Resources and Education
Laws and Rules
Private water systems are regulated by the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) under Sections 3701.344 to 3701.347 of the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) and Chapter 3701-28 of the Ohio Administrative Code (OAC). Private Water Systems are potable water wells, ponds, springs, cisterns and hauled water storage tanks that provide drinking water to fewer than 25 people, less than sixty days out of the year, or have less than 15 service connections. These would include single water supplies that serve homes, small businesses, small churches, small mobile home parks or communities with fewer than 25 residents.
Private Water Rules, effective January 1, 2020
Authority to Enforce the Private Water System Rules
Authority for Fees
Transmission of Fees
Private Water Systems Program Memos
Private Water Systems Program Bulletin to PWS Contactors
Guidance
Fact Sheets
- Arsenic
- Arsenic Treatment and Removal for Private Water System Wells
- Cisterns and Hauled Water Storage Tanks - Plans to Develop
- Cisterns and Hauled Water Storage Tanks - Procedures for Cleaning
- Cleaning and Sanitizing a Hauled Water Delivery Truck w Calculator
- Droughts in Ohio and Private Water Systems
- Dye Testing Wells
- E. coli
- Enhanced Disinfection Procedures for Private Water Systems Contractors
- HABs - Drinking Water Treatment for Wells and Springs
- HABs - Private Drinking Water Testing for Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs)
- HABs - Pond Water-Drinking Water Treatment of Blue-Green Algae
- Homeowner Disinfection Fact Sheet for Drinking Water Wells
- Homeowner Disinfection Fact Sheet for Flooded Drinking Water Wells
- Maintaining Chlorine Residuals for Hauled Water - How to Raise the Chlorine Level to Acceptable Standards for Each Water Load
- Microbiological Standards for Private Water Systems in Ohio
- Nitrates
- Nitrates - Treatment Technologies for Removing Nitrates in Drinking Water
- Permit Process for Private Water Systems Program - Steps to Contract, Alter, and Seal a PWS
- Power Outages and Private Water Systems
- Rainwater Cistern or Hauled Water Supply used a Private Water Supply
- Total Coliform
- Ultraviolet Light (UV) for Continuous Disinfection
- Water Hauling Tank Materials
Go to the ODH Health Assessment Program for additional fact sheets on contaminants in Drinking Water.
Required Labels for Components of a Private Water System
- Device Labels for Continuous Disinfection and Filtration Systems
- Disinfection Solution Tank Warning Labels
- Filter Replacement Labels
- Drive Point Well Label
Schematic for Continuous Disinfection and Filtration Devices for Ponds used as Private Water Systems
Presentations from Past Trainings
- Cryptosporidium, Giardia, Legionella - Myth or Fact (2013)
- Background Geochemistry in Ohio's Major Aquifers (2013)
- Methane Mitigation Procedures for Private Wells (2013)
- Proper Installation of Screens, Gravel Packs, and Grout Placement (2013)
- Developing Potentiometric (Flowing Artesian) Maps in Ohio (2014)
- Drilling Wells Under Flowing Artesian Conditions (2014)
- Impacts of Microcystin In a Municipal Water Supply (2015)
- Water as a Source of Lead Exposure (2016)
- Waterborne Disease Investigations (2016)
- Administering the Private Water Systems Program (2017)
- Improper Well Abandonment (2017)
- Local Health Department Coordination and Notification of Ground Water Exceedances (2017)
- Lead and Exposure To It (2018)
- Drinking Water Contamination in Ohio by Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (2018)
- Verifying Standard Compliance for Products and Components (2018)
- Water Well Disinfection, Enhanced Disinfection, and Investigations (2018)
- Pond Construction & Alteration Review and Inspections (2019)
- Developing a Spring (2019)
- Cistern Construction & Alteration Review and Inspections (2019)
- Ground Water Resources and Low Yielding Well Options (2019)
- Enforcement - Notice of Violations (2019)
Learn more about your Private Water Systems
- Go to Learn more about your private water systems page
To approve training for Sanitarian educational credits, contact the State Board of Sanitarian Registration.
State Agencies
- Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR)
- Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA)
- Ohio Department of Agriculture
- Ohio Department of Commerce
Ohio Associations and Organizations
- Association of Ohio Health Commissioners
- Ohio Environmental Health Association
- Ohio State University Extension Office
- The Ohio State University - College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences
- Ohio Water Quality Association
- Ohio Water Well Association
National Agencies, Associations, and Organizations
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA)
- Water Systems Council
- National Groundwater Association
- U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
- American Ground Water Trust (AGWT)
- Groundwater Protection Council (GWPC)
- National Environmental Health Association (NEHA)
- Water Quality Association