We are thinking - in the very early stages - of buying a new home, but the one we have been considering has a shared well. I have only ever had public water. Does anyone know if a shared well is a bad thing, and if so, how bad is it? Thanks!

We are thinking - in the very early stages - of buying a new home, but the one we have been considering has a shared well. I have only ever had public water. Does anyone know if a shared well is a bad thing, and if so, how bad is it? Thanks!


Near 35 years ago me and my wife were considering buying a house in California MD which had a shared well on the property, and we were told that the next door neighbor paid the electric bill for the pump and they did all of the repairs since they were connected to the well which was not on their property. That long standing deal between the two properties was not in a written contract.

We did not buy that house as we bought in Hollywood instead, but the shared well was never forgotten.

I do not know if I would like a written contract because if the other property did not pay the repairs then we would still need the well to function, and if I were that other property then what if the well owners have children who play on top of the well?

There are lots of possible complications, but I was young back then and I was going to buy the house anyway except my wife found us a better deal.

And now-a-days well water in SMC and especially in Hollywood is not seen as being very safe water (whether that is a true assessment or not?) so I now buy and drink only store bought water and use the tap water only for cleaning or to boil food like noodles.

:shrug:

Near 35 years ago me and my wife were considering buying a house in California MD which had a shared well on the property, and we were told that the next door neighbor paid the electric bill for the pump and they did all of the repairs since they were connected to the well which was not on their property. That long standing deal between the two properties was not in a written contract.

We did not buy that house as we bought in Hollywood instead, but the shared well was never forgotten.

I do not know if I would like a written contract because if the other property did not pay the repairs then we would still need the well to function, and if I were that other property then what if the well owners have children who play on top of the well?

There are lots of possible complications, but I was young back then and I was going to buy the house anyway except my wife found us a better deal.

And now-a-days well water in SMC and especially in Hollywood is not seen as being very safe water (whether that is a true assessment or not?) so I now buy and drink only store bought water and use the tap water only for cleaning or to boil food like noodles.

:shrug:

By whom? Really, saying stuff like that is silly without any factual data to back it up. Do you often base your choice on how things are viewed by others, and make no determination yourself?

By whom? Really, saying stuff like that is silly without any factual data to back it up.


It is said by lots of people, and I mean us people who are local or have lived here many long years, but I certainly am not posting any names here.

If you want factual data then the Health Dept will check any well water and see what is found?

In Hollywood we have an old wood treatment plant that spewed poisons into the ground, and that is a point of big concern in this area. Link HERE (http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/npl/MDD980704852.htm).

At my own Hollywood house my wife / ex-wife died at 38 years old in 1994 from an unknown type of cancer, and 6 months later her second husband died of an uncertain type of cancer, and that house has a shallow well. Of course I do not trust the deep artesian wells (http://www.jewishrecipes.org/food-health/water/water-images/water_diag.jpg) either.

And that does NOT mean that they died from the well water, and the person living on that property today uses the water from that same well and she declares the well water to be fine.



Do you often base your choice on how things are viewed by others, and make no determination yourself?


Sorry if I made it seem like that belief is only based on the claims of other people, as I have made my own determinations and I buy drinking water from the Foodlion grocery store because I myself do not trust the private well water in SMC.

Plus long long ago I use to work for the Metropolitan Commission and worked for the State Environmental Services who took care of the water systems in St Mary's County, and so I learned a lot about purifying water, and a lot about dirty water too.

If you trust the water then by all means - drink it.

:whistle:

The advantage of a shared well is shared expense should it need replacement, Im not sure how the power works on such a thing.

as far as the water quality, water from a well can be treated in the house to be even cleaner than anything the city can give you.

as far as bottled water, most of it shows at least 50ppm of dissolved solids, my RO system in my house that is final stage of water treatment shows 12ppm or less of dissolved solids.

ol jimmy is right about one thing, if he is on city water bottle water is the way to go. by the time the city water gets to you, you have no clue what they treated it with, it has come from the treatment facility and traveled through miles of old crud encrusted pipe, picking up filth along the way. You really have no clue what you are drinking.

Give me a well and a good conditioning system over city water any day.

The advantage of a shared well is shared expense should it need replacement, Im not sure how the power works on such a thing.

as far as the water quality, water from a well can be treated in the house to be even cleaner than anything the city can give you.

as far as bottled water, most of it shows at least 50ppm of dissolved solids, my RO system in my house that is final stage of water treatment shows 12ppm or less of dissolved solids.

ol jimmy is right about one thing, if he is on city water bottle water is the way to go. by the time the city water gets to you, you have no clue what they treated it with, it has come from the treatment facility and traveled through miles of old crud encrusted pipe, picking up filth along the way. You really have no clue what you are drinking.

Give me a well and a good conditioning system over city water any day.
Thanks - I never thought of it this way - I was more worried about the water pressure etc. You make a good point about the in-home treatment. I know people with wells whose water always smells of sulfur, but then again, since I moved to MD 15 yrs ago and have been on public water systems, I have noticed that something in that water does not agree with my skin and hair. Thank you!

I get a periodic report from Metcom. There is nothing to be concerned about in the report, and nothing shows that the numbers are any worse now than they were 5 years ago.

JPC's claims are baseless.

JPC's claims are baseless.

He is completely baseless. :lol:

We are thinking - in the very early stages - of buying a new home, but the one we have been considering has a shared well. I have only ever had public water. Does anyone know if a shared well is a bad thing, and if so, how bad is it? Thanks!

Slightly worse than a shared driveway.

I get a periodic report from Metcom. There is nothing to be concerned about in the report, and nothing shows that the numbers are any worse now than they were 5 years ago.

JPC's claims are baseless.


There is also a real concern about the water table level of our aquifer, in that the level has been steadily decreasing.

In 1966 it was at 74 feet whereas by 1910 the level was down to 94 feet.

Link = St. Marys County, MD - Confined Aquifer Wells - Water Table Wells USGS Water (http://md.water.usgs.gov/groundwater/web_wells/current/confined/counties/st_marys/)

The higher water level created back pressure which helped to keep out contaminants, while the lower water pressure tends to draw in contaminants.

Still an artesian well (http://www.jewishrecipes.org/food-health/water/water-images/water_diag.jpg) is considered as better than a shallow well.

So it makes some difference what kind of well the two properties are sharing.

:coffee:

There is also a real concern about the water table level of our aquifer, in that the level has been steadily decreasing.

In 1966 it was at 74 feet whereas by 1910 the level was down to 94 feet.

Link = St. Marys County, MD - Confined Aquifer Wells - Water Table Wells USGS Water (http://md.water.usgs.gov/groundwater/web_wells/current/confined/counties/st_marys/)

The higher water level created back pressure which helped to keep out contaminants, while the lower water pressure tends to draw in contaminants.

Still an artesian well (http://www.jewishrecipes.org/food-health/water/water-images/water_diag.jpg) is considered as better than a shallow well.

So it makes some difference what kind of well the two properties are sharing.

:coffee:

I meant to say in 2010 as I mistakenly typed in 1910.

By September 2010 the aquifer level was down to 94 feet.

The link shows it correctly.

:whack:

Wirelessly posted


JPC's claims are baseless.

He is completely baseless. :lol:

Amen to that.

We are thinking - in the very early stages - of buying a new home, but the one we have been considering has a shared well. I have only ever had public water. Does anyone know if a shared well is a bad thing, and if so, how bad is it? Thanks!

Would definitely need a maintenance agreement drawn up. Mortgage companies and underwriters get nervous when driveways, wells, etc. are shared resources.

Don't share a driveway.
Don't share a roof.
And CERTAINLY, don't share a well.
Just don't share. You will be much happier.

Thanks all - I was thinking a shared well sounded like it would probably be a major pain - I appreciate everyone's input!