We recently went through an "odd smell in the water" situation that
came back as both TC and E Coli in the water.

We shocked the well and re-tested a week after the chlorine was gone.
E Coli was gone - but Coliform still present.

Shocked the well again and installed a Sterilight UV filter (SQ8-PA
with a UPS) post sediment filter and softener so we wouldn't have to
worry about the water in the house.

Re-tested the water again after a week and raw water (sample from
storage tank) was still negative for E Coli but still positive for
Coliform. Treated water was fine.

I had previously suspected earwigs - as the old well cap was not very
good and not tightly sealed and upon opening it - there were dozens of
earwigs running around inside the well pipe. The new sealed cap has
kept the earwigs out - but I still have the bacteria issue.

What should I be doing to investigate the source of the bacteria? I
would rather fix the problem as this well was bacteria free for years
before this outbreak and my father who visits frequently has a
compromised immune system so althought the UV works fine - I would
rather consider it a safety net rather than the only thing keeping the
water safe.

Also - any ideas on why the E Coli was there, then gone while the
Coliform stayed? The smell has been consistently gone since the first
shocking.

thanks!

sting7777 wrote:
We recently went through an "odd smell in the water" situation that
came back as both TC and E Coli in the water.

We shocked the well and re-tested a week after the chlorine was gone.
E Coli was gone - but Coliform still present.

Shocked the well again and installed a Sterilight UV filter (SQ8-PA
with a UPS) post sediment filter and softener so we wouldn't have to
worry about the water in the house.

Re-tested the water again after a week and raw water (sample from
storage tank) was still negative for E Coli but still positive for
Coliform. Treated water was fine.

I had previously suspected earwigs - as the old well cap was not very
good and not tightly sealed and upon opening it - there were dozens of
earwigs running around inside the well pipe. The new sealed cap has
kept the earwigs out - but I still have the bacteria issue.

What should I be doing to investigate the source of the bacteria? I
would rather fix the problem as this well was bacteria free for years
before this outbreak and my father who visits frequently has a
compromised immune system so althought the UV works fine - I would
rather consider it a safety net rather than the only thing keeping the
water safe.

Also - any ideas on why the E Coli was there, then gone while the
Coliform stayed? The smell has been consistently gone since the first
shocking.

thanks!

my knowledge on this is pretty much lab rather than real world, but my
first guess would be a leak from a sewage/septic system, or some other
source of poop like bears in the woods getting in. you killed off all
the bugs, which is why the e. coli are now gone, but the coliform are
getting restocked. ??

According to z :

my knowledge on this is pretty much lab rather than real world, but my
first guess would be a leak from a sewage/septic system, or some other
source of poop like bears in the woods getting in. you killed off all
the bugs, which is why the e. coli are now gone, but the coliform are
getting restocked. ??

Some friends had to get a new well drilled (deep one this time -
the shallow one ran out of head room - water table dropped a bit
too far).

The flow rate was very high, and they'd been unable to completely kill
off the TC by shocking. No FCs tho.

Assumption is that the well hit an underground stream that has
a persistent TC level, and no amount of shocking will make it
go away.

So they now have a UV sterilizer too.
--
Chris Lewis, Una confibula non set est
It's not just anyone who gets a Starship Cruiser class named after them.

Hoping for some insight on next troubleshooting steps. Hire someone to
inspect the well with a camera? Inspect septic? Thanks for any
advice

sting7777 wrote:
We recently went through an "odd smell in the water" situation that
came back as both TC and E Coli in the water.

We shocked the well and re-tested a week after the chlorine was gone.
E Coli was gone - but Coliform still present.

Shocked the well again and installed a Sterilight UV filter (SQ8-PA
with a UPS) post sediment filter and softener so we wouldn't have to
worry about the water in the house.

Re-tested the water again after a week and raw water (sample from
storage tank) was still negative for E Coli but still positive for
Coliform. Treated water was fine.

I had previously suspected earwigs - as the old well cap was not very
good and not tightly sealed and upon opening it - there were dozens of
earwigs running around inside the well pipe. The new sealed cap has
kept the earwigs out - but I still have the bacteria issue.

What should I be doing to investigate the source of the bacteria? I
would rather fix the problem as this well was bacteria free for years
before this outbreak and my father who visits frequently has a
compromised immune system so althought the UV works fine - I would
rather consider it a safety net rather than the only thing keeping the
water safe.

Also - any ideas on why the E Coli was there, then gone while the
Coliform stayed? The smell has been consistently gone since the first
shocking.

thanks!