Manganese in North Carolina well water
In North Carolina, 24% of 110,182 private wells tested between 1998 and 2019 had manganese above the North Carolina groundwater standard (50 ug/L), according to the NC State Laboratory of Public Health (NCWELL).
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 North Carolina groundwater standard and the EPA limit, the same way the full interpretation does it.
Test your North Carolina 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.
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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 North Carolina: certified labs, state programs and prices.
By county, from homeowner tests
Share of private wells above the state guidance level (50 ug/L) in tests homeowners sent to the state lab, 1998 to 2019.
| County | Above state level | Wells tested | Highest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perquimans | 52 | 1,470 ug/L | |
| Camden | 92 | 490 ug/L | |
| Currituck | 1,130 | 1,700 ug/L | |
| Chowan | 47 | 360 ug/L | |
| Wilson | 465 | 2,000 ug/L | |
| Pasquotank | 54 | 850 ug/L | |
| Dare | 462 | 900 ug/L | |
| Alexander | 272 | 910 ug/L | |
| Lee | 278 | 1,300 ug/L | |
| Harnett | 368 | 4,400 ug/L | |
| Durham | 857 | 3,900 ug/L | |
| Person | 1,803 | 11,000 ug/L | |
| Granville | 1,222 | 10,000 ug/L | |
| Anson | 136 | 4,140 ug/L | |
| Stanly | 1,230 | 12,180 ug/L |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitt | no limit | 107 | 100% | 10 | 20,000 ug/L |
| Wake | no limit | 99 | 100% | 41 | 11,600 ug/L |
| Buncombe | no limit | 38 | 100% | 7.92 | 206 ug/L |
| Camden | no limit | 43 | 100% | 4.66 | 300 ug/L |
| Sampson | no limit | 75 | 100% | 30 | 260 ug/L |
| Dare | no limit | 32 | 100% | 30 | 327 ug/L |
| Duplin | no limit | 56 | 100% | 39.4 | 300 ug/L |
| Edgecombe | no limit | 65 | 100% | 44 | 140 ug/L |
| Rockingham | no limit | 51 | 100% | 45.6 | 3,180 ug/L |
| Robeson | no limit | 34 | 100% | 0 | 50 ug/L |
| Montgomery | no limit | 32 | 100% | 0 | 230 ug/L |
| New Hanover | no limit | 170 | 100% | 14.2 | 494 ug/L |
| Onslow | no limit | 57 | 100% | 20 | 290 ug/L |
| Beaufort | no limit | 59 | 98% | 50.3 | 1,400 ug/L |
| Craven | no limit | 104 | 98% | 61.3 | 4,700 ug/L |
- Smithville township, Brunswick County100% detected of 52
- Avery Creek township, Buncombe County100% detected of 37
- South Mills township, Camden County100% detected of 40
- Cape Fear township, New Hanover County100% detected of 40
- Wilmington township, New Hanover County100% detected of 31
- Federal Point township, New Hanover County100% detected of 51
- Harnett township, New Hanover County100% detected of 39
- Swift Creek township, Wake County100% detected of 43
- Fork township, Wayne County100% detected of 37
- Township 2, Lower Conetoe, Edgecombe County100% detected of 54
- Township 6, Craven County97% detected of 62
- Nahunta township, Wayne County95% detected of 61
- Saulston township, Wayne County88% detected of 43
- Township 1, Charlotte, Mecklenburg County86% detected of 862
- Township 15, Huntersville, Mecklenburg County68% detected of 127
- Laurel Hill township, Scotland County63% detected of 30
Sources
- NCWELL private well summaries: County summaries of private well tests run by the NC State Laboratory of Public Health, 1998 to 2019, compiled by the UNC Superfund Research Program (NCWELL database). Counts are tests, not distinct wells; since 2008 every new well is tested once, so most tests are unique wells. Shares are against the NC 2L groundwater standard where one exists (manganese 50 ug/L, lead 15, iron 300) and otherwise the EPA limit. Medians are not used because more than half of results sit at the reporting limit for most analytes. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
- 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.