Marky Mark Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 My wife and I are looking to capitalize on the bad market and buy our first house this summer. We found one that could have some good potential, but the possible deal breaker is that the house uses well water and a septic tank. I understand that the septic tank can be an issue because I'd have to pay for it to remove waste a few times a year and if there's something wrong with it, that'd be my major cost. My question to Soxtalk is... does anyone have experience with well water? Did it stain your clothes and taste bad? I've heard some people say that it is awful no matter what and others say that if you have a good water softner that you won't know the difference between well and city water. Anyone with experience with well water homes give me your thoughts. In case it matters, this house is in unincorporated Wheaton. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrunkBomber Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 QUOTE (Markbilliards @ Mar 26, 2009 -> 11:39 AM) My wife and I are looking to capitalize on the bad market and buy our first house this summer. We found one that could have some good potential, but the possible deal breaker is that the house uses well water and a septic tank. I understand that the septic tank can be an issue because I'd have to pay for it to remove waste a few times a year and if there's something wrong with it, that'd be my major cost. My question to Soxtalk is... does anyone have experience with well water? Did it stain your clothes and taste bad? I've heard some people say that it is awful no matter what and others say that if you have a good water softner that you won't know the difference between well and city water. Anyone with experience with well water homes give me your thoughts. In case it matters, this house is in unincorporated Wheaton. My roommate now came from a house in unincorporated Lombard and had well water. He said they absolutely didnt drink the water, and they didnt wash their whites there because they turned yellow. He said something about using blocks of salt helps but still doesnt recommend drinking it or washing whites in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyyle23 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 My dad lived in Johnsburg(McHenry) and had wellwater. When his filter was working(it clogged a whole bunch because of the sediment) it was fine. You could tell the water was super filtered and had a weird "soft" taste to it, but it was drinkable. Without the filter, it was like drinking something with grit and the smell of rotten eggs. It was really bad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kid Gleason Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 I grew up with well water and never noticed anything wrong with it. We had a water softener, but now I am on city and I still have a water softener. I still get the egg smell every now and then. Some people actually do prefer well water, my mom being one of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiSox_Sonix Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 I had well water at my parents house growing up...people say it has an egg taste. We bought a Brita pitcher. Once you put it through that it's fine. Never had any problems with it. It definitely does taste different but it's not a big deal IMO. Never stained clothes, showers werent weird. On the down side, if the power went out in the winter or for whatever reason we couldnt flush the toilet etc b/c the pump is electrical based. On the positive, it's our own source of water that isnt affected by any potential problems with a public water supply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kid Gleason Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 QUOTE (kyyle23 @ Mar 26, 2009 -> 11:49 AM) My dad lived in Johnsburg(McHenry) and had wellwater. When his filter was working(it clogged a whole bunch because of the sediment) it was fine. You could tell the water was super filtered and had a weird "soft" taste to it, but it was drinkable. Without the filter, it was like drinking something with grit and the smell of rotten eggs. It was really bad Ya know...thinking about it...my wifes family still lives in Johnsburg and I was just there two nights ago and had water to drink. Again...tasted fine to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve9347 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Other drawbacks are that a lot of unincorporated areas can't be found on Google Maps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockRaines Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 QUOTE (Markbilliards @ Mar 26, 2009 -> 11:39 AM) My wife and I are looking to capitalize on the bad market and buy our first house this summer. We found one that could have some good potential, but the possible deal breaker is that the house uses well water and a septic tank. I understand that the septic tank can be an issue because I'd have to pay for it to remove waste a few times a year and if there's something wrong with it, that'd be my major cost. My question to Soxtalk is... does anyone have experience with well water? Did it stain your clothes and taste bad? I've heard some people say that it is awful no matter what and others say that if you have a good water softner that you won't know the difference between well and city water. Anyone with experience with well water homes give me your thoughts. In case it matters, this house is in unincorporated Wheaton. Few times a year? We empty ours in michigan once in a blue moon. Also our well water was terrible, but we built a new well and installed a new pump system and it was not even noticeable versus city water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyyle23 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 QUOTE (Kid Gleason @ Mar 26, 2009 -> 12:21 PM) Ya know...thinking about it...my wifes family still lives in Johnsburg and I was just there two nights ago and had water to drink. Again...tasted fine to me. My dad lived on pistakee lake, and his house was over 100 years old. Pipes were old, the wells(there were two) were old, the only thing that was new was the filters, and the sediment blocked those things up in like 3 months. It may have been his situation. It may be the fact that your tastebuds are broken. You choose Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WilliamTell Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 I don't mind the taste of well water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texsox Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Depends on where you drill the well. It probably is better for you, health wise. Being a hiker and backpacker, I have a high tolerance for taste in water. I would suggest revisiting the house and tasting the water. For a comparison, find out what chemicals your city water is treated with and what chemicals are added. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockRaines Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 QUOTE (Texsox @ Mar 26, 2009 -> 02:12 PM) Depends on where you drill the well. It probably is better for you, health wise. Being a hiker and backpacker, I have a high tolerance for taste in water. I would suggest revisiting the house and tasting the water. For a comparison, find out what chemicals your city water is treated with and what chemicals are added. Right, plus you can always fix the well, get a new pump, filter etc. Our well water tasted just like our lake until we dug a new well and now its every bit as good as Chicago water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mreye Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 (edited) Many times it depends where you are. My well is perfectly fine. I even had a softener salesperson tell me I didn't really need one. On the other hand, a half mile down the road is the Knights of Columbus hall and you can smell that water as soon as you walk in the door - and they've spent $5000 to remedy it. It's hit or miss. I'd say go drink the water yourself and have it tested. A well and septic system shouldn't scare you away from a good deal. Also, you shouldn't have to have it pumped all that often. If it's in good shape and you're not overtaxing it you should be fine. Edited March 26, 2009 by mreye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobDylan Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 QUOTE (Markbilliards @ Mar 26, 2009 -> 11:39 AM) My wife and I are looking to capitalize on the bad market and buy our first house this summer. We found one that could have some good potential, but the possible deal breaker is that the house uses well water and a septic tank. I understand that the septic tank can be an issue because I'd have to pay for it to remove waste a few times a year and if there's something wrong with it, that'd be my major cost. My question to Soxtalk is... does anyone have experience with well water? Did it stain your clothes and taste bad? I've heard some people say that it is awful no matter what and others say that if you have a good water softner that you won't know the difference between well and city water. Anyone with experience with well water homes give me your thoughts. In case it matters, this house is in unincorporated Wheaton. With water softener, I can't tell the difference. When something goes wrong or the softner runs out, the water tastes like iron and you have to use extra soap in the shower otherwise parts of your skin will turn yellow. Also, if it doesn't rain a lot, there may be concerns about not having enough water. Overall, though, the experience has been positive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LosMediasBlancas Posted March 29, 2009 Share Posted March 29, 2009 I went to summer camp in Wisco. and they had well water, it smlled and tasted like crap. The sinks and toilets were all yellow stained too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knightni Posted March 29, 2009 Share Posted March 29, 2009 Well water's fine if you get a water softener and a drinking water system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoda Posted March 30, 2009 Share Posted March 30, 2009 The orange/brown stains on laundry, sinks, tubs, and toilets are from the iron in the water. It does leave a bad mark on such latter things, but the taste and smell is also an issue especially if you are used to drinking city water. In the short run it may do, but in the long-run I would suggest trying to have city water installed. I know it's easy to say, but the advantage is always towards the most valuable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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