Diagnose my well water
Describe what you see, smell, and taste, and we'll point you to the contaminant it usually means and the test that confirms it. Use it to decide what to test for before you send off a sample.
Answer a few questions about what you see, smell, and taste, and we'll point you to what's likely in your water and the test that confirms it. Use it to decide what to test for before you send off a sample.
This diagnostic is interactive when JavaScript is on. Either way, the full symptom-to-cause reference is right here.
Match what you're seeing, smelling, or tasting
Iron a metallic smell · orange / red-brown stains · black or dark-brown stains · a metallic taste · a colored tint in the glass · falling water pressure · rusty slime in the tank
The metal behind orange rust stains and a metallic taste. Dissolved 'clear-water' iron is invisible until it hits air; it's removed by oxidation and a backwashing iron filter.
Manganese black or dark-brown stains
Leaves black or dark-brown stains and specks on fixtures and laundry. Often handled by the same oxidizing filters as iron, but a test confirms the level.
Confirm with a test → We don't have a dedicated fix guide for this yet — start by confirming it with a test.
Hydrogen sulfide (sulfur) a rotten-egg smell
The gas behind well water's rotten-egg smell. It's removed by oxidation — adding air or another oxidizer so the sulfur turns solid and filters out.
Hardness white, chalky scale · a bitter or soapy taste · scale buildup and spotting
Dissolved calcium and magnesium that leaves chalky scale, spots on glasses, and poor lather. Treated with a softener or a salt-free conditioner.
Confirm with a test → We don't have a dedicated fix guide for this yet — start by confirming it with a test.
Tannins a musty, earthy smell · a yellow, tea-colored tint · an earthy, musty taste · a colored tint in the glass
Organic matter leached from decaying leaves and peat that tints water yellow or tea-colored with a musty edge. Harmless but stubborn to remove.
Confirm with a test → We don't have a dedicated fix guide for this yet — start by confirming it with a test.
Sediment cloudy or gritty water · water that stays cloudy in the glass · falling water pressure
Loose sand, silt, clay, and rust flakes that make water look cloudy or feel gritty, clog downstream filters, and wear out appliances if not caught first.
Confirm with a test → We don't have a dedicated fix guide for this yet — start by confirming it with a test.
Acidic water (low pH) blue-green staining on copper · a metallic taste · corroded fittings · pinhole leaks in copper
Acidic well water that corrodes pipes, leaves blue-green stains on copper, and can leach copper and lead. Usually neutralized before other treatment.
Confirm with a test → We don't have a dedicated fix guide for this yet — start by confirming it with a test.
High TDS / salinity a salty taste · a bitter or soapy taste
A high combined load of dissolved minerals and salts that can taste salty or metallic. The number alone doesn't say which contaminants are present — a test breaks it down.
Confirm with a test → We don't have a dedicated fix guide for this yet — start by confirming it with a test.
Can't be seen, smelled, or tasted — rule these out with a test
Some of the most serious contaminants give no warning signs at all. A test is the only way to know.
- Arsenic. A naturally occurring, tasteless and odorless toxic element found in some wells. There's no color or smell to warn you — only a lab test detects it. The EPA limit is 10 ppb. See the fix →
- Nitrate. A dissolved contaminant from fertilizer, septic systems, and animal waste — especially dangerous to infants. No taste or smell; the EPA limit is 10 ppm.
- Coliform bacteria. Indicator bacteria whose presence means surface contamination has reached your well and other germs may be there too. No taste or smell; confirmed only by a lab test.
Ask the lab to test for these
- Coliform bacteria
- Nitrate
- pH
- Hardness
- Iron
- Manganese
- Total dissolved solids (TDS)