If road salt worries you, add chloride to the test

EPA's secondary level for chloride is 250 mg/L. That is a nuisance standard, the same class as pH and iron.

For contrast, here is a utility figure. Lacey MUA's 2026 report lists chloride at 9.47 to 15 ppm across its system, far under the limit. A utility's number says nothing about your well, but it shows what one local system reads.

When should I ask for chloride on a test?

Ask when you have a reason, because chloride is not one of the items on the state's sale test. A lab has to add it. Reasons we would count: the well sits close to a road or lot that gets salted, a pile of salt was stored nearby, or a salty taste has appeared.

EPA says to test right away after a change in odor, color or taste. So a taste change is already enough to order one. Ask for the sodium number at the same time if anyone in the house watches their sodium.

What if the number is high?

Salt from a road is only one possibility. Near the bay, ask about saltwater intrusion as well. One high reading is a reason to retest and to talk to the Ocean County Health Department, and to look at the other lines on your report. New Jersey had "no State regulations for water treatment professionals" as of January 2023, the state health department says, so take your number to them and not the other way around.