1. Brazos County Health Department
April 7, 2015

2. Introductions
 Ken Bost – BCHD Director
 Amanda Garner – BCHD Lab Director
 Amy Bauer – Lab Assistant
 Kristen Ramseier – Lab Assistant
 Jesus Rodriguez
 Shelley Hobbs

3. Importance of Testing Your Well
 Just because your water is clear and
smells okay does NOT mean it’s not
contaminated
 Total coliform bacteria can be an
indicator of more serious intestinal
parasites and pathogens
 E. coli and total coliform bacteria can be
extremely dangerous for
immunocompromised individuals

4. Importance of Testing Your Well
Can be an indicator of an improperly
constructed or failing septic system
Increased fracking and drilling can
damage your well and underground
pipes
Establishes a record of water quality

5. Importance of Testing Your Well
“There are a variety of bacteria, parasites, and viruses which
can potentially cause health problems if humans ingest them
in drinking water. Testing water for each of these potential
pathogens (disease causing agents) would be difficult and
expensive. Instead, water quality and public health workers
measure coliform levels. The presence of any coliforms in
drinking water suggests that there may be a pathway for
pathogens and/or fecal contamination to enter the drinking
water distribution system (pipes, storage facilities, etc.).”
- Water: Total Coliform Rule
http://water.epa.gov/lawsregs/rulesregs/sdwa/tcr/basicinformation.cfm

6. Total Coliform bacteria and E. coli
 Total coliform bacteria originate in natural habitats
such as soil, water, and vegetation, and in the
intestines of warm-blooded organisms
 E. coli is commonly found in the intestines of warm-
blooded organisms and is an indicator of fecal matter

7. How can this bacteria affect
humans?
 Cause gastrointestinal problems
 Serious for immunocompromised individuals
 E. coli may be a pathogen – can be lethal
 Indicator of more serious pathogens that can cause:
 Typhoid
 Dysentery
 Cholera
 Some types of gastroenteritis

8. How does bacteria enter a well?
 Runoff from woodlands, pastures, and
feedlots
 Septic tanks and sewage plants
 Animals including wild fowl
 Backflow from a contaminated source
 Old/broken well equipment and pipes
 While repairing or installing a well

9. How does bacteria enter a well?
 Except for very rare instances, the underground water
in this area is not contaminated. Any contamination
found in well water is almost certain to have come
from outside sources.
 A new well is likely to be contaminated until it has
been properly treated.

10. Drinking water standards
 No regulated standards for private wells
 The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
(TCEQ) enforces standards for public water systems
 Under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), the EPA
sets legal limits on the levels of certain contaminants
in drinking water. The legal limits reflect both the
level that protects human health and the level that
water systems can achieve using the best available
technology.
 The EPA requires public water contain NO total
coliform per 100 ml of drinking water.

11. Water Testing
 Must be an accredited water testing laboratory
 BCHD laboratory is certified by TCEQ
 Also certified by The Nelac Institute (TNI)
 Routine audits every two years
 Proficiency testing twice a year

12. Water Testing
 Use the Colilert test to detect total coliforms and E. coli
in water
 Test takes 24 hours to provide a final, negative result
 If a sample is positive it can be resulted before 24 hours
 Samples set up twice a day at 1 pm and 3 pm
 Each sample is provided a unique identifier number
 Each sample is tested for chlorine level
 Not required to be on ice, but recommended

13. Collecting Samples for Testing
 DO NOT RINSE OUT THE BOTTLE!
 Use a faucet as close to the well as possible. If an inside
faucet is used, remove the aerator before collection.
 Wash and dry the exterior of the faucet to prevent
external contamination of the sample.
 Turn on the faucet full force for 2-3
minutes to flush out anything which
might be in the immediate pipes or the
faucet itself, then turn the flow down to
a slow stream.

14.  Carefully remove the cap, making sure that nothing
touches the inside of the cap or the bottle.
 Without creating a splash, fill the bottle to the 100 ml
mark.
 Make sure each bottle is correctly identified.
 Samples must be received within 24 hours of the time
of collection.
Collecting Samples for Testing

15. Sample Rejection
 Water samples may be rejected for testing for a variety
of reasons including:
 The sample is too old (over 24 hours)
 Insufficient volume of water
 Excessive chlorine present
 Heavy silt/turbidity present
 In most cases you will be notified that we are unable to
test your sample when you are dropping it off.
 In some cases we may call you after you’ve left to inform
you we are unable to test your sample.
 Must retake and resubmit a new sample.

16. Resulting Water Samples
 When total coliforms break down the nutrient indicator,
the sample turns yellow
 When E. coli metabolizes the nutrient indicator, the
sample also fluoresces under a black light
 Samples only have to be as yellow as the comparator
bottle

17. Disinfecting Your Well
 Turn off pump and drain cistern/pressure tank.
 Open access hole into casing. If your well has a self-priming
surface mounted pump, this procedure may not be necessary.
 Place a funnel into the access hole and pour I gallon of
household bleach per 100 feet of depth into the well.
 Turn the well pump on and off several times to "bump" the well
and mix the bleach and water.
 Connect a section of garden hose to the faucet at the pressure
tank ( or the nearest faucet if the pressure tank does not have
one) and place the other end into the funnel. Turn on the pump
and the faucet and allow the water to circulate from the well to
the tank and back to the well for 15-30 minutes.

18. Disinfecting Your Well
 Close the faucet and the access hole to the well.
 Go to all water faucets in the entire system being served by the
well and open them until you can smell the bleach. Start with
the faucet nearest the well and work away from it.
 Make sure that every outlet is flushed with the treated water.
Flush the toilets, run the showers, washing machine, dish
washer, ice-maker, outside faucets, etc.
 If there are any dead end lines, they must be opened and flushed
as well.
 If the system is quite extensive, you may need to add more
bleach to the well to ensure adequate treatment of the system.

19.  ALLOW THE SYSTEM TO STAND AT LEAST
OVERNIGHT WITH THE BLEACH IN THE LINES.
 Remove any filters-or aerator screens from the fixtures
and flush the system with fresh water until all debris
and discolored water is removed and the bleach can no
longer be smelled.
 Replace the filters and screens and use the water
normally for a few days, then resample.
Disinfecting Your Well

20.  In some cases, this procedure may need to be repeated
two or even three times to clear up a severe
contamination problem.
 This disinfection procedure will work only if the
system is in a good state of repair. Leaky pipes, cracked
casing or similar problems will allow immediate
recontamination.
 The system will need to be disinfected any time there
is work on the pipes or pump.
Disinfecting Your Well

21. Additional Resources
 Brazos County Health Department
 http://www.brazoshealth.org
 EPA
 http://water.epa.gov/drink/info/well/
 TCEQ
 http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/
 Texas Well Owner Network
 http://twon.tamu.edu/
 Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
 http://www.tdlr.texas.gov/wwd/wwd.htm

22. Additional Water Testing Labs
 Aqua-Tech Laboratories
 635 Phil Gramm Blvd. Bryan, TX 77807
 (979) 778-3707
 Mega Lab
 2700 Finfeather Rd, Bryan, TX 77801
 (979) 779-7680
 TAMU Lab
 345 Heep Center, College Station, TX 77843
 (979) 845-4816

23. Questions?