How much bleach to shock chlorinate your well
Enter your casing size and depths and we'll work out how much bleach you need. Then follow the steps in our shock chlorination guide.
Use a fresh jug of plain bleach, and keep it away from the septic system
The Minnesota Department of Health aims for 50 to 200 mg/L of chlorine and says not to go over 200. Use a new, unopened jug of plain unscented bleach with no additives, since bleach loses strength on the shelf. The National Ground Water Association prefers that a licensed well contractor do the job with chlorine certified for drinking water, so hire one if you'd rather not open the well yourself.
Never mix it with ammonia or acid cleaners. When you flush the chlorine out afterward, run it onto gravel or a driveway, away from grass, gardens, streams and your septic system.
Shocking kills bacteria in the well and pipes. It doesn't fix how they got in. If a retest 1 to 2 weeks later still shows bacteria, the well needs a repair or a UV system.