Disinfecting Your Water Well

The following is adapted from the free Penn State Agricultural Engineering Fact Sheet, SW4, entitled, "How to Disinfect a Water System." The publication in its entirety is available by contacting: Publications Distribution Center, Penn State University, 112 Agriculture Administration Building, University Park, PA 16802. Telephone: (814) 865-6713.

The table below shows the quantity of household laundry bleach (5.25 percent chlorine, approved for water disinfection) required to develop a concentration of 100 ppm of chlorine in clear water standing in the well.

If you cannot determine the depth of the water in your well, use the following guidelines. For wells up to 8 inches in diameter holding less than 80 feet of water, mix a minimum of 1/2 gallon of chlorine bleach with about 10 gallons of water. For wells with more than 80 feet of water, use 1 gallon of bleach. In any case, it is better to use too much chlorine than too little.

Note: Insert table after scanning!!!!!!!