Well Treatment Kits Compared: Bleach, Pellets, Pro Service, and Ours
Treating a well with a disinfectant is also called shock chlorination. Here are four ways to treat a well, from a $5 jug to a contractor visit. Here is what each one is, what it costs, and which wells it fits, with the chemistry facts attributed to their sources.
Plain bleach from the store
about $5 to $15
Unscented 5.25% sodium hypochlorite, the extension-guide standby. Cheapest by far, and the weakest per gallon: you do all the volume math yourself, and the dose is jug-and-guess. Everything in the bleach column of our chemistry comparison applies.
Chlorine sanitizer packs, like Well Safe
about $45
Pre-measured calcium hypochlorite, which is 65 to 75% available chlorine in pellet or powder form. Easier than jug math and made for potable wells, and still chlorine chemistry: one standard dose for a typical well rather than yours, the same pH and biofilm limits as bleach, and the killing power runs out fast in an iron-heavy well.
A professional treatment
up to $500
A contractor doses the well for you, usually with the same chlorine chemistry, and the visit may not include a bacteria test. Full well cleaning with brushing or redevelopment runs $500 to $1,500. You pay for the truck, the labor, and the license. For a failed casing or a stuck pump that is the right buy.
This kit
from $329
Chlorine dioxide pouches counted to your well's own gallons, pulled from your state's official well record, at the manufacturer's published 20 ppm treatment dose. It comes with two bacteria tests, one before the treatment and one after the flush.
Street prices are approximate figures from public listings and change. The chemistry behind the chlorine limits and the chlorine dioxide claims is laid out, with attribution, in chlorine dioxide vs bleach, and every dosing number we use is on the sources page. Well Safe is its maker's trademark; we mention it only to compare products.
The only kit on this page sized to your exact well.
Answer a few questions about your well. The kit is from $329, with a lidded mixing pail and a bacteria test before and after. For context, a professional treatment visit can cost up to $500, and it may not include a bacteria test.
Straight answers
Are the $45 well sanitizer kits any good?
They are honest products for what they are: pre-measured chlorine for a typical well. If your water is near neutral pH, low in iron, and the problem is a one-time contamination, one can do the job. The wells they disappoint are alkaline, iron-heavy, or slimed with biofilm, which describes most wells that keep re-fouling.
Why does your kit cost more than a chlorine kit?
Because it is a different product, not a bigger bag of the same chemical. The box carries chlorine dioxide pouches sized to your well's official record instead of a typical well. It includes two bacteria tests, one before and one after, so you read the result yourself instead of guessing.
When should I hire a pro instead of using any kit?
When the well keeps testing positive after a proper treatment and retest, when the casing or cap is damaged, when the pump needs pulling, or when you are not comfortable working at the wellhead. Disinfectant cannot fix a mechanical problem, and a licensed contractor can.
Do any of these kits work on iron bacteria?
Chlorine products mostly burn the surface of the biofilm that iron bacteria build, and the colony grows back. The manufacturer of our chlorine dioxide publishes data showing it penetrates and strips biofilm, which is why iron bacteria is the problem this kit was built around.
Questions this guide answers
Keep reading
Not sure which fix you need? See every well water treatment, matched to its problem.
- How to treat a well
- Iron bacteria in well water
- Iron bacteria in toilet tank
- Rotten egg smell in water
- Coliform in well water
- Low water pressure from well
- Cloudy well water
- Rust stains from well water
- Black slime on faucets
- Metallic taste in well water
- Morning sulfur smell
- Hot water smells like rotten eggs
- Well water test kits
- Well service near me
- Well maintenance checklist
- Well inspection for home buyers
- Iron filters for well water
- Chlorine dioxide vs bleach
- Sulfur water filters
- Well pump short cycling
- Well running dry
- How deep is my well
- Selling a house with a well
- E. coli in well water
- Well water treatment
- Well inspection and checklist
- Well flow test
- FHA, VA and USDA well rules
- Well pump repair
- Well pump pressure switch
- Water well drilling cost
Well test reminders, by email
What is in well water this season, and when to test. One topic, one thing to do, with the sources linked.
More guides
See the libraryTreating a well
How to Treat a Well, Step by Step
Size the dose to your well, run it, and prove it held.
8 min read
Treating a well
Chlorine Dioxide vs Bleach for Well Treatment
How the two differ on oxidation, pH, biofilm, and byproducts.
7 min read
Treating a well
Well Water Treatment: Which Treatment Fixes Which Problem
Every well water problem, the treatment that fixes it, and the cost.
8 min read