Question:

When we moved into our house two years ago, the county inspector said that we had bacteria (not sure what type, but caused by decaying organic material) in our well water.

The seller of the house installed a clorine-based purification system. Actually, it's a kludgy system with a big garbage can filled with a water and bleach mixture which gets injected by a pump into the house water system.

The guy that installed it mentioned that there is a more expensive ultra-violet light based water purification system available. Anyone know anything about it, or an alternative?

Answer:

Feeding chlorine is what most municipal water utilities use to reduce bacteria in water. If you use this methodology, be sure to use a carbon filter to reduce the 'left overs' from the combination of the chlorine and organic material. It can cause cancer.

The UV light you are asking about is a possibility, but remember this:

If you have any particulates in the water, it is possible that they might "shade" or "hide" the bacteria from the UV light.

You could get a microbiological growth on the sleeve that houses the UV bulb, thereby reducing the strength or the amount of UV light that strikes the bacteria, rendering it useless.

You have no way, short of constant testing, to insure that the light is working. With chlorine, you test to see if it is there; if it is, you *assume* it is working, and the water is safe. This is commonly accepted after years of use and testing. I am *assuming* that whoever designed your system did allow for 30 minutes of contact time, ie, time for the chlorine to be in the water prior to use -- it takes that long to insure complete killing of the bacteria -- different times required for pH changes, too.

I prefer you attempt to prevent the organics from entering your well, rather that put band-aids on after the fact. Have you considered that approach? As a father and grandfather, that is the first thing I would attempt. (And I sell water treatment equipment!)

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