Home › California

Well Pump Repair in California

1,435,510 people in California get their water from a private well rather than a public supply — 3.7% of the state, against 13.1% nationally. Every one of them is their own water utility.

The short of it

Private wells serve 1,435,510 people in California, 3.7% of the state and against 13.1% across the country. Nobody tests that water or maintains that pump except the household it belongs to.

Source: US Geological Survey, Estimated Use of Water in the United States, 2015.

PumpDepth is a referral service, not a contractor. We connect homeowners with independent contractors. Contractors are required to hold whatever credential their state or municipality demands. Every state page sets out who licenses plumbers there and where to check, so you can confirm before work begins. We carry out no work, we sell no equipment, we do not set prices, and we never charge homeowners anything — the contractors in our network pay us when we route them a call.

What that means here

California ranks 36 of 38 among the states we cover for the share of its population on self-supplied water. That is below the national figure, so a household on a well here is less usual — which often means fewer contractors nearby who work on them regularly.

	People	Share
On a private well	1,435,510	3.7%
On a public supply	37,709,308	96.3%

Source: US Geological Survey, Domestic Water Use, and the county-level data release for 2015.

Where the wells are, inside California

A state average hides a great deal. These are the California counties with the highest share of people on self-supplied water, and the spread between them and the state figure is the point — well work is a rural trade even in states that are not.

County	On a private well	Share of population
Mariposa County	12,533	71%
Modoc County	4,533	51%
Tehama County	31,338	50%
Trinity County	5,753	44%
Lake County	27,596	43%
Alpine County	405	36%
Lassen County	11,355	36%
Siskiyou County	14,775	34%

What goes wrong, and in what order to check it

The fault list on a private well is short, and most of it is above ground where you can see it. Nothing at the tap is usually power or the pressure switch before it is ever the pump. Rapid on-off cycling is almost always the pressure tank. A pump that will not stop is a leak, a worn pump, or a well that cannot keep up — and it is the one to act on quickly, because all three destroy the pump while they continue.

Whether the pump is in the well or in your basement changes what any of that costs in labor, which is why a contractor rules out the easy-to-reach parts first.

Nobody is testing this water but you

A public supply is sampled constantly and reports to its customers once a year. A private well reports to nobody. Penn State Extension recommends testing annually for total coliform and E. coli, adding pH and total dissolved solids every three years, and having the well professionally inspected every ten.

The same guidance treats a fall of 25% or more in yield as the point at which rehabilitation is in order rather than replacement.

Source: Penn State Extension, Water Well Maintenance and Rehabilitation.

Checking a plumber in California

California licenses are issued by the Contractors State License Board, which publishes a public search you can use before work begins. California licenses the C-36 plumbing contractor; there is no state journeyman license.

On a well, nobody else is going to notice it failing.If the pressure has gone or the pump is cycling, that is worth a call today rather than next week. We route to contractors who work on wells specifically and cover your area, matched on the ZIP code you give, and you are never charged. Nor does it have to be the well; any plumbing work is routed the same way.

Call (888) 493-0912