About Well Pump Handbook

Why this site exists

More than 43 million people in the United States get their water from a private well, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.^[1] Unlike city water, a private well has no utility behind it: the EPA doesn't regulate private wells, and keeping the water and the equipment working is up to the owner.^[2]

When the water stops or the pump won't shut off, most owners are left with two options: a forum thread of conflicting advice or an expensive service call to find out what's wrong. Well Pump Handbook sits in between. We explain how the system works, help you narrow a symptom down to a few likely causes, show what's safe for you to check, and tell you plainly when a licensed professional is the right call.

Who we are

Well Pump Handbook is an independent publication. We are not a well-drilling, pump-service or equipment-sales company, and we don't sell repairs. Our guides are researched and written by the site's editorial staff; you can read about our bylines on the authors page.

We don't present ourselves as licensed well contractors or electricians, and we don't invent experts, credentials, testimonials or test results. When a named technical reviewer with verifiable credentials reviews a guide, the guide will say so and the reviewer will be listed on the authors page. Until then, no reviewer is shown.

How our guides are made

• Primary sources first. Manufacturer installation manuals (Franklin Electric, Amtrol, Pentair, Grundfos and others), trade publications, the Water Systems Council, and federal agencies such as the USGS, EPA and CDC. Every guide lists its sources, with the date we checked them.
• Safety separated from everything else. We mark what a homeowner can safely observe and what is professional-only work.
• Costs with provenance. Price ranges show who published them and when. We don't make up prices.
• Tools that show their math. Each calculator explains its method and cites where the rule comes from.
• AI-assisted, human-checked. We use AI tools to help research and draft. Every technical statement is checked against the sources cited on the page before publication. Details in our editorial policy.

How the site is funded

Well Pump Handbook is free to read. We plan to support it with display advertising and, possibly in the future, carefully disclosed affiliate links or referral partnerships. Advertising never decides what we recommend, and ads are kept visually separate from our content. Right now the site has no affiliate relationships and no sponsored content. See our affiliate and advertising disclosure.

Contact and corrections

Found an error, or have a suggestion? Contact us. We correct mistakes and note significant corrections on the page — see our corrections policy. We can't diagnose individual systems remotely; for urgent problems, call a licensed well contractor in your area.