Virginia Cooperative Extension-Prince William Offering Well-Testing Kits

It is a good idea to periodically test well water to ensure that the water is free of contaminates and is safe to drink.

“It’s recommended to check wells every one to three years,” said Virginia Cooperative Extension, or VCE, Environmental Educator Valerie Huelsman. “There are a lot of contaminants that can make their way into well water, so the only way you’re going to know if they’re there is to get it tested.”

VCE will begin offering well-water testing kits in April for anyone in Prince William County and Manassas who uses a private well.

A significant number of roughly 500 wells tested in recent years showed a wide range of contaminants.

“Between 2012 to 2019, 45% of our samples submitted through this program had high sodium. Twenty-eight percent had total coliform bacteria, 17% had hard water and 11% of wells tested had high lead levels. All those exceeded drinking water standards,” Huelsman said.  

VCE will hold kick-off meetings people can attend to pick up the test kits.

An in-person meeting will be offered in the Jean McCoy Conference Room at the Sudley Government Center at 7987 Ashton Ave. in Manassas from 12 to 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 8.

A virtual Zoom meeting will be held from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Wednesday, April 5. The meeting will be live and recorded for later viewing. Registrants will receive a link to the meetings. People who attend the Zoom meeting will need to pick up their test kits at VCE at 8033 Ashton Ave., Suite 105, at the Sudley Government Center.

A final meeting will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on April 10 in the Board Chambers at the McCoart Government Center at 1 County Complex Court in Woodbridge.

The number of kits is limited. Pre-paying online is the only option to pay and guarantee receipt of a kit. Registrants must pay the $65 fee and register online by March 31. No refunds will be available.

People should test their wells on the morning of April 12 and must drop off their test kits between 6 and 10 a.m. that morning at the VCE office.

After people return their test kits, VCE will send them to the Virginia Household Water Quality Program, which tests water samples for iron, manganese, nitrate, lead, arsenic, fluoride, sulfate, pH, total dissolved solids, hardness, copper and E.coli bacteria.

Private well-water testing could cost up to 80% more than the test kits cost. “It’s a good cost saving, and you get a lot of additional information from it,” Huelsman said. “A well water expert will be joining us at the Results Interpretation Meeting on May 22 on Zoom.”

A live Zoom interpretation meeting, co-hosted by VCE Household Water Quality Coordinator Erin Ling and VCE-PW staff, will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. on May 22, where the experts will explain the reports and answer questions. A Zoom link and details will be emailed to all registrants.

For more information, email [email protected] or call 703-792-7747.