Does your home have gray well water? Well water is supposed to be the healthiest water to drink because it has all its natural minerals and none of the dangerous chemical additives and pollutants found in public-supplied tap water. But that does not mean it is always safe to drink.
Healthy well water looks clear and tastes fresh. On the other hand, gray and cloudy well water signals a potential health hazard due to either excess mineral accumulation or contamination from waste or microorganisms. You should never drink well water when these conditions are present.
The Potential Causes of Gray and Cloudy Well Water
Why does a well-water system produce water that has a dark gray color when it comes out of the faucet? No well water should ever look cloudy or milky, so you must pinpoint the reason behind why your well water looks this color.
Let us explore all the potential causes of how well water can change color like this and the best solutions for overcoming them.
1) Fungus and Algae Growth
Well water can turn gray when fungus or algae is present in the well or inside your home. You will know if this is the cause of the well water discoloration if your showerheads, shower curtains, or toilet bowl also have strange discolored substances on them.
Solution
One easy home remedy is to administer chlorine or liquid bleach into the well water system to disinfect it and eliminate the fungus and algae in the water. It is a process called shock chlorination that helps to kill growth in the well water system.
Wait up to 12 hours after applying the chlorine or bleach. That will give it enough time to work its way through the well water system. After that, flush out all the chlorinated or bleached well water from the system so that you don’t end up drinking or bathing it. The well water will replenish itself naturally over the next couple of days.
2) Bacterial or Viral Growth
Bacterial or viral growth can turn well water gray, similar to fungus and algae growth. You can usually tell when it is a bacterial contamination because the water will smell like sulfur or rotten eggs as it comes out of the faucet. That happens when too much sulfur or hydrogen sulfide gets into the well water.
Solution
The solution for eliminating bacteria or viral growth in well water is shock chlorination, which is the same solution for removing fungus and algae. It is better to use chlorine instead of bleach to eliminate bacterial or viral growth.
If bacterial contamination happens too often at your home or business, consider installing a chlorine injection system regularly to eliminate bacteria, hydrogen sulfide, and fungus from incoming water.
3) Methane Gas Contamination
Methane gas often ends up in the well water of people’s homes, creating grayness and cloudiness in the water. Sometimes, this happens naturally from decaying organic matter, or it can occur due to gas pipeline leaks or gas well drilling within proximity of the water well.
Consuming small amounts of methane in drinking water will not cause any health problems, but you should still work hard to get rid of the methane contamination anyway.
If too much methane gas leaves the well water and enters the ventilation of your home, it could increase the risk of an explosion happening in your home. That would obviously be a very hazardous situation.
Solution
You can detect methane gas contamination in well water by listening for gurgling sounds coming from your well or testing the well water for traces of methane. An accredited laboratory should conduct the testing for the most reliable results.
Methane will quickly leave the well water once the water temperature surpasses 58°F after reaching the surface. However, you must redirect the methane gas away from the well water by installing a vent tube on the well cap. That will allow the methane gas to leave the well while lowering the dissolved methane gas levels in the well water.
4) Excessive Amounts of Manganese and Iron
Manganese and iron are two natural minerals that the human body needs to produce energy, repair cellular damage, and stimulate body growth and strength. It is usual for well water to have moderate levels of manganese and iron, but there should never be excessive amounts of these minerals in the water.
If your well water appears greyish or has a metallic taste, it may have too many manganese and iron minerals in it. You won’t necessarily get sick from consuming them, but they will make your water harder and could potentially deteriorate your water pipes and appliances faster.
Solution
The easiest method for removing excessive mineral content from well water is to install an ion-exchange water softener. Just make sure you periodically backwash the well water system to remove the iron that accumulates on the softener resin.
5) Air Bubbles
A well pump could add air bubbles to the well water if the water levels are too low in the well. Alternatively, a new water filtration device could also add too much air to the water as well. Once this happens, the well water can start to look milky or cloudy.
Solution
There is nothing to worry about if you consume well water with too many air bubbles in it. Simply wait for the well water levels to reaccumulate and possibly modify the water pressure level of the water pump.
Test the well water to ensure dissolved gasses like methane are not causing the bubbles. If they are the result of dissolved gasses, refer to the previous step on how to remove methane from well water.
Frequently Asked Questions
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommends testing well water at least once per year. However, you should also conduct a well water test as soon as you notice your well water appearing cloudy and milky in your home.
Some water filtration or purification systems may restore the clarity of your well water, but it depends on the type of contamination that causes the grayness in the water. To be on the safe side, you should not rely on filtration or purification systems to remove the grayness.
Conclusion
Grey water is something that shouldn’t be ignored and should be resolved to ensure the safest water in your home. Generally, you can fix this problem with a chlorination treatment and patching any areas that allow air to enter the system.
If you have any more questions about gray well water, leave us a comment down below!