source]
What shows up in wells around Charlotte
Most wells in this region draw from fractured bedrock, and groundwater picks up whatever that rock holds. NC DHHS notes that many wells in the state have too much lead, arsenic, iron or manganese, low pH, or harmful bacteria.[source] Here's what the regional studies found:
19.46%
of 5,154 tested Union County wells above the 10 µg/L arsenic standard
State-lab well tests, Oct 1998 to May 2019.
30.54%
of 5,137 tested Union County wells above 300 µg/L manganese
That's a health-advisory level. The EPA's nuisance level is far lower.
35%
of the Piedmont and Blue Ridge study area had pH outside 6.5–8.5
Usually below 6.5, which means acidic water. Public-supply wells, USGS.
1,010 pCi/L
median radon in 115 wells sampled in western and central NC
2009–2010 state study that included Lincoln, Gaston and Catawba counties.
Remember what these numbers describe. The county figures come from wells whose owners had them tested through the state lab. That isn't a random sample, so they describe tested wells, not every well in the county. Your well can be very different from your neighbor's.
Union County and the slate belt
Most of Union County sits on the Carolina Terrane, historically called the "slate belt." The state's 2015 groundwater assessment found arsenic above the 10 µg/L standard mainly in wells drilled into meta-mudstone, and it urges Piedmont well users to test for arsenic, iron and manganese.[source] About 25% of Union County residents rely on groundwater for drinking water, according to the county.[source] A 2023 UNC study of 224 volunteer wells there found 18% above the arsenic standard.[source] See the Union County water page for the full local picture.
Elsewhere around Charlotte
- Lincoln County: 24.44% of 1,665 tested wells were above 2,500 µg/L iron.[source] More on the Lincoln County page.
- Gaston County: the county counts more than 8,000 households on private wells,[source] and 18.22% of 2,782 tested wells were above 300 µg/L manganese.[source] See the Gaston County page.
- Iredell County: arsenic was rare (0.06% of 1,817 tested wells), but 20.16% of 1,151 were above 2,500 µg/L iron.[source] See the Iredell County page.
- Stanly County: 18% of 1,278 tested wells were above the arsenic standard, close to Union County's rate.[source] See the Stanly County page.
Test first, then treat
Most well problems can't be judged by taste, smell or a color-change kit. Arsenic and radon have no taste or smell at all.[source][source] So every recommendation we make starts with a certified-lab result.
- Step 1
Pick the right panel
We use your well's age, location and symptoms to choose tests: the standard metals panel plus hardness, and radon or uranium where the geology calls for it. Our well water testing page lists what's included.
- Step 2
Read the results with you
We go line by line: what's above a health-based standard, what's only a nuisance, and what's fine. A result that needs nothing gets that answer.
- Step 3
Match treatment to the problem
Each problem has its own fix, often in a set order. Low pH gets corrected before iron filtration, and bacteria get fixed at the well before anyone talks about UV.
- Step 4
Retest
After any system goes in, a follow-up lab test confirms it's doing what it should. A Care Plan keeps up the retesting.
Well water problems we help with
- Iron and manganese: orange or black stains, metallic taste, and how oxidation and filtration work.
- Low pH and acidic water: blue-green stains, corroding copper and neutralizer options.
- Arsenic: you can't taste it, so only a lab test tells you. Covers certified point-of-use options and retesting.
- Radon and uranium: how radon in water relates to radon in air, and when treatment makes sense.
- Bacteria and UV: coliform results, shock chlorination and well repair first, then UV as a backup barrier.
- Sulfur or rotten-egg odor: telling a well problem from a water-heater problem.
- Hard well water: when a softener makes sense, and only after a hardness test.
- New-well test results: what NC's required test covers, how to read it, and what it leaves out.
Equipment, installation and upkeep
Clear Bridge Water Co. is new, and we'd rather earn trust by being specific than by making big promises. We sell equipment chosen for your test results and certified for the problem you have, plus service plans and testing. We won't sell treatment your water doesn't need. Our list of things we won't sell you spells that out. Whole-house well equipment ties into your plumbing; here's how installation works.
Questions we hear
Does North Carolina test my well for me?
Only once, when the well is new. State law requires a test within 30 days after the certificate of completion for a newly constructed well. After that, testing is up to you. NC DHHS recommends bacteria every year and metals every two years. Details are on our new-well test results guide.
My water looks and tastes fine. Do I still need a test?
Yes. Arsenic, radon and uranium have no taste, smell or color, and bacteria usually don't either. Clear water says nothing about those. A certified-lab panel is the only way to know.
Is a whole-house system always the answer for a well?
No. Some problems, like iron staining, low pH or radon released in the shower, affect all the water in the house. Others, like arsenic, mainly matter in the water you drink, and a certified point-of-use system at the kitchen tap is often enough. The test result decides.
Do you serve wells in South Carolina too?
Yes, within about two hours of Charlotte. The NC new-well testing rule doesn't apply in SC, so a baseline lab test matters even more there. Check the service areas page for your town.
Where we serve
Start with an honest answer about your water.
Tell us about your home and water source. We'll recommend testing first, and only the equipment your results support.