Only 1 health check had enough tested wells in Aiken County, and it came back rare.
The only health check here came back rare.
From 36 wells tested in Aiken County since 2001; your own well needs its own test. How to read this
Not charted, because fewer than 10 wells were tested: arsenic (5), uranium (5), radon (1), manganese (6), lead (5), fluoride (6).
Rare: under 5%Worth checking: 5 to 15%Widespread: 15%+
Lab results: Water Quality Portal (USGS and EPA)
Who drinks from a well here
1 in 5 people 36,747 people
Nobody else tests these wells. Only you do.
People on wells: EPA researchers' 2020 estimate
How deep wells go here
Middle depth: some shelter from the surface, not complete.
Well depths: US Groundwater Well Database
Radon risk (a gas from rock)
Less likely, but the EPA still says test your air.
Radon zones: EPA map
Here's how Aiken County compares with South Carolina and the counties around it.
Each result puts Aiken County next to the 7 counties that border it, on the chart's 0 to 50% scale.
The only health check in Aiken County is rare.
Nitrate0 of 35 wells over
Too few tested to show: Barnwell, Burke, GA, Edgefield, Lexington, Saluda.
Too few Aiken County wells were tested for these 6.
Arsenic5 wells tested
Uranium5 wells tested
Radon in water1 well tested
Manganese6 wells tested
Lead5 wells tested
Fluoride6 wells tested
None of the 1 Aiken County wells tested for bacteria had it, but every well needs a yearly test.
Coliform bacteria0 of 1 wells had it
E. coli0 of 1 wells had it
E. coli means human or animal waste is getting in, so if a test of your Aiken County well finds it, boil drinking water until the well is fixed.
Iron reached staining levels in 24 of 36 tested wells, and it isn't a health risk.
Iron stains24 of 36 wells had it
Too few tested to show: Barnwell, Burke, GA, Edgefield, Lexington, Saluda.
Most of the 36 wells tested in Aiken County were last tested before 2010.
An old result shows the water as it was then, so treat these 36 wells as a starting point and test your own.
Most Aiken County wells in these records were tested for research or because someone suspected a problem, which can push the shares above what a typical home well would show (how we read the numbers).
One mail-in lab test covers the 3 things to check in Aiken County.
- Bacteria
- Nitrate
- Arsenic
What South Carolina offers well owners
- Free testingSCDES gives people over 65 or on public assistance one free coliform bacteria test and one free metals and minerals analysis per year, and fees may be waived or reduced based on ability to pay. See the program
- Certified labsSouth Carolina's list of certified labs
- Well recordsSouth Carolina's well record search
Half the household wells here are shallower than 124 feet.
That comes from 228 household wells in South Carolina's drilling records. Most wells of every kind here are 105 to 270 feet deep. Wells as deep as Aiken County's are usually better protected from fertilizer and bacteria at the surface, but they can pick up more of what's in the rock, like arsenic and uranium. Typical household wells here are shallower than in 25 of the 32 other South Carolina counties with enough drilling records.
Look up your own well's depth in South Carolina's well record search, or see how to find it.
Well depths: US Groundwater Well Database
Here's what we know about radon and PFAS in Aiken County.
Aiken County is in the EPA's lowest radon zone, so radon from well water is unlikely to be a problem. Radon guide
Between 2023 and 2025 the EPA had 9 town water systems in Aiken County test for PFAS. 1 of them had at least one test above 4 ng/L, the new EPA limit for PFOA and PFOS. The highest single result was 4.8 ng/L of PFOA. No well in Aiken County has public PFAS results, so the town systems are the best clue to what's in the groundwater nearby. PFAS guide
Radon zones: EPA Map of Radon Zones. PFAS: EPA tests of town water systems, 2023 to 2025
Questions people ask about well water in Aiken County
Is well water in Aiken County safe to drink?
Most tested wells in Aiken County came in under the limits. Of 1 health check with enough tests, nitrate came closest, at 0 of 35 wells over. Every well is different, so test yours for bacteria, nitrate and arsenic.
Can I get my well tested for free in Aiken County?
SCDES gives people over 65 or on public assistance one free coliform bacteria test and one free metals and minerals analysis per year, and fees may be waived or reduced based on ability to pay. If not, use a lab South Carolina has certified for drinking water. Ask for bacteria, nitrate and arsenic, the tests that matter most in Aiken County.
How deep are wells in Aiken County?
Half the household wells here are shallower than 124 feet. Typical household wells here are shallower than in 25 of the 32 other South Carolina counties with enough drilling records.
How does Aiken County compare with the counties around it?
For nitrate, the share of tested wells over the limit: 1 of the 2 neighboring counties with data had a higher share than Aiken County, at 0%. Orangeburg had the most, at 19%. Groundwater doesn't stop at county lines, so Orangeburg's 19% is worth knowing about if you live near it.
How often should I test my well in Aiken County?
None of the 1 wells tested for bacteria in Aiken County had it, but the CDC still says to test for bacteria and nitrate every year, and right away after a flood, a repair, or any change in taste or smell.
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Where the Aiken County numbers come from
- People on wells: 36,747 in Aiken County, from EPA estimates built on the 2020 Census (Murray et al.).
- Lab tests: 134 well water samples from 36 wells in the Water Quality Portal, run by the USGS and EPA, 2001 to 2013.
- Well depths: 228 South Carolina drilling records for Aiken County, gathered in the US Groundwater Well Database (Lin and others, 2024).
- Neighboring counties: the 7 counties that share a border with Aiken County, from the Census Bureau's county adjacency file.
- PFAS: EPA tests of 9 town water systems in Aiken County under the Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule, 2023 to 2025.
- Radon: Aiken County is zone 3 on the EPA Map of Radon Zones.
- State programs and links: Department of Environmental Services (SCDES), checked November 1, 2026.