WATER TREATMENT · 100 MIN FROM OUR GREENVILLE OFFICE
North East’s borough water draws on reservoirs, Videtto Springs and Lake Erie, and its long list of treatment steps includes pH adjustment and a corrosion inhibitor. Private wells nearby tend to be shallow and low-yield.
Serving our communities since 1967
USGS sampled Erie County wells between 1927 and 2023. That shows what is common here, and your own water test sets the size of the system.
Schedule a water test- HardMedian 8.2 gpg; 68% of 349 wells hard or very hardThe softener
- Iron33% of 251 wells above 0.3 mg/L; median 0.18 mg/LThe iron system
- Manganese83% of 42 wells above 0.05 mg/LThe iron system
- pHMedian pH 7.6; 4% of 208 wells below 6.5Blue-green stains
- Town waterNorth East Borough Water Department: about 4,601 people, surface water it treats itselfChlorine removal
- Not on recordBacteria, nitrate, PFAS, arsenicWater testing
- 349 wellsIn the USGS record for Erie County. Each well counts once, as the median of its samples.
- 251 wellsDomestic wells on file within 5 miles of North East, a median 50 feet deep.
- 100 minFrom our Greenville office by road. Same crews, same drive, for the whole area.
- WHAT YOUR TEST ADDS
- Your well’s numbers, not the county’s
- Bacteria and nitrate, which the record never covers
- Which equipment your water needs, and in what order
WHAT WE INSTALL IN NORTH EAST
The Equipment North East
Water Tends to Need.
Chatfield Water Systems is one line, with one system per problem. Your water test decides which ones you need and in what order; the county record shows which are likely.
- HARD AT THE MEDIAN
Water softeners
68% of sampled Erie County wells were hard or very hard, at a median of 8.2 grains per gallon. Your softener is sized to your own test.
EXPLORE - 33% OF WELLS ABOVE THE IRON LINE
Iron & manganese removal
33% of sampled wells were above 0.3 mg/L of iron and 83% above the manganese line. The FerronX goes in at the point of entry, ahead of the softener.
EXPLORE - ON TOWN WATER
Chlorine removal
North East’s public water is disinfected surface water, so the chlorine is still in it at the tap. The CityLux takes it out of the whole supply.
EXPLORE - FIRST, EVERY TIME
A water test
Every system above starts with a test of your well or your tap water, from our Greenville office, about 100 minutes from North East. What it finds decides which equipment you need and the order it goes in.
EXPLORE
WATER TREATMENT IN NORTH EAST
What North East Water Says,
and What We Do About It.
Reservoirs, springs and Lake Erie
The North East Borough Water Department serves a population of 4,601 through 1,732 connections from surface water. Its intakes are Eaton Reservoir, Smith Reservoir, Grahamville Reservoir, Videtto Springs and Lake Erie, and EPA lists three treatment facilities: Treatment Plant 300 and the Freeport and Smith Reservoir plants.
The reported steps cover a lot of ground. Powdered activated carbon targets taste and odor. Permanganate takes on iron, manganese and organics, and spray aeration works on organics too. The particle steps are rapid mix, coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation and rapid sand filtration. Chlorine goes in before and after, and fluoride is added. A pH adjustment after treatment and an orthophosphate inhibitor are both listed for corrosion control. At the tap, chlorine is the one you may notice, and CityLux removes it for the whole house.
Shallow wells over Northeast Shale
For homes on private wells, the state’s PaGWIS drilling record has 251 logs within 5 miles. They run shallow: a median depth of 50 feet, with the middle half between 36 and 63. Rock comes up quickly, at a median 18 feet, and three quarters of the logs that record it reached bedrock by 27 feet. Yields are low, a median of 5 gallons per minute with a middle half of 3 to 10. The rock is Northeast Shale, Late Devonian shale and siltstone.
A shallow well draws water from nearer the surface, so a certified-lab bacteria test belongs in the first round of testing. If coliform turns up, Luminor UV installed after filtration handles it; the bacteria page has more. With yields this low, every piece of equipment is sized to the well’s flow.
Borough tap or well: matching the equipment
On borough water, the system’s reported steps already cover iron, manganese, particles and pH. Two things are still worth checking at your tap. One is chlorine, which CityLux handles. The other is your own plumbing, which a certified-lab lead test answers, with reverse osmosis at the sink if it finds lead.
On a well, everything starts with a water test. USGS samples of Erie County wells put only 4 percent below pH 6.5, so a calcite neutralizer is the exception rather than the rule. Iron, manganese and hardness are the more common finds. A FerronX Iron System and a LuxSoft water softener cover those, and the Erie County page has the full county record.
The Erie County record
USGS samples from Erie County wells, taken 1927–2023: 68% of wells hard or very hard, 33% over the iron line, 4% below pH 6.5. The full record, measure by measure, is on the Erie County water treatment page.
From our Greenville office
North East is about 100 minutes and 78 miles by road from our Greenville office, and the municipalities around it get the same crews and the same drive: North East Township, Greenfield Township, Harborcreek Township. Nearby on the map:
Source: Water quality: USGS National Water Information System results for Erie County wells, served through the Water Quality Portal, sampled between 1927 and 2023, retrieved 2026-09-14. Each well counts once, as the median of its samples. The 0.3 mg/L iron and 0.05 mg/L manganese marks are EPA secondary standards, which are aesthetic limits, not health limits. Well depth: USGS groundwater site inventory for Erie County, 1,755 wells with a recorded depth, retrieved 2026-09-14.
A LITTLE CLARITY
North East Questions.
Straight Answers.
What is the lead record for North East borough water?
EPA lists four rounds for the system, for the periods ending September 2016, 2019, 2022 and 2025. Each records the 90th percentile of homes sampled as 0 mg/L, under the 0.015 mg/L action level. The borough also adjusts pH and adds orthophosphate for corrosion control. A certified-lab test is how you get a figure for your own tap.
Why is powdered activated carbon on North East’s treatment list?
EPA lists it for taste and odor control. Powdered carbon is added during treatment to adsorb compounds that cause off tastes and smells. At the tap, the step you’re more likely to notice is chlorine, added before and after treatment; a CityLux system takes it out of every tap and shower.
Should I test my tap if I’m on North East borough water?
It’s worth doing if something bothers you or you want your own lead figure. The borough’s results describe its system, and your annual water quality report comes from the water department. A water test at your tap checks hardness, chlorine and iron after your service line and plumbing. Lead and other health questions go to a certified lab.
Do you test water in North East?
Yes. Chatfield’s water test and consultation cover North East from our Greenville office, about 100 minutes away by road. The test measures what is in your water and at what level, and any equipment it points to is quoted after the results.
Talk with the Chatfield team.
(724) 588-2652A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE GOES A LONG WAY
Know Your Water.
WATER PROBLEMSDo you have hard water?
The signs, the county hardness record, and how to confirm it.
WATER PROBLEMSOrange stains from your well water.
Read the stain, the county iron record, and what to note before you call.
WATER PROBLEMSBacteria in your water.
What a coliform result means, what to do now, and which treatment follows.
YOUR NEXT STEP
Better Water in North East
Starts with a Test.
Call or fill out the form to schedule your water test. We’ll come out from Greenville, measure what is in the water, and recommend the equipment that fits.