Well water often has a distinct mineral kick that municipal water lacks. If your water tastes like you licked a penny that was sitting in a rusty toolbox, that’s usually iron or manganese. Fun fact: High iron levels can turn your white laundry a lovely shade of orange, which is not the trendy autumn look you were going for.
Another clue: a sulfurous “rotten egg” smell. That’s hydrogen sulfide gas, and it’s nature’s way of telling you your water has been hanging out with bacteria in the dark. It won’t kill you—unless you die of embarrassment at a dinner party when someone sniffs your glass and asks, “Is that a plumbing emergency?”
If your water tastes perfectly clean and refreshing, don’t celebrate yet. Well water can be clear and delicious while hiding things like arsenic or nitrates. The earth plays a cruel game: sometimes it gives you a pristine-looking drink that’s secretly a chemistry experiment gone wrong.
