How do you determine if slime bacteria is originating in your well or in your home pipes?

I had an existing well with a log cabin and never had a problem. I built a new house (used the same well during this process with an outbuilding and also never had a problem), but after moving in to the new house we get the rotten-egg smell in our water.

How do you determine if slime bacteria is originating in your well or in your home pipes?
Actually, one gallon will not do much for your well.





What you do, is add a gallon to your well, and wait 15 minutes. Run your pump, until you take out all the water in your water holding tank, and replace it with the water in the well.





Take a regular chlorine testing kit for a pool, and test your water, to see if it has any residual of chlorine.





If you dont have any, then put another gallon down the well, and repeat this process...





When you have a 1.0 mg/l residual after 15 minutes, then run your water holding tank out again, and test after 30 minutes. (Also, open all the spigots in the house, and let the chlorinated water flow out of each of them, so that the chlorine will kill any bacteria in there as well.





I estimate you will probably use 3-5 or more gallon or chlorine for your well, maybe more, maybe less, it depends on how much water you have in the well.





Now, if you have a reading of 2.5 mg/l or less, IT IS SAFE TO DRINK!!





My City, the City of Steubenville, Ohio, keeps a 2.5 mg/. residual of chlorine in our city water at ALL TIMES!! (Aint it something, that 2.0 mg/l will kill fish, but we have more chlorine in our water than that!! :)...





So, do not be alarmed if you do end up with a high cl2 (chlorox or chlorine) reading.





Like I say, I would run it through all the lines in your house, and those outside your house, to kill all bacteria in the lines also.





Also, chlorox only has 4% of chlorine by volume so, it acuatlly isnt that powerful as the two ton cylinders I was used to moving around that was straight chlorine! And that we use for the Water Filtration Plant--%26gt; Water Treatment Plant.





How do I know this?





I am a Ohio Class III Waste Water Plant Operator with 27 years experience, and I recently retired from the City of Steubenville. I take classes every year to update that lisence, and I know the water side also.





I wish you well...





Jesse
Reply:You need to shock your well. Add 1 gallon of bleach to the well vent pipe wait 1 hour and turn house water on until you smell bleach add one more gallon of bleach wait 24 hours don't drink for at least a week. This will disinfect the well and pipes and kill the bacteria that causes the smell.