So, You have an Ultra Violet Light System (UV). Did you know that just because the UV bulb is lit it doesn’t mean that it is working to sterilize Bacteria for you? Thats right Ultra Violet Lights Sterilization Systems work on wide bands of Ultra Violet Light that will decay over time, approximately 12-13 months in most cases. Therefore it is recommended that UV Bulbs be swapped out once per year on a regular basis. To insure proper sterilization this service is best performed by a trained professional. Even the slightest smudge on the Bulb will lessen the effects of the Sterilization process. I’ll be posting more on Ultra Violet Light systems later this week.

Until then, change that Bulb and enjoy your great water.

Applying water treatment to a dug well can be very tricky. Dug wells pull their source from the surface. Seasonal fluctuations in rainfall will cause the water table to rise and fall. The contaminants within the well will often change with the water level. Water Treatment Systems should be oversized to allow for changes in the water quality. It is a lot more practical to plan ahead and be able to adjust for a swing in water quality than it is to be forced to replace existing equipment in hind sight.

Another issue with surface water is tannins. Tannins and Organics come from decaying vegetation on the surface area around the well. They can cause a smell and taste if the levels are very high, and even at levels will often cause water treatment system to fail. The reason for this is that the Tannins will sequester Metals within the water, allowing them to pass through a Water Treatment System. Once the sequestered metals pass through an oxidizer like air in the back of a toilet tank, shower nozzle,bleach in laundry, or heat from a water heater the Tannins/Organics will break down allowing the Metals to precipitate in to a solid that leaves a stain.

So keep the Vegetation surrounding your dug well to a minimum, and think worst case when designing a treatment system for your home. Most importantly enjoy your great water.

Lot’s of customers have dug wells in NH. The surface water in our State is very plentiful for most the year. Dug wells do have one major problem.

After a few years the nice clean sand that was trucked in to surround the well gets full of organic material from the water that is constantly flowing into the well. Bacteria feeds on this Organic soup and finds its way into the well, eventually showing up in the drinking water. Shocking the well with bleach will clean up the Bacteria, temporarily. However, even the best Dug Wells should be sanitized every Spring after the snow melt/spring run off.

For instructions on how to sanitize a well go to our website under our equipment maintenance tips section. Ultra Violet Light Systems and Chlorine Feeds can sterilize Bacteria so that the water is drinkable, but realize that Secondwind Water Systems does not sterilize for E-Coli Bacteria. E-coli is a sign of fecal contamination and that means you may have a serious life threatening problem with the water that goes beyond the E-Coli. There are many other nasty contaminants in fecal matter that can be very harmful to you. E-Coli is just the indicator. Sterilizing the E-Coli is not a solution, it just gets rid of the indicator. The best solution is to fix the problem. Either finding and eliminating the source of nutrient causing the E-Coli , then sanitizing the well and distribution system, or drilling/pounding a Bed Rock well, that pulls the water from hundreds of feet down in the ground. These Bed Rock wells are almost always Bacteria free and rarely see the seasonal fluctuations that occur in a Dug Well.

I’ll be writing more about Dug Wells later this week. So please check back later, and enjoy your great water!

This is the time of year that even the best of lawns start to get a yellow tint to them, and the usual way that homeowners combat that is by cranking up the irrigation system. Don’t get to over zealous though or else your well will run out of water. Most people don’t even realize it until it’s too late. This is more than just a no water problem. It usually causes very dark brown water. It is also very bad for Submersible pumps and Water Treatment Equipment.

Liming your lawn twice a year can help keep it greener year round. This will raise the soil pH by adding Calcium back that has been removed by Acid Rain. It is a lot like the process of adding Calcium to well water through Water Treatment Equipment called an Acid Neutralizer, in order to solve for Bluish Green Stains in the house.

Roughly 2/3 of the water used in Southern New Hampshire is for lawn irrigation. That is a staggering amount. If you can cut down on your lawn watering by spreading Lime instead, it only makes sense to try.

So conserve water, lime your lawn, and enjoy your great water!