Chloride in Virginia well water
In Virginia, chloride was detected in 100% of 3,508 tested private well samples.
Chloride mainly comes from road salt and water softener discharge. Above 250 mg/L water tastes salty and corrodes plumbing. Rising chloride in a well usually means road salt is reaching the aquifer.
Check your chloride number
Type the value from your lab report. It is compared to the EPA limit, the same way the full interpretation does it.
Test your Virginia well for chloride
Certified lab analysis of your own tap water, bottles and prepaid return shipping included. The Essential well panel covers arsenic, uranium, nitrate, lead, copper, manganese, iron, sodium and bacteria; radon and PFAS are add-ons.
Order the Tap Score well water test kit, from $209Already tested? Upload the report
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Systems that remove chloride
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Some links below are affiliate links. If you buy through one, the merchant pays us a commission at no extra cost to you. It does not change which products we list or what the data says.
For chloride
Under-sink reverse osmosis system
under-sink or countertop, about $300
Look for NSF/ANSI 58 certification listing the contaminant you need removed.
Rather have it installed and sized for your well? Book a free in-home water test with a licensed local company.
Where to get a well tested for chloride in Virginia: certified labs, state programs and prices.
By county, from individual samples
Public monitoring samples against the EPA limit; counties with at least 30 samples.
| County | Above EPA limit | Samples | Detected | Median | Highest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| York | no limit | 102 | 100% | 72 | 2,600 mg/L |
| Augusta | no limit | 45 | 100% | 4.88 | 43.5 mg/L |
| Buchanan | no limit | 91 | 100% | 6 | 370 mg/L |
| Caroline | no limit | 37 | 100% | 2.86 | 78.6 mg/L |
| Charles City | no limit | 42 | 100% | 14.9 | 210 mg/L |
| Chesapeake | no limit | 136 | 100% | 226 | 18,500 mg/L |
| Fairfax | no limit | 65 | 100% | 11.8 | 209 mg/L |
| Gloucester | no limit | 51 | 100% | 290 | 2,680 mg/L |
| Isle of Wight | no limit | 61 | 100% | 6.4 | 268 mg/L |
| James City | no limit | 379 | 100% | 55.5 | 3,190 mg/L |
| King George | no limit | 67 | 100% | 5.6 | 2,100 mg/L |
| King William | no limit | 83 | 100% | 3 | 256 mg/L |
| Lancaster | no limit | 37 | 100% | 10 | 390 mg/L |
| Loudoun | no limit | 40 | 100% | 8.35 | 360 mg/L |
| New Kent | no limit | 44 | 100% | 4.22 | 138 mg/L |
- Chesapeake, Chesapeake County100% detected of 136
- Newport News, Newport News County100% detected of 124
- District 5, Northumberland County100% detected of 35
- District 1, Northampton County100% detected of 114
- District 2, Northampton County100% detected of 35
- Hurricane district, Buchanan County100% detected of 65
- Roberts district, James City County100% detected of 109
- Berkeley district, James City County100% detected of 87
- Stonehouse district, James City County100% detected of 83
- Jamestown district, James City County100% detected of 60
- Powhatan district, James City County100% detected of 40
- West Point district, King William County100% detected of 51
- Acquinton district, King William County100% detected of 31
- Gainesville district, Prince William County100% detected of 36
- District 6, Accomack County100% detected of 35
- District 3, Accomack County100% detected of 35
- District 1, York County100% detected of 39
- District 4, York County100% detected of 37
- Central district, Rockingham County100% detected of 168
- Virginia Beach, Virginia Beach County100% detected of 295
Sources
- Individual samples from the USGS Water Quality Portal and state monitoring, summarized per geography. chloride counts and shares are listed on each county and town page with their sources.