Well water not clear in almost 5 weeks? HELP!

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Tammy T

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We just built a new home with a builder and it was a turnkey sale which included a well and septic. We've had lots of sediment (dirt) that settles in the sink, bathtub, filters of our faucets etc. since the beginning and just when we feel it might be getting better, it's not. They dug our well at 148 feet (many around here go to almost 300 feet even but others do well at as little as 80). and is cased all the way. They did raise the pump last week and added a filter on the pump in an attempt to clear sediment and I don't think it's helped much. Our water is quite cloudy and has a slight odor to it and seems really hard to rinse clean and causes dry skin. Our well guy arrived yesterday to shock the well and said it failed for total coliform. When he came in to flush the faucets the water was orange. He said it was the chlorine reacting to iron in the water. He checked the toilet tank and said there was some evidence of iron (orange) and we've noticed since yesterday a filmy/oily orange yellow staining in the toilets. This has been beyond frustrating for us. We've been in the house for three weeks and we run the main bath every other hour or during the day as well as the outside house since we moved in and our builder and his guys were doing it before we took possession. We really don't want to invest in an expensive filtration system if we don't have to but don't know if we should be getting a second opinion on the well at this point, requesting they dig deeper (and is there a cost to that and who absorbs the cost?). Or do we dig a new well and hope it's not the same? I just don't know but I'm starting to panic now. We built our dream house in the country and have two young kids are just want safe water! Any advice would be appreciated.
 

Reach4

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Does your are have plenty of water? I would run the outside faucets full blast via a hose into a ditch continually for a day or two if it is not freezing out. The hope is that the sediment will get pumped out. If you are in a desert area or place where your well might run out of water, you should get a protector to shut down the well if it runs out of water.

If you have rust in your water, you will probably want a filter to take care of that. You will probably want a softener. Figure maybe roughly $1000 for each. Maybe more. You will want a water test to give an indication what you need.
 

Craigpump

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I'd talk to your lawyer, my guess is he'll tell you up to your builder to get this figured out and his financial obligation too.
 

Tammy T

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Thanks Reach4 and craigpump. Yeah we have plenty of water. We're running it this morning and the discolouration from shocking it is starting to clear a little. Still seem to be getting a fair bit of sediment though. That is what's the most concerning I think. I would expect after this long (almost 5 weeks) that should have cleared by now. We're worried about our new washer, dishwasher, the sediment getting into all the plumbing lines, our fixtures (we removed the filters that we could) and hot water tank. We've been patient but now I'm starting to get really aggravated. Our builder has been a really great guy so we'll try to work with him on this and hopefully it doesn't get to the point of needing a lawyer.
 

Craigpump

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Builders are great guys, up to the point where they have to spend more than they budgeted for.
 

LLigetfa

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The driller should have overpumped the well to properly develop it. If after overpumping it long enough, it would not clear then he should have made adjustments to the size and/or position of screened casing.

It is ridiculous for the driller to let the homeowner suffer with sediment building up in the plumbing and fixtures. That sediment is probably also wearing out the volutes in the pump. An in the well Lakos may keep some of it out of the pump but the sediment will pile up at the bottom.

That said, some wells seem to have an endless supply of sediment if the formation does not lend itself to good development of a natural screen. Either the slotted casing needs to be located in a better formation or as a last resort, the pump may need to be flow restricted with a dole valve to keep the sediment from being motivated.
 

Tammy T

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thanks for the info. We've never had a well before, or built and we just didn't think we'd run into these problems. My concern is also about all the sediment and what it might be doing to our new appliances and fixtures. I don't know at this point but I think we're going to give the driller a call first thing in the morning.
 

Reach4

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I would turn off the water to your automatic ice maker until this is resolved. After it is resolved, you can flush your water heater.
 

Tammy T

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Unfortunately I think the ice maker was on when the builder's installed the line and it did a batch of ice. Once we realized it we shut it off and it's been off since. I hope it's not full of dirt now :-( . Our builder showed my husband how to flush the hot water heater so we will do that too. I texted my builder today with my concerns and he assures me he has used this well company for years and they know their stuff. He said he's going to contact him with our concerns and see what his thoughts are. I guess that's all we can do for now.
 
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