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Nitrates in Your Well Water

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 So you have nitrates in your well water? This is a very common item that shows up in wells in Southern California, especially in the Riverside and San Diego Counties.  There has been extensive research done regarding the cause, issues created and treatment of nitrates. These are best explained by an article written by Oregon State University in their "Be Well" project. Check out this information here: https://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/pub/em-9400-nitrate-your-drinking-water A quick summary of their findings: What is nitrate? Nitrate is a form of nitrogen that is easily dissolved in water. How common is nitrate in private wells? 1 in 5 households  that use private wells for drinking water have levels of nitrate that are higher than what would be allowed in public water supplies. Should I be concerned about drinking well water contaminated with nitrate? Nitrate reduces the blood’s ability to carry oxygen, which can lead to many serious health conditions in children and

What Sets our Team Apart?

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 If you are reading this post then most likely you are looking at multiple bids for your well pump or well drilling installation. We believe in doing our own research as well when we hire contractors to work on our own home. Here at Heritage Well we believe the following should be considered when speaking with contractors to complete your project: Installation Quality, Contractor Communication & Service, Reviews and Pricing.  Installation Quality You may have read some of our other posts regarding our beliefs in installation quality before you stumbled across this article. If you haven't, check out this post for some examples of our well system installations.  We pride ourselves on the quality of our installations in all things WELL. This means we have high expectations and well designed processes for every step of your project. If you are drilling a well with us this starts from the very beginning in selecting the proper materials and method of drilling applicable for both yo

Adding a Sediment Filter to your Well System

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 There are many options on the market for sediment filtration on your well system. These options range from down hole flow sleeve kits to self-flushing units and everything in between. Let’s talk about a few options. First off, the Sand Separator by Lakos. These units are meant to en-case your submersible well pump and filter the water before it comes into your submersible pump to protect from clogging of sediment.  The Lakos Sand Separator dramatically extends the life of your submersible pump, saves energy and removes sand from your well water with their patented protection separators. These units use centrifugal action to remove troublesome sand from the water before it can enter the pump, damage impellers and go downstream to your home or ranch water supply. The units are installed around your submersible pump and can be installed into water wells within inner casing diameters as small as four inches. Lakos offers flow ranges of 3-99 GPM and larger for commercial or agricultural op

What will my new pump look like when its done?

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 Often we are asked what will my new pump installation look like? Most of what gets installed in your newly drilled well is below the surface and you aren't able to see it but topside there are few things you should see. Here's a recent example of one of our new pump installations in a newly drilled well: First things first, your new well should have an outer casing liner coming out of the ground. The material of this casing is typically steel but we do see some companies who install a PVC conductor casing, check with your local county office for requirements for your area. Depending on the county in which your well was drilled the county requirements might differ. Some counties require a minimum of 12" above the cement slab, other counties have no requirement at all as to how high the casing should be. It's best to check with your local county Department of Environmental Health for standards specific to your area.  The same set of rules applies to the cement slab inst

Low Well Water Pressure? 4 Possible Problems

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If you live in a home equipped with a well, then you may have taken the good water pressure in your home for granted until it diminished. Low water pressure can lead to showers that take longer and don't feel as refreshing, washing machines that take seemingly forever to fill up, and that chore of hand-washing dishes taking much longer than it used to. You may not immediately know the cause of sudden low water pressure in a home equipped with a well. Read on to learn about four common causes of this sudden decline in pressure. 1. Clogged Sediment Filter If your well is equipped with a sediment filter, as most are, then the key to why your home's water pressure suddenly dropped could be as simple as a clogged sediment filter. While how quickly your filter becomes clogged depends highly on the quality of your well water, a good rule of thumb is to change it every six months to not only maintain maximum water pressure, but also keep your water clean. However, some well owners need

Submersible Pump Protection

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 There are several options on the market for submersible motor protection. These offerings include product that protects your motor from incoming power failures or brown-out conditions, lightening strikes, run-dry conditions, rapid cycling and overcurrent scenarios. In this article we will highlight some of the products in the market that we have time-tested and believe provide our clients with a high level of protection. We will grade each on price and reliability as well.  Grading Scale 1-5, 1= Least and 5= Most Variable Frequency Drives Variable Frequency Drives (VFD's) are controllers for your submersible well pump and motor that can be as basic as a control box or as detailed and in-depth as your vehicle with just as many options. Most of the VFD's we install at Heritage Well are manufactured by Yaskawa  and include everything from the basic submersible operations to the highly engineered options to run large horsepower motors.  These VFD's are able to convert single p

What's the Warranty on my Well Pump?

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 We are often asked what the warranty period on a submersible well pump is. All  submersible manufacturer's offer a 1 YR WARRANTY on submersible pumps and motor product. Check out this quick information sheet from Pentair Products:  Many manufacturers have specific agreements with installers or dealers like us at Heritage Well to offer an extended warranty for specific periods of time. These warranties are subject to review from the manufacturer and exclude failure due to electrical, water quality and heat related issues.  Unfortunately, manufacturers like Grundfos, Goulds, Franklin and Pentair have had the upper hand in these agreements and most recently have regularly denied warranty replacements for many of our clients due to issues listed above. As a result, here at Heritage Well we have been transitioning our clients to accept what is formally written from the manufacturers and accepting what is provided which is a 1 YR manufacturer warranty in the "bumper to bumper"