Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Anybody know anything about wells?

I need to put a well in at my place. I'll need to hire a big well drilling rig- there's lots of rock and it's not like the water table is just under the surface.
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<br>1) I don't know the best way of finding where to place it for water. Do I need to get someone who does well witching?
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<br>2) My place is about 6 acres, and the house is at the top of a little hill. The terrain is rugged with large trees, boulders, and brush. grouse love it, and so do the deer!
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<br>One option is to drill near the house. The house is on top of a hill with lots of rocks, and I really can't imagine water being very near the surface. The creek is on one side (mostly innacessible for a vehicle)
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<br>On the other side, the hill slopes down. I could build a small road down to there.
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<br>The difference between the house level and the lower level is about 100 ft in elevation. My neighbor's well is paralell to this area. However, I'd have to dig a trench and pump the water up to the house from there.
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<br>Any suggestions about how to proceed? I'm not against building the road, it would actually help out for future plans, but I'm a little concerned about pumping the water up from the ground, and then pumping it up to the house.
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<br>Presently, I pump water from the creek into a holding tank, and this services the house, but I am planning on building a larger house, which would require more water, and the tank would run dry in a week, and it's a hassle to pump water in the winter, as the pipe from the creek to the tank is above ground and needs to be drained after each fill up.
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<br>Sorry, this isn't about hunting, but I respect your opinions.

All I know about wells is what I'm told by people who know about wells -- and fortunately, the friend I depend on most is recently retired as a state geologist for an East Coast state. His job, for years, was to examine land-owners' property and advise 'em where to drill for water. So here's a little second-hand help -- the best I can offer:
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<br>-- Any long-experienced well-driller has some feel for where to drill.
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<br>-- Water-witching is superstition, nothing more. Wherever a divining rod indicates there's water, there's water ANYwhere and EVERYwhere under that property. (My geologist friend was quite impressed with water-witching at the beginning of his professional career but over time learned that it wasn't at all dependable.)
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<br>-- Your provincial government may provide the same kind of geological advisory service that fed my old friend and his family for many years..

Youare coorect in taht you would essentially be pumping water vertically another 100, ft., which could effect the output of your well, But you could put a holding tank ( cistern) down at the well and then use a jet pump tp pump ut to the house, but this would cost you probably another $800-$1000.
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<br>Go to the state or what ever body issues well permits, if there is one near you and have them pull there well permits/reports in your surrounding are to get an idea of the depth. Out here it is running about $10/ft for a 4 inch cased well and more for a 6". 4" is minimum for a sumersible pump. Don't drill a well without casing. Make sure the last 20 ft at least at the surface is steel casing, not PVC. If there is a lot of rock, it could run more, but the driller could tell you, if he has put any wells in the local vacinity
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<br>I wouldn't put a lot of faith in a witcher. Fellow out here sunk three 1000 ft wells and all came up dry.
<br>I don't know about puttting it by the creek, you sure don't want surface water for your house as it could get contaminated.
<br>Anything less tah say 60 ft and you can put a jet pump in, deeper and you need a submersible Which will run about $1000 installed.
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<br>As above, you could also put a jet pump in at the well head like 2" in, 1/2" out and then put another one in after that 1 1/2 " in 1" out, to make up for the 100 ft rise to the house

The fact that you are on a hill may not mean that the water is below the base of the hill. I believe that depends on the formations in the ground. My mother's house is on a small hill and her well point is above the base of the hill.
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<br>Also, as I understand it, pulling water is the hard part. Pushing it is easy. You want your pump as close to the well as possible so you are not pulling water any farther than necessary. Once you get the water up to the pump, it can be easily pushed a considerable distance.

Gatehouse:
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<br>The fact that you have a creek may mean you are sitting near or on an area that is impermeable to water- so the creek runs over the top. That may mean deep hole to find underground streams.
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<br>If on your property you have a stand alone group of deciduous trees amongst a conifer forest that can be an indication of water that is not too deep. You can quite often pick these spots out on a slope by standing back a ways and looking at the foliage.
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<br>Anything on your property such as a ravine or downhill sloping depression that may have been an old or seasonal watercourse may be an indicator of subterannean water courses.
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<br>Well drilling can be extremely expensive and not necessarily productive. Along with simply not finding water it can be difficult to extract (sometimes found in silt or quicksand layers that you can't filter the fines out of and that eats pumps for breakfast) and sometimes not drinkable. I don't think you will run into those problems where you live though. I've had homes where I hand dug them (26 feet) and one where 190 feet got unpotable water. Good luck.
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Your county agent and neighbors can tell you how deep it is to good water. Not all water is good enough to drink. Get ready to spend some bucks on any well now days. Case the well with pipe, a submersable pump will push the water up to your house, just has to be rated for the feet it has to lift the water. Some wells are quite deep while lucky people can have good water just a few feet below the surface. Talk to several water well drilling companys in your area, that's their business and can tell you how deep and how much for where you are. I have never drilled water wells but a ton,(expression), of oil and gas wells. -- no

We put in a well about 5 years ago, I had the same questions. The answer to all of my questions was find a well driller familiar with, and experienced in your area and listen to him.
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<br>In this area the aquifer is well known by the people in the business, they know where the water is and how deep it is. In my case the aquifer is under all of my property, so the well could go anywhere. There are rules about well placement though, and the driller will know them. There�s a minimum distance required from houses, barns, livestock, septic fields, etc. The driller needs some room overhead to set up his rig, so he watches for trees and power lines. He will ask what you intend to do with the water, if it�s for household use only he needs to know how many people will be in the house. He uses this, plus the capacity of the aquifer to determine how large the casing needs to be, how deep to drill after he hits water, and the size of the pump. (Around here everybody uses submersible pumps.) If you are going to water livestock or irrigate an orchard or crops he will increase the size of the casing and pump, and increase the depth to ensure adequate water. Most areas require permits, too.
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<br>At the time, a 6 inch well in this area was $13/foot. The driller drilled the hole, and set the casing. We had to hire a plumber to install the pump and pressure tank (and controls, wiring, etc.). We have very little subterranean rock here, so I�m sure the rate would be higher if they know they have to drill through rock.
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<br>I tend to agree with Ken, I can�t imagine how a guy with a stick can detect water through hundreds of feet of dirt and rock. If somebody knows how this works I�d like to understand the physics involved �
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<br>Good Luck!
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My aunt was the 7th daughter of a 7th daughter and she could witch for water and remove warts.....but not at the same time.
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<br>Elwood

http://www.wellowner.org/links.htm
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<br>Here's a good source for well related info.
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<br>MM

Nope, but I thought all you folks that were near Whistler only drank bottled water. Or Billy Beer.

We DO only drink bottled water. But I still have to water the vegetables
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<br>Actually, Partsman, I'm sure you are aware of "Polaris" bottled water. They fill up about 5 minutes down the road from me.
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<br>Thanks for the help guys.
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<br>The tip about the conifers is a good idea...Down on the bottom of the hill where I am thinking about drilling it is thick with aspens.
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<br>I thik that if I put the well down there, I'd need a submersible pump for sure. Then I guess the question is if I need another pump at the top of the well to push water up the hil to the house...

Gatehouse, I have had a couple of wells put in and seen several more dug in various methods. Now days it takes a day to drill a well with the rotary drill method. It is also less of a pain to put casing down in the well later.
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<br>Number one thing to do is get a well driller that has a very good reputation and get references also for the last 3 years OK.
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<br>The next thing is "how much water do you really want" and how long do you plan on being there.
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<br>If staying for at least 10 years, you make sure that when he drills that well, he does in fact go all the way down to Saint Peter's Sand. Then you are sure to have plenty of water and not go dry in a couple of drought years.
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<br>You make sure he puts in the good heavy duty plastic pipe......not the galvanized pipe of years ago, some are still using it and it will get pin holes in it by 5 years down the road, thus having to be replaced and pull the pump also.
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<br>I used 1" copper pipe from the well to the house and buried it 40 inches deep for the freezing weather in the winter. My house has coppe pipe in it. Another thing to be sure of is the casing in the well, I went 100 feet down. I wish I would have used Stainless, but that is much more expensive although it does help in later years with the rust that is drop into the well from the casing itself. So I use a couple more filters a year, no big thing OK.
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<br>If the driller subs out the pump work, may sure you know who he got and find out if that guy knows what he is doing, I have seen several foul ups in the respect.
<br>I have a 2 horsepower pump in my well, it is 420 feet deep and I don't have to worry about watering stock, flowers, filling pools etc. in the dry hot weather. Most house builders will go with a 3/4 horse pump and that's ok, it just doesn't pump the water a 2 horse can.
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<br>In the midwest drilling a well is around $5500 to $6500 dollars depending on what you want. Never put your well in your front yard. It will ruin the lawn if the guy has to come back and pull that well later on, not to mention the rutts he will make in the yard. I have some of the best tasting water in the county. It sure beats that nasty tasting city water.
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<br> Geez takin time off from slicing deli meats there gatehouse???
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<br> Partsman I do not drink water at all, and I never could drink that Whistler crap.
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<br> Kokanee beer aint to bad.
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<br> bcboy

Yeah BCboy..it's SLOWWWWW...in Whistler right now. Won't get busy until school get's out...
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<br>Then it's a madhouse.
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<br>PS Water is good for you. And I usually drink tapwater, unless I'm in the city. I don;t like drinking pool water, and that's what city water tastes like to me.
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<br>PPS Stop by next time you're in Whistler- I'll send you home with the best bread you've ever had.

Gatehouse, Wells are something I know a bit about as I work with the regulation of well construction (drilling) everyday in my job. There has been a lot of good advise and some really bogus advise on wells. Some of both offered here.
<br>Water is where you find it. That said do some leg work and investagate neighboring drilled wells, stay away from dug wells they are surface water and subject to weather patterns and polution. Find out water depths from neighbors and aprx elevations in realation to your site. Be advised rock formations present real problems in finding water. I have seen wells in the same formation produce artesian water with 15 pounds head at the surface and just a few hundred yards away dry holes. if you are above a water bearing strata and a local well drill has knowledge of the area he will tell you pretty close to how deep you will have to go. But not always. Next avoid the old fashioned hammer drill rigs they are slow and the opperators often stop at the first sign of water and you may get a substandard well. I have seen many that the first strata has a very poor recovery rate when a little further down there is all the water you can use. Here in WA. ST. your well has to produce 400 gallons per day to serve a single family res. That is about 2 qt per min. recovery becomes real important in low producing wells. Rotary well drilling rigs eat rock in a big way. They are well worth the money spent on hiring one. My wifes dad was a well driller and dreamed of getting a rotary. And lastly a foot of ditch costs a lot less than a foot of well. One more last thing Water dosn't lie flat underground it can follow the coutour of the underground formations and there is a thing called a ground water mound if you are real lucy you will find one of these. Once you find water have it tested for inorganic chemicals, bacteria and oxygen. most do not test for oxygen but if you have a shallow well less than say 50 ft test it. O2 is a sign that that water is surfacing some wheres and this well is under the influence of surface water. This can be a bad thing in drought seasons or for some one else tapping into it or diverting your water supply. Beware of shallow wells. Springs are not bad but test for bugs (bacteria and oxygen) pure well water will have no 02. and remember what fish do in water.
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<br>Bullwnkl.

What's the climate where the house is? How deep does the frost go? Can you afford the drilled well?
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<br>I have dug wells myself and finished the plumbing. It's not that hard if your used to heavy work. The plumbing is easy. It's the digging and lining that's harder but it has been done millions of times.
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<br>If the frost does not go deep you can dig a shallow well where the water is and run plasic tubing to the house.