The town of Windham has agreed to replace a private well off Land of Nod Road that has been contaminated by road salt runoff.

Well owner Chris Ellis and his wife began to notice the salt problem after snow thawed this past spring on the road. Salt in the well water has since corroded a heating coil in their water boiler, ruined dishes, rusted silverware and made the water unbathable.

“It’s to the point that I can’t give my child a bath in my own home,” Ellis said.

Ellis attested that a series of ditches and culverts, which guide stormwater down the slope of the road, washed salt runoff from the snowmelt directly toward a 22-foot dug well that protrudes from his frontyard.

“The well’s not far off the road and it’s in direct contact with salt runoff,” Ellis said.

Under state law, the town is obligated to pay retribution or fix property damaged by town activities such as winter road salting and sanding. In previous disputes over well damage, the town’s insurance carrier has covered the cost of repairing and/or replacing wells. But the town’s new insurance provider refused the claim and so the issue came before Windham Town Council.

“Dug wells are notoriously susceptible to storm-water runoff,” said Town Manager Anthony Plante at Tuesday’s council workshop.

One remedy to the situation would be to replace the existing dug well with a drilled well at the cost of $7,600 paid for by the town. However, there are concerns, Plante said, about the size of the Ellis’ house lot and how best to keep the well safe from future contamination.

Tests of the well gave salty evidence to Ellis’ claim, but also pointed to a problem of high bacteria in the water. In light of this fact, town councilors asked Ellis whether the well had problems that preceded the salt contamination. If this were true, the town would not be obligated to pay for salt damage.

Ellis said the well had tested high in bacteria before he and his wife bought the house in January of 2004. However the well was chlorinated to kill that bacteria as a provision of sale. Since then, bacteria counts have been low, Ellis said, though a recent test of the well during investigation of the salt claim revealed a bacteria count of 200 colonies per 100 milliters of water.

But such fluctuations in bacteria are not uncommon with dug wells, said councilor John MacKinnon.

“It’s not unusual for dug wells to have reoccurring problems,” MacKinnon said. “It’s the nature of the beast.”

Still, some councilors questioned whether the well had problems that the previous owners either were unaware of or did not disclose to Ellis.

“I can’t imagine that this would all happen in one season,” said Councilor Lloyd Bennett. “I can’t help but think (the previous owners) might not have disclosed information in order to sell the house.”

Councilor Carol Waig asked whether Ellis’ property could be connected to public water lines across nearby Route 302. Plante said this option would be more costly and that, with the upward slope of Land of Nod Road, may not be possible. A previous reconnection of private well to public water, resolved from an earlier well dispute handled by the town’s insurance company, cost around $22,000, Plante noted.

A proposal to resolve Ellis’ claim will be discussed next Tuesday when councilors will weigh the costs and options for replacement of the well.