Is my well water actually safe to drink?
A lab test is twenty to fifty dollars and is the single best money anybody spends on a private well. Nothing you can see, smell or taste tells you what you need to know.
What actually works
Every year, plus arsenic and lead once and after any change. Many county health departments do it cheap or free. **Nitrate above 10 mg/L is dangerous to infants** and is invisible.
Not ten minutes. Boiling kills organisms — and **concentrates** nitrate, arsenic and lead rather than removing them.
Chlorine barely touches crypto. UV and heat do. Replace the UV lamp annually even if it still lights — output falls long before it dies.
Carbon improves taste and removes some organics. It does **not** remove bacteria, nitrate or most heavy metals. A great many people believe their pitcher filter is making water safe.
Also searched as
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