Rural Home Compass

Indiana homeowner guide · Private well water

When should you test a private well in Indiana?

Indiana’s statewide well document is a recommended standard, not one universal homeowner testing law. It recommends bacteriological and chemical sampling after new construction, while IDOH’s routine schedule calls for annual bacteria and nitrate testing and a five-year fluoride, arsenic, lead, and copper group. County permits, completion samples, and property-transfer rules must be checked separately.

Evidence reviewed 2026-09-13Rural Home Compass editorial desk13 official sources
Homeowner organizing a sealed well-water sample kit, records, and calendar beside a rural window
Use the calendar only after identifying the decision: new-well work, a purchase baseline, routine care, and post-event testing do not have the same purpose.
What this testing guide covers

This plan separates Indiana’s recommended statewide new-well standard from enforceable county rules, then connects the annual and five-year testing clocks to flood and repair response, certified analyte scope, St. Joseph County’s transfer test, and a DNR database where only part of the record set has field-verified locations.

Four different decisions

Start with why you are testing.

01State recommendation

New or modified well

Start with Indiana’s recommended post-disinfection panel.

Indiana’s Recommended Standards say a new, modified, or reconditioned source should be disinfected, sampled with a certified laboratory bottle, and tested bacteriologically and chemically before use. The document is statewide guidance; local ordinances can separately require permits or samples, as Boone and Hamilton counties do.

  • Ask the county health department whether a local permit, official collection, release, or additional analyte requirement applies before arranging the sample.
  • Keep the driller record, disinfection and pump-work details, certified laboratory report, and county approval or release together.

Official guidanceRecommended Standards for Private Water WellsBoone County water-well permits and testingHamilton County Well Water Supply Program

02Purchase-planning use

Buying a home

Check county transfer rules before choosing the test.

Indiana does not present one statewide private-well test for every home sale. St. Joseph County is a documented local exception: its code requires testing when a property with an onsite well is sold, with total coliform, E. coli, nitrate, arsenic, and case-specific additions. Do not apply that county rule elsewhere.

  • Search the DNR well record and request county permits and prior laboratory reports, then confirm the current rule with the health department serving the property.
  • If no local or lender panel controls, use the IDOH routine groups and site-specific risks to establish a current certified-laboratory baseline.

Official guidanceWell Water Quality and TestingIndiana Water Well Record DatabaseSt. Joseph County water-well and transfer requirements

03State recommendation

Routine care

Keep an annual group and a five-year group.

IDOH recommends bacteria and nitrate testing every year. At least every five years—or whenever major maintenance is done—it recommends fluoride, arsenic, lead, and copper; elevated results can justify additional testing selected with the local health department and an appropriately certified laboratory.

  • Track the annual and five-year groups separately and preserve results so changes can be compared over time.
  • Use local land use, previous results, treatment, plumbing, and household vulnerability to select any additional analytes.

Official guidanceIDOH Laboratory: Well WaterWell Water Quality and TestingEnvironmental Chemistry Laboratory

04State recommendation

Flood or repair

Inspect, disinfect, and retest after the event.

IDOH advises testing a private well after a flood and supplies a current certified microbiology-laboratory path. Indiana’s well standards say new, modified, or reconditioned sources should be disinfected, while Hamilton County specifically calls for chlorination after a new well, flood, or repair.

  • Do not use flood-exposed water as normal drinking water; have damaged electrical, pump, casing, or well components assessed safely.
  • Confirm disinfection and post-event sampling timing with the county health department and certified laboratory before collecting.

Official guidanceRecommended Standards for Private Water WellsPrivate well disaster and flood informationHamilton County Well Water Supply Program

New wells and regulated work

Start with the state-recommended panel.

Indiana’s statewide document recommends this starting panel after new, modified, or reconditioned well work. County health departments may impose their own permit, sampling, or release requirements, so the state recommendation and local rule must be checked separately.

  • Total hardness
  • pH
  • Specific conductance
  • Total alkalinity
  • Arsenic
  • Chloride
  • Total dissolved solids
  • Iron
  • Manganese
  • Nitrate
  • Sulfate
  • Fluoride
  • Bacteriological analysis

The responsible professional and certified laboratory determine the accepted sample and report. Do not assume a retail package satisfies a regulatory purpose.

Official basis for the new-well panelRecommended Standards for Private Water WellsBoone County water-well permits and testingHamilton County Well Water Supply Program

Existing wells

Indiana has a state-specific recurring schedule.

CadenceAt least every five years or after major maintenance
Starting testsFluoride · Arsenic · Lead · Copper

Use the five-year group as IDOH health guidance and ask for targeted additions when a result or site-specific risk points elsewhere.

Official guidanceIDOH Laboratory: Well WaterEnvironmental Chemistry Laboratory

The calendar is not the whole answer

When should the panel change?

Pregnancy or an infant younger than six months using the water

Give nitrate and nitrite priority and discuss any detected level with a health professional; IDOH identifies pregnancy and infants under six months as the key health context for nitrate above the drinking-water guideline.

Official guidanceNitrate and nitrite water testing details

Fuel, solvents, pesticides, industrial waste, a landfill, or other credible source near the well

Ask the local health department and certified laboratory whether a targeted VOC, pesticide, PFAS, or other analysis fits the source; IDOH laboratory capability is not a recommendation to test every well for every analyte.

Official guidanceRecommended Standards for Private Water WellsEnvironmental Chemistry Laboratory

A positive or elevated routine result

Use the result, local source investigation, and certified-laboratory advice to choose confirmation and additional testing rather than treating the standard panel as exhaustive.

Official guidanceIDOH Laboratory: Well WaterWell Water Quality and Testing

A change in taste, odor, color, clarity, or treatment performance

Test promptly and use the observation only to guide investigation; sensory changes cannot identify the contaminant or establish safety.

Official guidanceWell Water Quality and Testing

Laboratory and sampling

Confirm the route before collecting water.

  1. Use an Indiana-certified drinking-water laboratory that is certified for each requested analyte; the state directory shows analyte-level scope and includes both in-state and approved out-of-state laboratories.

    Official guidanceDrinking Water Laboratory Certification directory

  2. Obtain the laboratory’s own containers and follow its collection method, volume, holding time, chain-of-custody, shipping, and cost instructions before sampling.

    Official guidanceIDOH Laboratory: Well WaterWell Water Quality and TestingNitrate and nitrite water testing details

  3. For a county permit, new-well release, or property-transfer purpose, confirm the approved laboratory, collector, required analytes, and reporting route with that county; St. Joseph and Boone requirements are local, not statewide.

    Official guidanceBoone County water-well permits and testingSt. Joseph County water-well and transfer requirements

Official records

Start with the official well-record system.

Record holder

Indiana Department of Natural Resources Division of Water for driller records, plus the county health department for local permits, samples, and releases.

DNR reports more than 400,000 well records, but only about 138,000 are field verified. Estimated-location records are mapped from driller information at section or quarter-section scale, so the viewer is a research aid rather than a property survey or proof that a blank location has no well.

Open the official well-record entry point ↗

Records and lookup guidanceIndiana Water Well Record DatabaseWater Well Database Search HelpWater availability and well-record FAQ

Look for
  • Water well reference number and driller record
  • Construction method, depth, casing, geology, and pump test
  • County drilling or repair permit and release
  • Current and prior certified-laboratory reports

Turn the schedule into questions

Build a starting water-test panel.

The recommender combines your current issue, purchase status, flood or repair history, nearby agriculture, vulnerable occupants, and ZIP-based Indiana context. It does not replace the responsible professional or laboratory.

Open the Well Water Test Recommender →

Official sources

These sources were reviewed for this page on 2026-09-13. A build date does not refresh that review.

  1. Indiana Department of Health: Recommended Standards for Private Water WellsReviewed 2026-09-13
  2. Indiana Department of Health: IDOH Laboratory: Well WaterReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  3. Indiana Department of Health: Well Water Quality and TestingReviewed 2026-09-13
  4. Indiana Department of Health: Environmental Chemistry LaboratoryReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  5. Indiana Department of Health: Nitrate and nitrite water testing detailsReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  6. Indiana Department of Health: Drinking Water Laboratory Certification directoryReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  7. Indiana Department of Health: Private well disaster and flood informationReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  8. Indiana Department of Natural Resources: Indiana Water Well Record DatabaseReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  9. Indiana Department of Natural Resources: Water Well Database Search HelpReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  10. Indiana Department of Natural Resources: Water availability and well-record FAQReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  11. Boone County Health Department: Boone County water-well permits and testingReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  12. Hamilton County Health Department: Hamilton County Well Water Supply ProgramReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days
  13. St. Joseph County Department of Health: St. Joseph County water-well and transfer requirementsReviewed 2026-09-13 · Recheck every 90 days