Alabama labs
Two paths are independently verified for private wells: (1) ADPH county health departments and the Bureau of Clinical Laboratories (BCL) for bacteriological testing (total coliform / E. coli) — kits from your county health department or BCL Prattville; (2) ADEM-certified drinking water laboratories for chemical / nitrate / metals testing when a lab will take a private-well sample — ADEM explicitly says consumers may use certified labs to test private wells, but commercial acceptance is unknown unless you verify with the lab. The table below lists 10 in-state commercial / independent laboratories from ADEM’s Certified Bacteriological Laboratories (Revised October 30, 2023) and In-State Certified Chemical Laboratories (Revised November 6, 2023) PDFs. Municipal and water-system plant labs are omitted. Call before you collect water.
What we could and could not verify
- ADEM Bacteriological PDF revised October 30, 2023; In-State Chemical PDF revised November 6, 2023. Out-of-state chemical and PFAS PDFs updated October 3, 2025 — newer, but out-of-state rows are omitted from the main table (same pattern as KY/GA).
- ADEM’s hub states these lists contain both commercial labs and water-system labs. Municipal / utility / plant labs omitted from the commercial table. ADPH BCL Prattville and Mobile Branch appear on the bacteriological PDF but are documented only in the verified path below.
- In-state commercial / independent labs tabulated: 10. Houston County Regional Water Lab omitted (county regional water lab). All out-of-state chemical and all PFAS-list labs omitted — use the official PDFs.
- Verified private-well path: ADPH / county health department / BCL bacterial testing only. ADPH BCL does not perform chemical analysis of private well water (private-water instructions, Rev. 05-24).
- Commercial private-well acceptance: unknown for every commercial row — call first. ADEM says consumers may use certified labs to test private wells.
- ADPH URLs
/about/health-departments.htmland/about/locations.html(linked from ADPH Well Water) returned soft-404 pages at retrieve time (HTTP 200 with a 404 body). Use the ACES county list and call your county health department. - Pace Analytical National Decatur address/phone differ between the two ADEM PDFs — both shown. Southern Environmental Testing Florence street printed “Norhtington” on the chemical PDF.
- Prices intentionally omitted. BCL instructions say the fee is currently waived for each private water sample — confirm current policy with ADPH / your county.
Verified for private well owners
ADPH county health department / Bureau of Clinical Laboratories — bacterial testing
ADPH Well Water · Private water collection instructions (PDF) · Bureau of Clinical Laboratories
ADPH says about 800,000 Alabamians (about 20% of the state) depend on private wells, and that if you get drinking water from your own well, you are responsible for ensuring it is safe. For bacteriological testing you may call your county health department and request that an environmentalist collect the sample (there may be a collection fee), or collect the specimen yourself using sterilized bottles from your local county health department or BCL.
Prattville Laboratory: 204 Legends Court, Prattville, AL 36066 (courier / UPS / FedEx); P.O. Box 1000, Prattville, AL 36067 (USPS). Phones on the instructions form: (334) 290-3201 · form header (334) 290-6130. Bacteriological PDF also lists Prattville Branch Laboratory contact (334) 260-3400.
Mobile Division Laboratory: 757 Museum Drive, Mobile, AL 36608 · (251) 344-6049.
Samples are tested for total coliform bacteria (including E. coli). Deliver during normal work hours Monday through Thursday, 7:30 am – 4:00 pm. Samples will not be tested if over 30 hours old when received. Delivery is the individual’s responsibility. Guidance: Bureau of Environmental Services staff at a local county health department or the RSA Tower (Montgomery) (334) 206-5373.
Important: The Bureau of Clinical Laboratories does not perform any chemical analysis of private well water. The water test report is designed to meet ADEM and EPA specifications; ADPH notes it does not meet regulatory or financial-institution requirements such as mortgage. The instructions PDF states the fee is currently waived for each private water sample — confirm current policy with ADPH or your county. This directory does not publish a statewide price.
County finder: ADPH’s linked locations / county health department and health-departments URLs soft-404’d at retrieve time. Use the working ACES county health department list instead, or search your county’s ADPH office.
Chemical / nitrate / metals — ADEM-certified labs (call first)
ACES advises that for more comprehensive tests (e.g., nitrates or alkalinity) you may need to reach out to a certified drinking water lab and ask what they offer private well owners. ADEM’s laboratory certification program page states: “Consumers may also consider the use of a certified laboratory to test private wells.” Contact: Drinking Water Branch (334) 271-7773.
None of the commercial rows below are independently verified on this directory for private-well acceptance — mark unknown and call first. Do not invent mail-in kits or prices.
In-state commercial laboratories on ADEM certified lists
Call to confirm they still hold certification for the tests you need, that they will take your private-well sample, and how to ship or drop off. 0 of 10 commercial rows are independently verified for private-well acceptance. Municipal / utility plant labs, ADPH BCL branch labs, Houston County Regional Water Lab, and all out-of-state labs omitted.
| Laboratory | City | Address | Phone | ADEM list(s) | Certification (PDF) | Accepts private wells? | Mail / drop-off |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Environmental Resource Analysts | Auburn | 2975 Brown Court Auburn, AL 36830 | (334) 502-3444 | Bacteriological, In-State Chemical | Bacteriological, Chemical | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Guardian Systems | Leeds | 1108 Ashville Road Leeds, AL 35094 | (205) 699-6647 | Bacteriological, In-State Chemical | Bacteriological, Chemical | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Living Water Services | Alabaster | 150 Piper Lane Alabaster, AL 35007 | (205) 985-2113 | Bacteriological | Bacteriological | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Pace Analytical National Decatur | Decatur | Bacteriological PDF: 2220 Beltline Road SW Decatur, AL 35601; In-State Chemical PDF: 1313 Point Mallard Parkway Suite B Decatur, AL 35601 | Bacteriological PDF: (256) 350-0846; In-State Chemical PDF: (615) 773-9657 | Bacteriological, In-State Chemical | Bacteriological, Chemical | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Pace Analytical Services | Tuscaloosa | 3516 Greensboro Avenue Tuscaloosa, AL 35401 | (205) 345-0816 | Bacteriological | Bacteriological | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Pace Analytical Services - Mobile | Mobile | 4320 Midmost Drive Mobile, AL 36609 | 504-305-3611 | Bacteriological | Bacteriological | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Polyenvironmental Corporation | Dothan | 1885 Headland Avenue Dothan, AL 36303 | (334) 793-4700 | Bacteriological | Bacteriological | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Southern Environmental Testing - Decatur | Decatur | 2919 Fairground Road SW Decatur, AL 35603 | (256) 280-2577 | In-State Chemical | Chemical | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Southern Environmental Testing - Florence | Florence | 3103 Northington Court Florence, AL 35630 (Bacteriological PDF spelling); In-State Chemical PDF prints “Norhtington” | (256) 740-5532 | Bacteriological, In-State Chemical | Bacteriological, Chemical | unknown — call first | unknown |
| Sutherland Environmental Testing Laboratory | Birmingham | 2515 Fifth Avenue South Birmingham, AL 35233 | (205) 581-9500 | In-State Chemical | Chemical | unknown — call first | unknown |
Official tools if you need more labs
- ADEM Drinking Water Laboratory Certification Program — consumers may use certified labs for private wells; contact Drinking Water Branch (334) 271-7773.
- Certified Bacteriological Labs PDF (Revised October 30, 2023).
- In-State Certified Chemical Labs PDF (Revised November 6, 2023).
- Out-of-State Certified Chemical Labs PDF (Revised October 03, 2025) — omitted from the table above; use the PDF if you need an out-of-state lab.
- Certified PFAS Labs PDF (Updated October 03, 2025; EPA Method 537.1) — all labs on this PDF are out-of-state; cite only.
- ADPH Well Water · Private water instructions PDF · ADPH BCL.
- ACES — Where to Get Your Well Water Tested (includes county health department contacts).