Well water in Bangor, Maine
In Bangor, 2% of 124 private wells tested had arsenic above the Maine guideline (10 ug/L), according to Maine CDC.
147 private wells tested in state summaries. Data refreshed .
What homeowner tests found
Maine Tracking Network private well summaries: private wells tested and reported to the state. Shares are against the level the state applies to each contaminant, named in the last column; several are stricter than EPA.
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What this means
Among homeowners in Bangor who sent a sample to the state lab, the health-based limits most often exceeded were arsenic (2% of 124 wells) and nitrate (<1% of 147 wells). These are ordinary wells tested by their owners, so the shares are the best available picture of a typical well here, with one caveat: people test more often when they suspect a problem.
What to test for in Bangor
- Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)22 leaking underground storage tank sites on record locally.
- PFAS4 unlined landfills on record locally.
- Metals panel22 hazardous waste sites on record locally.
- Manganese2% of 121 local wells tested were above the Maine guideline.
- Arsenic2% of 124 local wells tested were above the Maine guideline.
- Nitrate<1% of 147 local wells tested were above the Maine guideline.
- Coliform bacteriaRecommended for every private well, every year.
Wells in Bangor
201 domestic wells in Bangor are on record with the state since 1970. 100% are drilled into bedrock, and the typical well is 200 feet deep (one in ten goes past 420 feet).
In a typical Bangor well, bedrock starts about 15 feet down, the median yield is 10 gallons per minute, 11% of wells yield under 3 gallons per minute and usually need a storage tank.
Bedrock wells are where arsenic, uranium and radon come from: the water sits in fractures in granite and metamorphic rock and picks up whatever the rock carries. That is why testing for those three matters more here than in a dug or gravel well.
Contamination sources on record in Bangor
Maine DEP records 22 leaking underground storage tank sites, 4 unlined landfills, and 22 hazardous waste sites in Bangor, among 151 regulated sites in total. Groundwater does not follow property lines, so a well within a few hundred feet of one of these is worth testing for what that site could release.
- 22
- leaking underground storage tank sitesGasoline and heating oil that leaked from tanks move through groundwater as benzene, MTBE and other volatile organic compounds.
- 4
- unlined landfillsOlder unlined landfills are a leading source of PFAS, VOCs and metals in nearby wells.
- 22
- hazardous waste sitesSolvents, degreasers and metals from industrial sites can travel far in fractured bedrock.
- 103
- other remediation projects
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Common questions
How deep are wells in Bangor?
The typical domestic well in Bangor is 200 feet deep, based on 201 wells reported to the state since 1970. One in ten is deeper than 420 feet. 100% are drilled into bedrock.
How often should I test a private well in Bangor?
Test for bacteria and nitrate every year. Test once for arsenic, uranium, radon, fluoride, manganese and PFAS, then again every three to five years or after any change in taste, color, or plumbing.
Sources
- Maine Tracking Network private well summaries: summaries for 6 contaminants in Bangor, up to 147 wells each. Town summaries of private well tests run by the Maine Health and Environmental Testing Laboratory, published by Maine CDC through the Maine Tracking Network. Shares are against Maine's guideline for each analyte (arsenic 10 ug/L, uranium 30 ug/L, fluoride 2 mg/L, manganese 0.3 mg/L, nitrate 10 mg/L, nitrite 1 mg/L). Towns with too few tests are suppressed (NR). Only the share above the guideline and wells tested are published; no medians. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
- Maine Geological Survey well database: 213 well records in Bangor, 201 domestic. Well construction records reported to the Maine Geological Survey by licensed well drillers. Only aggregates are shown; owner names and addresses are never stored. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
- Maine DEP regulated sites: 151 regulated sites located in Bangor. Remediation sites, leaking underground storage tanks and closed municipal landfills from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
Non-detects count as samples and are treated as zero when computing medians. Exactly at the limit counts as not above it. A sample belongs to the town containing the well's reported coordinates.