Well water in Beaufort County, South Carolina
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Testing recommended
tested well samples in Beaufort County exceeded the EPA limit for fluoride (4 mg/L), based on public data from USGS Water Quality Portal.
1,665 test results across 15 contaminants from at least 116 wells, 1908 to 2019; chloride has the most at 478. Data refreshed September 15, 2026.
Compiled by Nick at Well Water Nerd from public records. How these pages are built
An estimated 8,387 people in Beaufort County get their drinking water from a private well, per USGS 2015 county water use. That is about 5% of residents.
Separately, the USGS national arsenic model estimates that 2% of the 8,387 people on private wells in Beaufort County draw water above 10 ug/L (the model's range is 2% to 4%), from geology and well depth rather than local tests.
What individual samples found
Each row summarizes every public sample for that contaminant inside Beaufort County. Above limit means above the EPA maximum contaminant level; where EPA has no enforceable limit, the row shows a health guideline or nuisance level instead.
| Contaminant | Above limit | Samples | Detected | Median | Highest | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fluoride 1953 to 2019 | 186 | 89% | 0.345 | 8.5 | 4 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Nitrate 1953 to 2019 | 391 | 18% | 0 | 9.6 | 10 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Lead 1981 to 2019 | 27 | 37% | 0 | 0.378 | 15 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Copper 1981 to 2019 | 27 | 41% | 0 | 0.048 | 1.3 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Radium (226 + 228) 2002 to 2019 | 26 | 65% | 0.049 | 0.6 | 5 pCi/L EPA limit | |
| Arsenic 1984 to 2019 | 22 | 14% | 0 | 2 | 10 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Uranium 1997 to 2019 | 20 | 5% | 0 | 0.095 | 30 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Chloride 1908 to 2019 | no limit | 478 | 100% | 23.5 | 14,600 | 250 mg/L nuisance level |
| Sodium 1953 to 2019 | no limit | 179 | 100% | 29.5 | 8,300 | 20 mg/L health guideline |
| Iron 1953 to 2019 | no limit | 155 | 93% | 160 | 115,000 | 300 ug/L nuisance level |
| Manganese 1955 to 2019 | no limit | 136 | 91% | 30 | 610 | 300 ug/L health guideline |
Sampled fewer than 10 times, too few to summarize: E. coli (7), PFOA (1), PFOS (1), Radon (9).
Over time
Share of samples above the limit by period. A cell needs ten samples to show; a comparison needs twenty in each period. Later periods sample fewer wells, and often the ones already known to have a problem.
| Contaminant | before 2000 | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrate | 0%361 samples | 0%14 samples | 0%16 samples | n/a |
| Radium (226 + 228) | n/a | 0%12 samples | 0%14 samples | n/a |
Closer than the county
See the sampled wells near your address
The same records, drawn around one point: which wells within a few miles were sampled and what they found, how deep the wells next to you were drilled, and any leaking tank or cleanup site within a mile.
Check my addressWhat this means
The contaminants most often above their limit here are fluoride (6% of 186 samples). A well next door can differ sharply from yours because bedrock fractures, well depth and plumbing all matter, so these rates describe the area, not your tap.
Chloride, Iron, and Manganese are widespread in local groundwater. They are mainly a staining and taste problem, but high manganese also carries a health advisory for infants.
What to test for in Beaufort County
- 1Fluoride6% of 186 local samples were above the limit.
- 2RadonMedian local reading is 90 pCi/L.
- 3NitrateRecommended for every private well, especially near farms or septic systems.
- 4E. coliAbove the limit in 1 of 7 local samples; too few to quote a rate.
- 5ChlorideDetected in 100% of local samples.
- 6IronDetected in 93% of local samples.
- 7ManganeseDetected in 91% of local samples.
Test your Beaufort County well for fluoride, radon and nitrate
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
Just want bacteria checked first? Tap Score coliform and E. coli test, $99. Coliform and E. coli are the tests every well needs every year.
Want a quick look before paying for a lab? Home well water test strips on Amazon check hardness, iron, pH and nitrate in minutes. They are a screen, not a result: arsenic, bacteria, uranium and PFAS need a certified lab.
Affiliate links: the merchant pays us a commission and the price is the same for you. It does not change what the data above says. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Where to get a well tested in South Carolina: certified labs, state programs and prices.
Already have results back? Get your lab report read against the Beaufort County numbers, $29. Every line explained, ranked by what matters, with the fix for each.
Official help in South Carolina
Two places to start that are not selling anything: the state program that answers private well questions, and its list of labs certified to run drinking water tests. A certified lab is the difference between a result you can act on and a number.
Treatment that fits the local profile
Fluoride
Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Activated alumina; Distillation
Chloride
Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Distillation
Iron
Oxidizing filter whole-house; Water softener (low levels); Aeration plus filtration
Manganese
Oxidizing filter (greensand, birm) whole-house; Water softener (low levels); Point-of-use reverse osmosis
Systems we would look at first
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For fluoride
Under-sink reverse osmosis system
under-sink or countertop, about $300
Look for NSF/ANSI 58 certification listing the contaminant you need removed.
For fluoride
Aquasana SmartFlow reverse osmosis
under-sink or countertop, about $225
Certified to NSF/ANSI 58 and 53 to reduce arsenic (96%, pentavalent), fluoride (90%), lead (99%), nitrate, nitrite and PFOA/PFOS at the kitchen tap, with a remineralizer.
For iron
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.
Free, no obligation
Get on the list for a free in-home water test in Beaufort County
No water treatment company serves Beaufort County through Well Water Nerd yet. We are signing licensed companies on county by county: they test at your tap for free, walk you through the numbers, and quote treatment only if something needs fixing. Leave your details and you are first in line. Nothing is shared until a company joins for Beaufort County, and you get an email naming it first.
Common questions
Is there arsenic in well water in Beaufort County?
Arsenic was detected in 14% of 22 public well samples in Beaufort County, and 0% were above the EPA limit of 10 ug/L. Arsenic has no taste or smell; a lab test is the only way to know your level.
How often should I test a private well in Beaufort County?
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.
Counties near Beaufort County
Closest first. Groundwater does not stop at a line on a map, so the next county over is a fair second opinion.
Want the numbers themselves? Download the South Carolina dataset as CSV, every county and town, with the sources named.
Sources
- USGS Water Quality Portal: 1,665 samples in Beaufort County. Data from the Water Quality Portal, a service of USGS, EPA and USDA; groundwater samples collected by USGS and cooperators. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
- USGS national arsenic model (Ayotte 2017): estimated share of 8,387 people on private wells in Beaufort County above 10 ug/L of arsenic, from geology, well depth and land use. County estimates of domestic well users with arsenic above 10 ug/L from the USGS national logistic regression model (Ayotte, Medalie and Qi, 2017), with private well population from the USGS 2015 county water-use compilation (Dieter and others, 2018). Retrieved September 15, 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.