If your rural property has a drilled well, there’s a good chance the contractor who built it wrote down exactly how deep it goes and where the water came in, and the province will show you that record for free.
Most owners never look. Then they go to sell, or they buy a place north of Fenelon Falls, and someone asks how deep the well is, how old it is, and how far it sits from the septic bed. Nobody knows.
The Ontario well record answers the first two questions and gives you what you need for the third. This guide covers what a well record is, how to find and read yours, and what to do when there isn’t one. Then we get to the part a septic company cares about: why a buyer should pull the well record and the septic record together.
The Quick Answer
| Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
| What is a well record? | A form the well contractor files with the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks when a well is built, altered or plugged |
| Where do I find it? | The province’s free “Map: Well records” page, or the open data set |
| What does it show? | Location, depth, casing, depth water was found, static water level, pumping test, date, contractor |
| Not on the map? | Use the ministry’s well record request form or call the Wells Help Desk |
| Old dug well, no record? | Common. Get it measured, check the casing and cap, test the water |
| Why does a septic company care? | Well type and casing depth decide how far the tank and bed must be from the well |
What an Ontario Well Record Is
Wells in Ontario fall under the Wells Regulation, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 903, made under the Ontario Water Resources Act. When a well is constructed, altered (other than minor work or a pump installation) or abandoned, the person doing the work has to complete a well record. Provincial guidance says a copy goes to the landowner within 14 days and to the Ministry within 30 days.
So a previous owner may once have had a paper copy. If that copy is long gone, the Ministry’s usually isn’t.
The records live in a provincial database called the Water Well Information System. The Ministry’s own notes say it includes wells built as far back as 1899, but most records came in after the 1940s. A farmhouse well from the 1920s probably isn’t there. A drilled well from the 1970s very often is.
What’s on the Record and How to Read It
Older records are handwritten, often in feet and gallons. Newer ones are typed and usually metric. The core fields are the same.
| Field | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Location | Lot and concession on older records; GPS (UTM) coordinates since 2003 |
| Date completed | How old the well is |
| Construction method | Drilled, bored, dug or driven |
| Materials log | Soil and rock layers by depth |
| Casing | Diameter, material and how deep it goes |
| Water found at | Depth(s) where water came in, and whether it was fresh, sulphur or salty |
| Static water level | Where the water sits with the pump off |
| Pumping test | Rate, duration, drawdown and recovery |
| Contractor | Company and licence number |
| Well tag number | On newer or altered wells, the ID matching the tag on the casing |
Three things to read first:
Total depth versus water found. A well drilled to 45 metres that found water at 40 is drawing from deep in the rock. A well that found water near the surface is closer to everything happening at the surface, septic effluent included.
Casing depth. This is the septic one. A drilled well with a long, sealed casing is protected from shallow groundwater, which is why the Building Code gives a properly cased drilled well a smaller leaching bed setback than a dug well. The actual distances are in our guide to septic and well water distance.
Pumping test. A slow recovery on the original test can explain why the house runs short when laundry and a shower overlap.
How to Find Your Well Record in Ontario
The well records map. Open Ontario’s Map: Well records, zoom in on your area and click the dot on or near your property to see the record. Rural addresses don’t always search cleanly, so have your lot and concession handy (from your deed or tax bill) and use the aerial view to find your buildings.
The open data set. The same records can be downloaded from Ontario’s open data catalogue. More useful to a consultant than a homeowner, but it’s there.
The Ministry’s own notes on the data carry some warnings:
- Locations aren’t perfect. Before 2003, wells were plotted from a sketch on the form, and errors crept in. Your well’s dot might land on the neighbour’s lot. Check the dates on nearby dots.
- Owner names aren’t shown. They’re on the original record but kept confidential.
- Not every well is in there. Plenty of older wells were never reported.
If you can’t find yours, submit the province’s well record request form (ontario.ca/wellrecordrequest) or call the Wells Help Desk at 1-888-396-9355 (wellshelpdesk@ontario.ca).
Check for a well tag. Look at the casing for a small stainless steel tag with a number on it. The well tag number links that well to its record, and it’s the fastest way for the Help Desk to find it. Tags have been issued for new wells since 2003 and are also required when a well is altered, so an older well usually won’t have one. No tag doesn’t mean no record. It just means you search by location. Leave the tag on the casing; it isn’t meant to be removed.
When There’s No Record
This is common in the Kawarthas and isn’t automatically a problem. The usual reasons:
- Older dug wells. Wide, shallow wells lined with concrete tile or stone, often on farms and early cottages, and often never reported.
- Driven or sand point wells. A pipe driven into sandy ground near the shore.
- Lake water. Many waterfront cottages draw from the lake through an intake line. That’s not a well, so there’s no record, and lake water needs treatment before anyone drinks it.
How deep is my well if there’s no record? A dug well can usually be measured once the cover is off. For a drilled well, have a licensed well contractor or pump installer measure depth and water level. Don’t lower a tape or weight into a drinking water well yourself. If it snags the pump wiring, a question becomes a service call.
Kawartha Wells: Rock, Clay and Lake Water
The ground changes a lot from one end of the City to the other, and so do the wells.
- Norland, Coboconk and the north: thin soil over Canadian Shield rock. Wells are usually drilled into bedrock, and septic beds are often raised because there’s so little soil.
- Kirkfield and the limestone plain: fractured limestone, where water can travel faster than it would through soil.
- Around Lindsay and older farms: heavier clay and a lot of dug wells, which draw from shallow groundwater.
- Waterfront cottages: a mix of drilled wells, sand points and lake intakes, often on small lots where the well, tank and bed were squeezed in decades ago.
Where the Septic System Comes In
The well and the septic system share one small piece of ground, and the well record tells you which one is at more risk.
The Building Code sets minimum distances from the tank and leaching bed to a well, and a dug well, or a drilled well without enough sealed casing, needs a bigger buffer than a properly cased drilled well. We won’t repeat the numbers; they’re in our septic and well setback guide.
The combination we worry about most is a shallow dug well near an older leaching bed. Picture a 1960s farmhouse outside Lindsay: a dug well by the back door and a bed across the yard, both put in before anyone measured between them. It may have worked for decades. But a bed past its life, or a tank that hasn’t been pumped in years, sends poorly treated effluent into the same shallow groundwater that well draws from.
If the record shows a shallow well or short casing, or the well looks dug and there’s no record, find out exactly where the tank and bed are. Our guide on how to find your septic tank covers the basics.
Buying? Pull the Well Record and the Septic Record Together
A rural purchase is really three: the house, the water supply and the wastewater system. Check all three.
- Look up the well record. Note depth, casing, water found, static level and date.
- Request the septic file from the City. Our guide to septic records in Kawartha Lakes explains how.
- Compare them. Does the septic drawing show the well? Does the distance on paper match the yard?
- Book a pre-purchase septic inspection. Our guide to a septic inspection before buying a house in Ontario covers what it should include, and we do real estate septic inspections across the City.
- Test the water (free, see below), and ask your lender and lawyer what they want to see.
An older system near a dug well is a negotiating point, not necessarily a deal-breaker. Our post on grandfathered septic systems in Ontario explains what an older system can keep doing and what forces an upgrade.
Free Well Water Testing
A well record tells you how the well was built. It says nothing about the water today.
Ontario offers free bacteria testing for private well owners through Public Health Ontario’s laboratories. The test covers total coliforms and E. coli, not nitrates or other chemicals; those need a private accredited lab.
In Kawartha Lakes, sample bottles are available from Lakelands Public Health (formerly the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit), including its Lindsay office, and other pickup locations. Check the health unit’s site for current spots and hours. Public Health Ontario asks that samples reach the lab within 48 hours of collection, so sample early in the week and follow the bottle instructions exactly.
If a result comes back positive, rule out the well cap and casing before blaming the septic. Our guide to a failed well water test walks through the order.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find my well record in Ontario?
Open the province’s Map: Well records page, zoom in on your property and click the nearest well. If nothing matches, use the ministry’s well record request form or call the Wells Help Desk at 1-888-396-9355 with your address, lot and concession.
Is there a well records map for Ontario?
Yes. Ontario publishes an interactive map of reported wells, and the same data is available as an open data download. Locations on older records can be off, so check nearby dots before deciding which one is yours.
What is a well tag number?
It’s the unique number on a small stainless steel tag attached to the well casing, linking that well to its provincial record. Tags have been issued for new wells since 2003, so older wells often don’t have one.
How deep is my well?
If there’s a record, total depth is on it. If not, a licensed well contractor or pump installer can measure it. Avoid lowering anything into a drilled well yourself.
Does a well record tell me my water is safe?
No. It describes construction, not water quality. Test for bacteria through the free provincial program, and consider a private lab for nitrates if the well is shallow or close to a septic bed.
Check Both Ends of the Water
Your well record takes ten minutes to pull. The septic side takes a pump-out and an inspection. Together they tell you if your drinking water and your wastewater are keeping a safe distance.
We inspect, pump and locate septic systems across the City of Kawartha Lakes, including Norland, Coboconk, Lindsay and Bobcaygeon, with no travel surcharge.
Buying a rural property or unsure how close your well is to the septic? Call (705) 702-5526 or Book A Pump.