#FLOW WATER PROFESSIONAL#

With hydrofracturing (a lower impact version of oil and gas methods that is actually more like high-pressure impulse development), water is sent into the entire well at a high pressure. High-pressure jetting (downhole variation on pressure washing), features a tool with an adjustable, multi-head, water-powered jet that lowers into the well and injects water at a high pressure, dislodging debris from the well. The contractor will determine this during the inspection.

Locally, other materials may clog wells, and it is really important to know, and not to guess, what is causing the issue. For example, an earthquake, construction blasting, or even just time may fill in the well. There may also be collapse in a well that closes off portions of screens or aquifer rock. Calcium carbonate, silt, clay, iron sulfides, and iron and manganese bacterial “biofouling”, a combination of sediment and deposits, are all common well cloggers. The amount of water going through the well system will drop significantly if several holes or portions of the screens are clogged. The most common is the plugging of holes or slots along the well’s casing and encrustations forming on the well screens. The video also shows where to concentrate work, making the process more efficient.Īlong with the water table dropping, which has happened in several parts of the country because of droughts or overuse of aquifers locally or regionally, there can be other reasons for reduced productivity. Problems that may prevent or complicate rehabilitation may include debris stuck in the well, casing breaks, changes in diameter or crooked boreholes. Whatever is clogging the well usually clings to the pump and pipe. At that point, the pump and its operation are inspected. There is a cost to this service, but it prevents problems later, and helps the well owner understand the well. All these factor into the type of treatment proposed and equipment to bring.Ī contractor may recommend (or require) performing a borehole (downhole) video inspection using a slim camera on a reel to observe the well’s structure and condition. Even 4 or 5-inch wells, especially if constructed with PVC screens, can be risky to clean mechanically. These are very difficult to clean with available tools. What is the diameter? In many parts of the US southeast, two-inch diameter wells are constructed and attached to jet pumps. The contractor usually starts with the well log or well construction record. A well may have been constructed “to the minimum” - have a thin-wall casing, or other deficiencies. The contractor will then run a short pumping test to check pump function, flow, water quality, presence of sand, etc.īefore proposing to start rehabilitation, the contractor needs to understand the construction and structural integrity of the well: Is it safe to apply flow, pressure, and mechanical force to the well to clean it? Larger municipal and irrigation wells typically have larger and more robust casings. If so, rehabilitation will usually work, if other factors suggest success. The contractor may start by checking the static water level: The well will often be shut off for 24 to 48 hours to see if the static level – the level of the water table in a well when the pump is not operating – returns to or gets near the original level.

#FLOW WATER PROFESSIONAL#

The following are more answers to questions concerning well rehabilitation.Ī professional contractor can do inspections and tests to see if rehabilitating measures will be successful. An alternative water supply such as a hauled tank, or scheduling when the occupants are away, is recommended.

Important points about well rehabilitation: 1) It is not always as straightforward as well drilling, and 2) it takes time, usually more than one day, and often several. Sometimes, the water table in the area has dropped and simply drilling the well deeper is the answer. Upon what does a contractor base the decision to rehabilitate a well? Several factors are involved, including the ground formation that the well is drilled in, the construction of the well, and the problem that has caused the decreased flow. Instead of the expense of abandoning the well and installing a new one, a professional contractor can often “rehabilitate” the well and restore flows that provide enough water for household or farm needs. The situation is not always bleak when a household water well fails to produce the water it did when it was first installed. This is a natural occurrence and common experience of mechanical structures. The performance (flow rate and drawdown) of water wells and their water quality can deteriorate over time. Restoring Flow through Water Well Rehabilitation

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