Michigan private well rules
Michigan regulates well drilling contractors and pump installers under sections 12701 to 12715 of the Public Health Code, which direct the state to adopt rules and a well construction code, including standards for abandoning wells.
Who registers well contractors in Michigan
The state or the local health department may inspect well and abandonment work on private property and must investigate suspected violations and order corrections.
Within 60 days after finishing a well, the drilling contractor must give the owner a copy of the well record showing depth, casing and static water level.
Sources: Part 127 of the Public Health Code; Local health departments enforce; Well record within 60 days
Who may work on a well pump
In Michigan, anyone in the business of pump installing must hold a certificate of registration as a pump installer or well drilling contractor, renewed every year.
Michigan law lets a person build a well or install a pump on their own property for their own single family home or farm, but they must still file the drilling record and follow the state code.
A Michigan licensed master plumber may do pump installer work without a pump installer registration.
A registered well drilling contractor may do pump installation work, but a registered pump installer may not drill wells, under Michigan's well code rules.
Sources: Annual registration required; Homeowner exemption; Drillers may install pumps
Does the state require well testing?
Under Michigan's well code rules, a new, repaired or reconditioned water system must have a water sample taken after the chlorine is flushed out, and coliform bacteria must not be present.
The same rule makes the well owner responsible for collecting that sample, and the contractor must tell the owner so.
Source: Bacteria test before use
Disinfecting a well
Michigan's well code rules require a well and pump to be disinfected with chlorine, and the contractor or pump installer is responsible for chlorinating the part of the system they worked on.
The rules' table pairs chlorine strength with contact time: for example 100 ppm, using 1/4 gal of liquid bleach, for 10 hours, or 500 ppm, using 1 gal, for 2 hours.
Source: Contractor chlorinates the work
Plugging an unused well
Under Michigan's well code rules, an abandoned well may be plugged by a registered well drilling contractor or by the well owner, but a registered contractor must do it on property with a well serving the public or another residence.
The well owner is responsible for plugging an abandoned well unless a written contract with a registered drilling contractor says otherwise. Wells taken out of use when city water arrives must also be plugged.
The state or a local health officer may order a well owner or registered contractor to plug an abandoned well.
Source: Who may plug a well
Checking a contractor's registration
Registered contractors must show their registration number, county code, business name and address on both sides of each drilling machine and service vehicle.
Michigan law requires a seal reading Michigan registered water well drilling contractor, with the year of registration, next to the registration number on the drilling machine.
Sources: Look for the number on the truck; State seal on drilling rigs
Common questions
Does Michigan require private well owners to test their water?
Only after well work. Michigan's well code requires a new, repaired or reconditioned water system to have a water sample taken once the chlorine is flushed out, with no coliform bacteria present, and the owner collects that sample.