Manganese in California well water
In California, manganese was detected in 71% of 27,758 tested private well samples.
Manganese stains fixtures and laundry above 50 ug/L. EPA's health advisory is 300 ug/L; infants are the most sensitive, and newer research links elevated manganese to neurological effects in children. It is one of the most common private well problems in New England.
Check your manganese 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 California well for manganese
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 manganese
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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 manganese
Iron and manganese oxidizing filter
whole-house, at the point of entry, about $1,800
Air-injection or greensand media; fixes staining at the source.
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 manganese in California: 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calaveras | no limit | 98 | 98% | 12,500 | 170,000 ug/L |
| Kings | no limit | 192 | 95% | 72.5 | 67,000 ug/L |
| Mono | no limit | 451 | 94% | 43 | 9,430 ug/L |
| Napa | no limit | 83 | 94% | 81.4 | 1,880 ug/L |
| Santa Cruz | no limit | 343 | 93% | 26.1 | 4,100 ug/L |
| San Benito | no limit | 55 | 93% | 58.6 | 2,670 ug/L |
| San Diego | no limit | 1,509 | 91% | 20 | 9,560 ug/L |
| Humboldt | no limit | 60 | 90% | 43.5 | 4,430 ug/L |
| Ventura | no limit | 592 | 90% | 62 | 8,400 ug/L |
| Santa Barbara | no limit | 3,264 | 89% | 71 | 25,000 ug/L |
| Sonoma | no limit | 215 | 88% | 14.2 | 3,970 ug/L |
| Alameda | no limit | 850 | 88% | 25.6 | 39,300 ug/L |
| San Mateo | no limit | 33 | 88% | 55.6 | 8,560 ug/L |
| Mendocino | no limit | 184 | 84% | 30 | 44,000 ug/L |
| Lassen | no limit | 52 | 81% | 0.425 | 1,200 ug/L |
- Inglewood CCD, Los Angeles County100% detected of 54
- Hayward CCD, Alameda County100% detected of 34
- Winterhaven-Bard CCD, Imperial County100% detected of 32
- West Santa Cruz CCD, Santa Cruz County100% detected of 33
- Lompoc CCD, Santa Barbara County99% detected of 1,353
- Compton CCD, Los Angeles County99% detected of 73
- San Joaquin-Tranquillity CCD, Fresno County99% detected of 70
- Camp Pendleton CCD, San Diego County98% detected of 515
- Hilmar-Irwin CCD, Merced County98% detected of 45
- San Andreas CCD, Calaveras County98% detected of 89
- Stratford CCD, Kings County98% detected of 82
- Lemoore CCD, Kings County98% detected of 40
- Santa Cruz CCD, Santa Cruz County97% detected of 76
- Chuckwalla Valley CCD, Riverside County97% detected of 33
- San Diego CCD, San Diego County97% detected of 347
- Long Beach-Lakewood CCD, Los Angeles County96% detected of 142
- Mendota CCD, Fresno County96% detected of 301
- Oxnard CCD, Ventura County96% detected of 216
- Santa Paula CCD, Ventura County95% detected of 42
- Mammoth Lakes CCD, Mono County95% detected of 441
Sources
- Individual samples from the USGS Water Quality Portal and state monitoring, summarized per geography. manganese counts and shares are listed on each county and town page with their sources.