A Simple Method For Drilling Water Wells With Common PVC Pipe

By Judy Sullivan


Few things are as important to maintain life as water. Even though there is an abundance of this natural resource on the planet, much of the fresh aquifers lie deep underground. This is why drilling water wells is so critical in the world today to help provide this natural resource to people so they can stay alive and flourish.

What many people often do not realize is that many times there is an abundance of it right under their feet. Most wells are no more than 60-70 feet deep and a shallow well is often half this at 30 feet. At this depth it is reasonably easy to use common PVC pipe and some elbow grease and a garden hose to get down to it.

There is typically a chance that any well you dig at this depth will not have safe water for food preparation or drinking. You should generally plan on getting any well you have tested for various bacteria and other contaminates. This is critical even when they are done by professional drillers.

The most common size of pipe used is 2 inches, but if you plan to go deeper it is generally best to begin with 3 inch pipe. Begin by starting a bore hole with your 2 or 3 inch pipe. This is done by running a slurry down the 2 inch drill pipe as it is forcefully rotated in clockwise and counter clockwise directions.

The displaced dirt and various other materials are washed from the hole with the flowing slurry down your pipe and out of the sides of your hole. If you notch out the bottom ring of the pipe to break apart the dirt this becomes even easier while twisting and turning your pipe. As you start going further down, work your pipe up and down than side to side and keep twisting it to prevent the shaft from collapsing.

After your pilot hole is dug out and cleaned up you need to have some sort of well screen for it to be serviceable. This stops the hole from filling in while stopping dirt and rocks from being drawn up the pipeline. These can be bought in many home improvement stores or one can easily be made by cutting slats in a piece of 1 1/2 inch pipe and wrapping it in burlap cloth.

The hole also has to be capped to prevent your aquifer source from contamination from outside environmental contaminant sources. This is done by filling around the pipe with gravel and sand up to about 5 feet from the top. The remaining 5 feet are filled with a concrete or mortar based slurry to seal it tightly and form a small pad for a pump to sit on.

Even if this well will not have clean drinking water, it may still be useful for items like watering the garden or lawn, washing your clothes or filling different features and pools. Basically drilling water wells inside your back yard could reduce how much of this resource you use. This often saves households money while saving the planet's precious natural resources.




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