What you need to know about Water Wells

• Drilling A New Well
  (PDF) Guide for Private Well Owners on the proper siting and construction of new private water wells published by Penn State University for its Master Well Owner program.
• Where Does My Drinking Water Come From
  (Link) The Watershed Information Network web page, a service of the Environmental Protection Agency, is an excellent source of information on water quality in every state, the relationship of TV weather reporting and watersheds, and basic definitions of terms relating to drinking water. It also provides answers to many typical questions a water consumer might have.
• Before You Drill A Well
  (PDF) Albert R. Jarrett, Professor of Agricultural Engineering at Penn State which describes the steps which must be followed when drilling a new well and bringing it online. Topics covered include siting a well, developing the well, and testing of the pumping system.
• Water Well Location By Fracture Trace Mapping Penn State
  (PDF) Fractures underlying the earth’s surface are known by hydrologists to be the best locations to drill wells from which large volumes of water are needed, such as in industry. This is an excellent description of all that is involved.
• Water System Planning – Estimating Water Use Penn State
  (PDF) Details on how to estimate the total water usage from a water system as well as how to estimate the effective yield of drilled water well can be found in this Penn State School of Forest Resources publication.
• Water Well Drilling And Abandonment (PA DCNR)
  (Link) Contains information on licensing requirements of well drillers in Pennsylvania and the proper procedures to be used in abandoning a previously used private well.
• Private Water Wells In Pennsylvania (PA DEP)
  (Link) Diagram of typical private water well in Pennsylvania, along with the naming of all the major installed components.
• Private Drinking Water Wells (EPA)
  (Link) Information to help you answer these three questions – Is our well water safe to drink? What health problems could my family face drinking water from our well? Where can I get answers?
• Well Maintenance and Tips
  (Link) Tips to maintaining a safe private water well, courtesy of the Illinois EPA
• Best Management Practices For Private Water Systems
  (PDF) Basic information all private well owners should be aware of.
• Using Low Yielding Wells
  Extensive information on the use and maintenance of low yielding private water wells can be found in the following Penn State publication.
• Sanitary Well Caps And Grouting Wells
  (PDF) What is a Sanitary Well Caps?
• Protecting Wells With Sanitary Well Caps And Grouting
  (PDF) Information concerning the need for sanitary well caps and grouting for private water wells.
• National Groundwater Association – Groundwater And Well Drilling Information
  (Link) This is the home page of the National Ground Water Association with extensive resources concerning groundwater and private wells.
• Pa Water Well Inventory – Online Database Of Well Logs For Private Wells In Pennsylvania
  (Link) Provides information about PA well drillers and licensing, guidelines for well abandonment and links to web sites on private water wells.
• Private Household Water Supplies
  (PDF) Cornell University has provided this information on all aspects of private water wells.
• Managing Your Well During A Drought Penn State
  Takes you to an excellent brochures from Penn State detailing well usage during a drought.
• Pennsylvania Groundwater
  (Link) A Brief Explanation on Groundwater Flow Systems and Groundwater Hydrogeology in Pennsylvania, including information on The Hydrologic Cycle, Occurrence of Groundwater, How Groundwater Moves, How Wells Work, Factors Affecting Groundwater Declines and Definitions of Terms.