Need three estimates to hook up to public water?
If the Environmental Claims Administration wrote to you about your well, somewhere in that letter it asked for three estimates to connect the house to the water main. We give you one of the three. Written, itemized, free, and put together the way a claim reviewer wants to read it. Seven counties, our own machines, and we answer our own phone.
The short answer
New Jersey's Spill Compensation Fund can pay to connect a home to public water when a private well has been contaminated by a discharge. NJDEP's Environmental Claims Administration decides eligibility, and its claim guidelines for contaminated private wells say that if a water line is available you must supply three estimates to hook up and three from a certified well sealer to seal the old well. If no line is available, it asks instead for three estimates for a Point-of-Entry Treatment system. Claims are due within one year of discovering the damage. We bid the hook-up. We do not bid the sealing, because that is licensed well-driller work.
Facts on this page come from NJDEP and New Jersey statute, each linked in place. Last reviewed August 19, 2026. We are a contractor, not a government agency. Questions about your claim go to the ECA at (609) 984-2076 or srp_spillfund_gq@dep.nj.gov.
What a Spill Fund well claim requires
| Question | Answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| How many estimates does a Spill Fund well claim need? | Three to hook up to public water, and three from a certified well sealer to seal the contaminated well. | NJDEP |
| What if there is no water line to connect to? | The guidelines ask for three estimates for a Point-of-Entry Treatment (POET) system instead. | NJDEP |
| How long does a claimant have to file? | No later than one year after the date of discovery of the damages. | NJDEP |
| Who decides whether a claim is paid? | NJDEP's Environmental Claims Administration, after it completes its investigation. | NJDEP |
| Who is allowed to seal the well? | A New Jersey licensed well driller. Decommissioning is regulated under N.J.A.C. 7:9D. | NJDEP |
It is how the Fund checks that a price is reasonable
The Spill Compensation Fund exists under N.J.S.A. 58:10-23.11 to compensate people for damage from a discharge of petroleum or other hazardous substances. Most of the claims the ECA handles involve contaminated potable wells. Before the Fund pays to run a new water service to a house, it wants evidence that the number in front of it is a market price rather than one contractor's opinion, and three competing written estimates are how it gets that.
“If a waterline is available, provide THREE (3) ESTIMATES from plumbers to HOOK-UP and THREE (3) ESTIMATES from CERTIFIED well sealer to SEAL the well.”
Two separate sets of three, in other words, and they cover two different trades. The hook-up estimates are for running the new service from the main into the house. The sealing estimates are for permanently decommissioning the contaminated well, which in New Jersey only a licensed well driller may do. Sealing the well is also a condition of the Fund helping with the connection, so the two move together even though different contractors do them.
If it turns out no water line fronts your property, the requirement changes shape entirely:
“If no waterline is available, provide THREE (3) ESTIMATES for a Point-of-Entry Treatment (POET) system.”
Which of those two situations you are in is settled by a letter from your local water purveyor confirming whether a line is available. Get that letter before you spend a week collecting the wrong kind of bids.
New Jersey sources: NJDEP: Environmental Claims Administration, Spill Compensation Fund · NJDEP ECA: Guidelines for Completing a Spill Fund Claim Application for Contaminated Private Wells (PDF, revised 5/19/2025) · N.J.S.A. 58:10-23.11, the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control Act
What the ECA asks a claimant to gather
Straight off NJDEP's own claim guidelines for contaminated private wells, in their order. This is the homeowner's side of the file, not the whole application. The form itself and the full instructions come from the ECA.
1. Water test results
Copies of your results from a New Jersey certified water-testing laboratory. This is what establishes there is contamination at all.
2. Proof you own the property
A copy of your current tax bill or your deed.
3. Whether a water line is available
You have to state whether a public water line fronts or runs near your property. Your water purveyor confirms this in writing, and that letter is what decides which set of estimates you need.
4. Three estimates to hook up
If a line is available, three separate written estimates to connect the house to public water. This is the part we bid.
5. Three estimates to seal the well
Three separate written estimates from a certified well sealer to seal and decommission the contaminated well. Sealing is a licensed well-driller activity in New Jersey, so these come from a licensed well contractor, not from us.
6. A notarized signature
The certification on the last page has to be signed in front of a Notary Public or an Attorney at Law.
7. Proof of mailing
NJDEP asks that the claim go by certified mail, or another method that gives you a receipt showing the date it was mailed and the date it was delivered.
The one-year clock
“Perspective Claimants shall submit any claims to the Department no later than ONE (1) year after the date of discovery (of damages).”
For most people the date of discovery is the date of the lab result that showed the contamination. If you are close to that line, call the ECA at (609) 984-2076 before you spend time gathering estimates. Get the forms from NJDEP's claim forms page.
What our hook-up estimate covers
Written and itemized, so you can hold it against the other two and compare like for like. That is usually the real problem once three numbers are sitting on the kitchen table: they are rarely quoting the same scope.
The run from the main to the house
Tapping the water main or the curb stop, and the new service line from there into the building. This is the bulk of the work and the bulk of the number.
The licensed plumbing connection
The connection at the house and the meter set is licensed plumbing work. We do the service line and coordinate the licensed plumber on the connection, so the estimate covers the whole path rather than stopping at the foundation.
Markouts, permits, and the road opening
Utility markouts get called on every job and we wait for the marks. Road opening or right-of-way permits from the town or county, and the water purveyor's own connection permit and inspection, are part of the job rather than a surprise later.
Boring under what you do not want dug
Driveways, walkways, patios, and mature landscaping get bored under where the layout allows, so the surface stays in one piece.
Backfill and restoration
Compacted backfill, topsoil, and seed on the disturbed ground, and the road or driveway put back to the town's specification where we opened it.
A written estimate that itemizes
Broken out by line item so the ECA reviewer, and you, can see exactly what is being charged for. A one-line number is hard for anyone to evaluate.
What we do not do
We do not seal wells. Sealing and decommissioning a well in New Jersey is licensed well-driller work under N.J.A.C. 7:9D, and that is a different license from ours. Your three sealing estimates have to come from a certified well sealer, and an estimate from us would not satisfy that part of the claim. Ask and we will point you toward licensed well contractors working in your county.
We also cannot tell you whether your claim will be paid. That is the ECA's decision after its investigation, and NJDEP notes that filing a claim does not by itself preserve your rights against whoever caused the discharge. Be careful with any contractor who promises you an outcome on a state claim.
Well licensing reference: N.J.A.C. 7:9D, NJDEP Well Construction and Maintenance rules (PDF) · NJDEP Bureau of Water Allocation and Well Permitting
Spill Fund water line questions
What is the NJ Spill Fund and who runs it?
The Spill Compensation Fund is a New Jersey fund created under the Spill Compensation and Control Act, N.J.S.A. 58:10-23.11. It is administered by the Environmental Claims Administration inside NJDEP. The ECA investigates damage claims, most of which involve contaminated potable wells, and decides whether they are eligible for compensation. We are a contractor, not the agency. Questions about a claim itself go to the ECA at (609) 984-2076 or srp_spillfund_gq@dep.nj.gov.
Why does the ECA want three estimates?
It is how the Fund establishes that a cost is reasonable before it pays it. NJDEP's own claim guidelines for contaminated private wells put it plainly: "If a waterline is available, provide THREE (3) ESTIMATES from plumbers to HOOK-UP and THREE (3) ESTIMATES from CERTIFIED well sealer to SEAL the well." Three is the number, and they need to be genuinely separate estimates.
Do I have to connect to public water, or can I keep my well?
If a public water line is available near the property, the ECA's position is that connecting to it is the remedy, and sealing the contaminated well is a condition of getting help with the connection cost. If no line is available, the guidelines instead ask for three estimates for a Point-of-Entry Treatment system. Which situation you are in gets settled by the letter from your water purveyor, not by a contractor.
Can you give me all three estimates?
No, and nobody should. The point of three estimates is that they come from three different contractors. We give you one of the three, and we would rather it be the clearest one than the only one.
Can you also bid the well sealing?
No. Sealing and decommissioning a well in New Jersey is licensed well-driller work under N.J.A.C. 7:9D, and that is a different license from ours. Those three estimates have to come from a certified well sealer. If it helps, we will point you at licensed well contractors who work in your county so you are not starting from a blank search.
How long do I have to file?
NJDEP's guidelines state: "Perspective Claimants shall submit any claims to the Department no later than ONE (1) year after the date of discovery (of damages)." Discovery generally means when you learned of the damage, which for most people is the date of the lab result. If you are near that line, talk to the ECA before you spend time collecting bids.
Does an estimate from you cost anything?
No. On-site estimates are free, and we will put it in writing in the itemized form the ECA is looking for. You are welcome to use it as one of your three whether or not you end up hiring us.
Will the Fund definitely pay for this?
We cannot tell you that and you should be wary of any contractor who does. Eligibility is the ECA's decision after its investigation, and NJDEP notes that filing a claim does not by itself preserve your rights against whoever caused the discharge. Our part is a clear, accurate estimate for the connection work.
Seven New Jersey counties
Well contamination claims turn up all over the state. These are the counties we cover, and the ones where we can get out to look at the run from the main to your house.
Related work: lead and galvanized service line replacement and sewer and water line work.
Need it dug, graded, or fixed?
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Call 862-268-2510