Well Pump Repair Around Chesterfield Courthouse (23832)
The middle of Chesterfield County, from the Courthouse area out toward Pocahontas State Park, has both county water and a good number of private wells. This page is for the homes in ZIP 23832 that run on a well. It covers how many homes here rely on wells, the granite bedrock and the soft but often acidic water it gives, how to find out whether county water reaches your address, and where the county offices you might need are.
Wells in 23832
Chesterfield's 2024 parcel records count about 1,396 homes in ZIP 23832 with a recorded well and no county water connection. Only 23838, in the southwest, has more of any ZIP in the county. The ZIP holds the county's government complex, and its edges are ragged: Beach Road and Winterpock Road both have addresses in 23832 and in 23838. If you live on one of those roads, the southwest page may describe your area too.
Granite under the middle of the county
According to Virginia Energy, "the central part of Chesterfield County is underlain by the Petersburg Granite," the same rock the Dale and Midlothian quarries crush for stone. For a well owner, granite is crystalline rock, and the 1985 USGS report on Piedmont groundwater says two useful things about it. Water from crystalline rock is generally soft. And a crystalline-rock well's supply "is not likely to be increased by drilling deeper than about 300 feet," which matters if anyone suggests deepening a well that's come up short.
The same report calls acidic water common across the Piedmont. Virginia Cooperative Extension notes that the EPA recommends drinking water be noncorrosive with a pH between 6.5 and 8.5, that in private water systems low pH readings are more common than high ones, and that corrosive water leaves blue-green stains on sinks, tubs and laundry from dissolved copper.
What that means for pump work here
- Blue-green stains are a water question, not a pump one. A pH test from Extension's household water clinic tells you whether the water is corrosive.
- A short well may not get better deeper. If the contractor finds the well, not the pump, is the limit, ask what deepening is likely to gain in granite before paying for it. See drought and dry wells.
- Pump failures are still the usual suspect. Penn State Extension names a worn-out submersible as the most frequent cause of a well that seems to have quit. Start with well pump repair.
Is county water on your road?
Chesterfield's county water system draws its supply from the James River through the City of Richmond, from Lake Chesdin through the Appomattox River Water Authority, and from Swift Creek Reservoir, with a total capacity of 110.5 million gallons a day as of June 30, 2024. Pocahontas State Park's 2017 master plan lists a project to "connect to public water near Beach Road." Neither fact tells you about a particular address, so ask Chesterfield Utilities' availability line, 804-748-1864.
Two things to know before you call. The county's published connection fees for a standard single-family meter add up to $10,792 before any plumbing work (see the cost page). And the county's backflow manual says a well can't be interconnected with its water system, so it's one or the other at the tap.
Pocahontas State Park, next door
Virginia's largest state park covers 7,919.881 acres on Swift Creek and has a 23832 address. It holds Swift Creek Lake, 103 acres, and Beaver Lake, 26 acres, both built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s, and DCR puts it about 20 miles from Richmond. For neighbors on wells, the park is mainly a landmark; its plans for public water are its own.
County offices in 23832
- Building Inspection: 9800 Government Center Parkway. Main line 804-751-4990, inspection requests 804-751-4444, exempt-work questions 804-748-1057. Office hours 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.
- Utilities: 9840 Government Center Parkway. Main line 804-748-1271, availability 804-748-1864, connection fees 804-748-1862, water emergencies 804-748-1310 at any hour.
- Health Department (well permits and records): 9501 Lucy Corr Circle. Environmental health 804-748-1691.
- Virginia Cooperative Extension (water testing): 9501 Lori Road, 804-751-4401.
Central Chesterfield well questions
Why does my tub have blue-green stains?
Extension links that staining to dissolved copper from corrosive water, and low pH is common in Piedmont groundwater. A water test confirms it.
My neighbor has county water. Can I get it too?
Possibly. Availability is address by address, so call 804-748-1864. If you connect, the well can't be tied into the county line.
Would drilling deeper fix a weak well here?
In granite, the USGS found supply unlikely to improve past about 300 feet. Find out how deep yours already is (the health department keeps well records) before deciding.
Where do I go for a well permit?
The Chesterfield Health District at 9501 Lucy Corr Circle. A pump replacement doesn't need one; a new, deeper or abandoned well does. See well rules.
How this site helps
Call or send a request and, if the contractor covers your road, it goes to one independent local well and pump contractor; the referral is free.
Related pages
Sources
- Chesterfield County parcel data (ParcelsEnriched layer, 2024 assessment year) (homes with a recorded well and no county water connection, by ZIP)
- Virginia Energy, Geology of Chesterfield County; USGS, WRI 85-4235, 1985
- Virginia Cooperative Extension, Corrosive Water (442-665), 2019; Penn State Extension, Managing Your Well During a Drought, 2005
- Chesterfield County, drinking water and water resources, Utilities, rates and fees, backflow prevention manual, Building Inspection, Permits
- Virginia DCR, Pocahontas State Park master plan executive summary (adopted Nov. 21, 2017) and park profile
- VDH, Chesterfield Health District contact information; Chesterfield Extension, VAHWQP clinic flyer
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