Well water testing in Northern BC

There's no free provincial program: use a qualified lab (search the CALA directory), which supplies the bottles. HealthLinkBC recommends testing for bacteria at least once a year and for chemistry when the well is new and annually after that.

• Bacteria (total coliforms and E. coli): at least once a year, and right away if the water's clarity, colour or taste changes.
• Chemistry when the well is new and every year after: HealthLinkBC names nitrates, fluoride and metals such as arsenic, lead, copper and manganese as the most common concerns in B.C. groundwater.

Search the CALA directory for an accredited lab near you; the lab supplies sterile bottles and instructions, and charges for the analysis. Read the instructions carefully and follow them exactly, and keep every result for future reference.

Northern Health looks after water testing for permitted water systems but doesn't test individual homes, and it doesn't recommend specific labs: any accredited lab in B.C. will do. It says private supplies should be tested for bacteria at least once a year, that chemical results show whether anything exceeds health standards or aesthetic objectives, and that a local environmental health officer can help you interpret results or find a certified lab. It also notes that contaminants can get into a well through cracks in the casing, poorly fitted lids or other structural faults, and that a well close to sources of pollution can pick up bacteria, nitrates or other chemicals.

HealthLinkBC says water with E. coli is not safe to drink: treat it before drinking, preparing food or brushing teeth (boiling is a short-term option), then find and fix the source, with long-term treatment if the source can't be corrected. Total coliforms without E. coli can mean the well needs better sanitation or physical upgrades, or that surface water may be getting in. Re-test after floods, drought or similar events, and don't rely on a neighbour's result: a safe test next door doesn't mean your water is safe.

Before disinfecting, the province's guide to simple chlorination asks you to check the wellhead:

• Sewage sources near the well, such as manure or compost piles or a septic field.
• Ground that slopes toward the well or lets water pond around it.
• A missing, cracked or damaged well cap, or one that lets water or vermin in.
• Casing that sticks up less than 30 cm (1 ft) above the ground or pump-house floor, or a gap or cracks in the seal around it.

Fix those first, or the well stays vulnerable. A registered well driller or pump installer has to do any surface-seal repair or casing extension, and the guide warns that chlorine vapour is dangerous in confined spaces such as pump houses, well pits and crawl spaces.

Read more: The well water guide.