Taking good care of your water well is essential to ensuring your home has a consistent supply of high quality drinking water. In fact, your family’s health depends on proper well maintenance and regularly testing your well and septic system to ensure there are no contaminants so you always have a safe supply of drinking water.
The Water Systems Council has developed a complete library of water wellcare® information sheets to educate well owners about the basics of their well system, the importance of water well maintenance, keeping good records, water well testing, understanding your results, and how to protect and conserve your water supply for years to come. These wellcare® information sheets can be downloaded in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format and printed from this website.
wellcare® Well Owners Network
In addition, we encourage you to join the wellcare® Well Owners Network to receive quarterly e-newsletters with tips and tools to help maintain your well and protect your well water, discounts on water well testing kits and unlimited access to the wellcare® Hotline at 888-395-1033. The Hotline is available Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. ET. Our team members will answer your questions and provide you with any information you need to maintain a safe water supply. You can sign up online for free membership to the wellcare® Well Owners Network.
Well Owner’s Manual
WSC has also produced a Well Owner’s Manual that is available for download here. This 32-page manual has sections on well systems, water well maintenance, how to select a well contractor, protecting your wellhead, water well testing and how to understand your test results. There’s also a handy checklist so you can stay on top of caring for your well.
wellcare® Info Sheets
Download the wellcare® Info Sheets of interest to you below. Contact the wellcare® Hotline at 888-395-1033 with any questions.
Please note: Publications are for informational purposes only. WSC and its programs make every effort to keep publications up to date. Information and resources may have changed after the publication date. Check with your local or state agencies for the most accurate information. Information and guidance provided by your local and state agencies supersede these wellcare® sheets.
If you find information or a resource with a broken link, please contact us at info@wellcarehotline.org for assistance.
Agricultural Best Management Practices Information Sheets
Proper Use and Disposal of Pesticides and Fertilizers - pdf (102.8 KiB) Protecting Groundwater by Managing Animal Waste - pdf (115.6 KiB) Protecting Groundwater through Agricultural Best Management Practices - pdf (141.5 KiB) Basic Well Information Sheets
Determining Static Water Level in a Well - pdf (83.7 KiB) Determining the Depth of a Well - pdf (75.4 KiB) Determining the Yield of a Well - pdf (80.9 KiB) Selecting a Well Contractor - pdf (85.8 KiB) Sizing a Pressure Tank - pdf (456.4 KiB) Sizing a Well Pump - pdf (107.7 KiB) Well Contractors - Pressure Tank Pre-charge - pdf (132.9 KiB) Wells - pdf (358.0 KiB) Where Your Water Comes From - pdf (192.0 KiB) Your Septic System - pdf (178.1 KiB) Component Information Sheets
Well Components: Pressure Switches - pdf (193.9 KiB) Well Components: Valves - pdf (643.6 KiB) Well Components: Your Pitless Adapter - pdf (459.3 KiB) Well Components: Your Well Cap - pdf (458.8 KiB) Well Components: Your Well Casing - pdf (458.8 KiB) Well Components: Your Well Pump - pdf (459.0 KiB) Well Components: Your Well Tank - pdf (456.5 KiB) For Environmental Health Specialists
Environmental Health Specialists - Inspecting a Well - pdf (471.7 KiB) Environmental Health Specialists - Sealing a Well - pdf (461.9 KiB) Environmental Health Specialists - Septic Systems - pdf (231.3 KiB) For Healthcare Professionals
Drinking Water & Pregnancy - pdf (108.8 KiB) PPCPs and Drinking Water - pdf (121.6 KiB) Testing Well Water - pdf (106.7 KiB) For Home Inspectors
Home Inspectors Guide to Evaluating Water Wells - pdf (3.4 MiB) Tips For Your Clients/Customers - pdf (71.4 KiB) Well Inspection Checklist - pdf (47.2 KiB) For Real Estate Professionals
Real Estate Professionals - Buying or Selling a Home with a Well - pdf (110.2 KiB) Renting a Home with a Well - pdf (108.2 KiB) Renting a Home with a Well (Spanish) - pdf (104.1 KiB) Maintaining Your Well Information Sheets
Coping with Low Water Levels - pdf (85.2 KiB) Drought and Your Well - pdf (85.9 KiB) Emergencies & Disasters and Wells - pdf (127.4 KiB) Frequently Asked Technical Questions - pdf (483.1 KiB) Managing a Flooded Well - pdf (99.1 KiB) Protecting Your Pipes and Well System From Freezing - pdf (421.8 KiB) Protecting Your Well - pdf (94.2 KiB) Protecting Your Wellhead - pdf (227.2 KiB) Well Maintenance - pdf (101.4 KiB) Wells and Fire Protection - pdf (99.3 KiB) Wells: What to Do When the Power Fails - pdf (79.5 KiB) What to Do If Your Well Runs Dry - pdf (84.0 KiB) Wildfires and Wells - pdf (106.9 KiB) Winterizing and De-winterizing Your Well - pdf (106.7 KiB) Other Information Sheets
A Shared Well Agreement - pdf (478.2 KiB) Buying a Home with a Well - pdf (105.6 KiB) Buying a Home with a Well (French) - pdf (61.0 KiB) Buying a Home with a Well (Spanish) - pdf (128.0 KiB) Caring for a Cistern - pdf (111.6 KiB) Closing an Abandoned Well - pdf (95.1 KiB) Dillon's Rule - pdf (98.5 KiB) Groundwater Withdrawals - pdf (81.5 KiB) Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act - pdf (85.0 KiB) Sharing a Well - pdf (103.4 KiB) Water Conservation - pdf (815.9 KiB) Well Water and Children's Health - pdf (192.8 KiB) Well Water and Individuals With Compromised Immune Systems - pdf (151.9 KiB) When is a Well a Public Water System? - pdf (99.1 KiB) Who Owns the Water? - pdf (85.5 KiB) Potential Groundwater Contaminant Information Sheets
Arsenic & Well Water - pdf (86.0 KiB) Bacteria & Well Water - pdf (158.2 KiB) Bacteria & Well Water (French) - pdf (60.2 KiB) Bacteria & Well Water (Spanish) - pdf (81.9 KiB) Barium & Well Water - pdf (76.1 KiB) Benzene & Well Water - pdf (77.4 KiB) Chlorine Disinfectants & Their Byproducts - pdf (100.5 KiB) Chromium & Well Water - pdf (75.8 KiB) Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs) & Well Water - pdf (100.6 KiB) Copper & Well Water - pdf (97.7 KiB) Fluoride & Well Water - pdf (80.4 KiB) Hardness & Well Water - pdf (84.9 KiB) Iron & Well Water - pdf (85.1 KiB) Iron Bacteria & Well Water - pdf (96.8 KiB) Lead & Well Water - pdf (104.7 KiB) Lead & Well Water (Spanish) - pdf (137.1 KiB) Manganese & Well Water - pdf (77.9 KiB) Mercury & Well Water - pdf (81.1 KiB) Methane Gas & Well Water - pdf (94.8 KiB) MTBE & Well Water - pdf (76.3 KiB) Nitrate and Nitrite & Well Water - pdf (139.4 KiB) Nitrate and Nitrite & Well Water (Spanish) - pdf (82.7 KiB) Perchlorate & Well Water - pdf (76.4 KiB) Pesticides & Well Water - pdf (96.5 KiB) PFAS & Well Water - pdf (158.9 KiB) pH & Well Water - pdf (84.0 KiB) Radium & Well Water - pdf (76.3 KiB) Radon & Well Water - pdf (78.8 KiB) Sediment & Well Water - pdf (98.0 KiB) Sodium & Well Water - pdf (87.1 KiB) Strontium & Well Water - pdf (95.6 KiB) Sulfur & Well Water - pdf (81.6 KiB) Tannins & Well Water - pdf (79.2 KiB) TCE (Trichloroethylene) & Well Water - pdf (78.4 KiB) Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) & Well Water - pdf (78.6 KiB) Turbidity & Well Water - pdf (77.7 KiB) Uranium & Well Water - pdf (80.9 KiB) Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) & Well Water - pdf (108.8 KiB) Zinc & Well Water - pdf (118.8 KiB) Well Water Testing & Treatment Information Sheets
Disinfecting Your Well - pdf (116.1 KiB) Disinfecting Your Well (French) - pdf (75.0 KiB) Disinfecting Your Well (Spanish) - pdf (245.1 KiB) Testing Water for Gardening and Lawn Irrigation - pdf (177.8 KiB) Understanding Well Water Test Results - pdf (123.2 KiB) Water Treatment - pdf (213.5 KiB) Well Water Testing - pdf (142.7 KiB) What You Need to Know if You Are Told to Boil Your Drinking Water - pdf (100.1 KiB) wellcare® Booklets
Home Inspectors Guide to Evaluating Water Wells - pdf (3.4 MiB) wellcare® Information Brochures
A Homeowner's Guide To Your Well - pdf (1.2 MiB) A Quick Guide for Well Owners (also includes fillable contact section within PDF before printing) - pdf (1.0 MiB) A Real Estate Agent's Guide To Buying or Selling Homes with Wells - pdf (1.5 MiB) Well Water & Children's Health - pdf (232.9 KiB) Well Water & Individuals with Compromised Immune Systems - pdf (6.0 MiB) Well Water Testing - pdf (3.1 MiB) wellcare® Hotline - pdf (3.8 MiB)