Landowner Guidance

Texas · Private Well Testing and Maintenance

Texas Private Well Testing and Local-District Checks

Use this guide to separate routine private-well water-quality testing from the separate question of whether a Groundwater Conservation District governs the well.

Practical guide

What should I know?

Required or recommended?

Requirements and guidance. Some items are legal-status claims and others are recommendations. Use each item's label and applicability details before relying on it.

Water-quality testing

Guidance

Texas groundwater guidance recommends annual private-well testing for E. coli bacteria and nitrate-nitrogen.

Applicability, timing, evidence, and source

Applicability

Texas private domestic water-well owners.

Audience: Texas rural property owner

System types: private domestic water well

Supporting evidence

Annual testing of water well samples forE. coli bacteria and nitrate -nitrogen is recommended.
Page 1

Official source

Check whether a Groundwater Conservation District applies

Conditional requirement

A Texas well located within a Groundwater Conservation District may be subject to district registration or permitting and pumping limits.

Applicability, timing, evidence, and source

Applicability

Texas private wells located within a Groundwater Conservation District where district rules apply.

Audience: Texas rural property owner

System types: private domestic water well

Conditions: The well is located within a Groundwater Conservation District.; The applicable district rule imposes registration, permitting, or pumping limits.

Local check required. A local authority may affect whether or how this proposition applies.

Supporting evidence

If your well is located with in aGCD,you may be required to register or permit your well with the GCD and there may be limits to how much groundwater you may pump.
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Official source

Recordkeeping

What records should I keep?

Water-quality testing

  • water quality test date
  • water quality test results

Practical next step

What should I do next?

  1. Use annual E. coli and nitrate-nitrogen testing as the water-quality routine in this guide.
  2. Separately check whether a Groundwater Conservation District governs the well before assuming state-level guidance is the whole picture.
  3. Open the official source below when you need the underlying agency language or more context.

Official sources

Sources used on this page

Verification

Verification status

The latest recorded approval for every statement on this page is system validation, not founder manual review.

Latest validation/review date: 2026-08-14.

How review provenance and source validation work

Related guidance

California Rental-Property Domestic Wells: Testing, Disclosure, and Replacement Water Read source-backed guidance Florida Private Well Testing: Recommendations and Requirement Status Read source-backed guidance Texas Septic Maintenance: Permits, Pumping, and Maintenance Contracts Read source-backed guidance Private Well Testing and Maintenance: What to Check and When Read source-backed guidance