You can easily disinfect your well by adding the following amounts of household chlorine bleach:

Dug Wells: 3ft. diameter (0.9m), add 1.1 litres or one quart for every 5ft. of water depth (1.5m)
Drilled Wells: 6" diameter (15cm), add 5 ounces (140ml) of household bleach for every 35ft. (7.5m) of water depth.

Add to your well, the amount of chlorine required to disinfect the volume of water in your well (consult the following tables.  This will produce an approximate concentration of 250 parts per million of Free Available Chlorine.  Mix the chlorine with several liters of water before applying it to the well.  The vent hole on a drilled well may provide a place to pour in the solution.
 
 

Chlorine required for Dug Well 0.9m (3') Diameter
Water Depth		Household Bleach 5%
Meters	Feet	Liters	Quarts
1.5	5	1.1	1
3.0	10	2.2	2
4.5	15	3.3	3
6.0	20	4.4	4
7.5	25	5.5	5
9.0	30	6.6	6
10.5	35	7.7	7
12.0	40	8.8	8

1 imp. gallon = 4.5l or 160 oz. 
 

Chlorine required for Drilled Well up to 15 cm (6") Diameter
Water Depth		Household Bleach 5%
Meters	Feet	ml	Ounces
7.6	25	140	5
15.0	50	280	10
22.8	75	420	15
30.0	100	560	20
38.0	125	700	25
45.0	150	840	30
53.0	175	980	35
61.0	200	1120	40

Note: All conversions are approximate

Turn on all faucets to distribute chlorinated water throughout the system until you can smell chlorine.  Turn faucets off and allow the treatment to proceed overnight.  Do not use this chlorinated water for cooking or drinking.  The next day, drain the entire water system until the chlorine odour is no longer present.  Use an outside tap or hose; do not drain this water into your septic tank system.  Wait and bring in another sample in 3 days.
 
 

Bottled Water

While bottled water available in Canada is generally of good quality, it is not necessarily safer or healthier than water from municipal supplies.

The sale of bottled water is not licensed in Canada.  However, the Health Protection Branch makes spot checks from time to time  of both domestic and foreign bottled water.  Municipal water supplies are checked for 100 or more substances.  In bottled water, only three substances must be checked.  They are bacteria content, fluoride and total dissolved solids (magnesium, iron, sodium).

Bottled water may contain naturally occurring bacteria, which under improper and/or prolonged storage conditions, can increase in numbers to levels that nay be harmful to health.  Refrigeration is a good way to reduce the growth of these  bacteria.
 
 

Storage of bottled water may provide an opportunity for bacteria to grow, particularly if containers were not sterile.

 

Cisterns

The water in cisterns usually comes from rainfall collected off the roof.  It is stored in concrete tanks (reservoirs) in the basement.

The water collected can be contaminated from many sources (especially bird droppings) and thus is not safe for drinking.

If a cistern supply exists or is planned, it is recommended that no connections are made between the main water supply and the cistern.  Colour coding of the water pipes is also a good idea to ensure that a separation exists.

Cistern water should be used only for lawn and garden watering, washing cars, flushing toilets. etc.
 
 
 

The Peterborough County-City Health Unit does not recommend the use of a cistern supply for bathing, human consumption, or kitchen use.

 

How to Care for Your Private Well

Your well can be contaminated by:

openings in the well seal, improperly installed well casing, well casing not deep enough, well casing not sealed, a remote source of contamination not related to well construction.

Make Sure That:

sanitary seal or well cap is securely in place and water-tight, cap is at at least 12 inches above the ground, joints, cracks and connections in the well casing are sealed, surface water near the well flows away from the well casing, surface water does not pond near the well, well pump and distribution systems are checked regularly, changes in the quantity and quality of water are investigated immediately.
 
 

Two most Common Types of Wells

Dug Well	Mounded Earth Ground Surface Joints Sealed and Waterproofed To 8 Feet Excavation Width Formation Seal Cement Tile of Steel Casing Formation Stabilizer
Drilled Well	Sanitary Well Seal or Cap Mounded Earth Ground Surface Formation Seal 10 ft. Well Casing Formation Stabilizer Unconsolidated Materials

*Click image to enlarge