Is well too far away?

EasyDay · #1 09/05/04, 07:04 PM

Greetings, all!
I'm fairly new here, but have read enough threads to know that I've come to the right place to get my questions answered.

We have a well behind our house right now that's only 40 ft deep, so the water isn't good. Totally ironized! We don't have the funds right now to have a new well dug... BUT...
1/4 mile down our property is a small hunting cabin with 150-foot well. I'm told by the previous owner's brother that the water is good, but we haven't had it tested yet.

My DH thinks that he can rig a pipeline from the good well across that 1/4 mile to draw water to the house, at least temporarily. It seems to be slightly uphill from the house, so may have some gravity feed, but we're more concerned about the freeze line.

Any thoughts are appreciated. And does anyone know how deep the freeze line is in Stone County, AR? (I see many of you are from AR.)

Thanks!

sisterpine · #2 09/05/04, 08:04 PM

i dont know where your freeze lines are down there but you could run the line to a storage tank, non pressurized in your house or shed and then pump from the storage tank to the pressure tank to the plumbing in the house. in the winter just drain the water out of the line from the well to the storage tank when you finish filling the storage tank. that way the thing wont freeze and will be ready to go the next time you need water.

uncle Will in In. · #3 09/05/04, 08:05 PM

What does completely ironized mean exactly? I have lived with wells that the water would cause any containers to get rusty inside, but it was still good usable water for cooking and drinking. A water softener made it good for washing clothes and bathing. The wells at the farms just east of us are only 20 to 25 feet deep. They have furnished all the water nessesary to support several head of livestock and a large household for longer than the natives have been on earth.
Is the well contaminated?

EasyDay · #4 09/05/04, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sisterpine

i dont know where your freeze lines are down there but you could run the line to a storage tank, non pressurized in your house or shed and then pump from the storage tank to the pressure tank to the plumbing in the house. in the winter just drain the water out of the line from the well to the storage tank when you finish filling the storage tank. that way the thing wont freeze and will be ready to go the next time you need water.

Thanks, sisterpine. That makes complete sense to me. Better yet, it makes even more sense to DH!

EasyDay · #5 09/05/04, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uncle Will in In.

What does completely ironized mean exactly? I have lived with wells that the water would cause any containers to get rusty inside, but it was still good usable water for cooking and drinking. A water softener made it good for washing clothes and bathing. The wells at the farms just east of us are only 20 to 25 feet deep. They have furnished all the water nessesary to support several head of livestock and a large household for longer than the natives have been on earth.
Is the well contaminated?

Sorry, uncle will, "ironized" was my word for just saying it has a very high iron content. We haven't had the water tested, but we plan to have both wells tested on our next trip out in Oct. Neighbor William says "it ain't fit to drink".

We asked the well driller if he could just punch it deeper, but he said it wouldn't be worth it (remove existing casing, etc.). Said it would about the same cost to drill a new one.

Neighbor W also told DH that the well "ain't never been no count". DH took that to mean that it's not a big producer, so we kinda just counted it out. Maybe we need to look into that some more.

goatlady · #6 09/05/04, 09:09 PM

Lots of folks out here have well with LOTS of iron. Nothing wrong with the water though. Just by an iron filter system and you should be good to go.

EasyDay · #7 09/05/04, 09:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by goatlady

Lots of folks out here have well with LOTS of iron. Nothing wrong with the water though. Just by an iron filter system and you should be good to go.

I know you're right, but I hate when everything turns orange. Current (new) plan (as told to me by dh

) is to have both wells tested. If the small well is deemed safe, we'll use the iron filter and make that our primary. DH says he'll still hook up the storage tank system from the other well as a backup.

12vman · #8 09/05/04, 09:55 PM

"Neighbor W also told DH that the well "ain't never been no count". DH took that to mean that it's not a big producer, so we kinda just counted it out. Maybe we need to look into that some more."

I figure the well must have produced sometime in it's life. I had a shallow well that wouldn't return very fast. I pulled the pump out and dumped 10 gal. of muratic acid into the well. Let it set over night. The next day I put the pump back in and pumped it dry several times. The return rate doubled but still not enough water to supply the house with what it could hold in the casing. I then added a storage tank with a "homebrew" cycler that would suck the well dry once every 2 hrs. and dump into the storage tank. I then used a shallow well jet pump to pressurize the water from the storage tank for the house. I installed a filter and a softner to get the iron out of the water. All of the wells in the area were bad and I ended up with the best water around.

Jim-mi · #9 09/05/04, 10:03 PM

For a pipe line consider renting a Ditch Witch trencher.
I just used one on a job to bury wires........what a back saver.
I've no idea of your frost lines down there ..the machine I used would go 24 inches deep and 5 inches wide.

mtman · #10 09/05/04, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 12vman

"Neighbor W also told DH that the well "ain't never been no count". DH took that to mean that it's not a big producer, so we kinda just counted it out. Maybe we need to look into that some more."

I figure the well must have produced sometime in it's life. I had a shallow well that wouldn't return very fast. I pulled the pump out and dumped 10 gal. of muratic acid into the well. Let it set over night. The next day I put the pump back in and pumped it dry several times. The return rate doubled but still not enough water to supply the house with what it could hold in the casing. I then added a storage tank with a "homebrew" cycler that would suck the well dry once every 2 hrs. and dump into the storage tank. I then used a shallow well jet pump to pressurize the water from the storage tank for the house. I installed a filter and a softner to get the iron out of the water. All of the wells in the area were bad and I ended up with the best water around.

what do you think would be the best material for a water tank

12vman · #11 09/06/04, 12:05 AM

mtman..

I used a 500gal. plastic tank that I bought at Tractor Supply. It was a round one that had 4 flat areas on the bottom that I set on cement blocks so it wouldn't roll over. Also, there is an area to install a valve (threaded outlet) on the bottom where I installed a drain to clean the tank out when needed. It has a large opening at the top big enough to install all necessary pipes for the system. I made a float switch with a shut-off float used in a toilet. This would shut the pump off in the well when the storage tank was full. Everything worked out well and I didn't have to cut the tank at all...

nostalgia · #12 09/06/04, 01:22 AM

I hope that hunting cabin has heat, if not you will probely need a source of heat like a kerosene stove. Where we used to live, when the weather got down around 10 we would have to keep a kerosene stove on to keep the lines on the pump from freezing. No problem with the underground lines but the lines at the pump itself would freeze up. We wrapped the whole tank in lots of insulation and had the stove burning and it would still freeze up below 0.

Just something else to think about.

mtman · #13 09/06/04, 06:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nostalgia

I hope that hunting cabin has heat, if not you will probely need a source of heat like a kerosene stove. Where we used to live, when the weather got down around 10 we would have to keep a kerosene stove on to keep the lines on the pump from freezing. No problem with the underground lines but the lines at the pump itself would freeze up. We wrapped the whole tank in lots of insulation and had the stove burning and it would still freeze up below 0.

Just something else to think about.

The cabin, itself, doesn't have water piped to it. That just happens to be where the other well is located... alongside the "cabin". It's really just a 12'x20' building with electric. We plan to turn it into a stained glass studio for DH and myself, so we will run the water in there, too. Then we will HAVE to have heat to keep ME from freezing!

Good point, though, so thanks.

Ozarks_1 · #14 09/06/04, 09:22 AM

Easyday,
The general rule around here (north central Arkansas) is to bury water lines at two feet. Usually there's never a problem, although I prefer burying them at three feet.

mtman · #15 09/06/04, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ozarks_1

Easyday,
The general rule around here (north central Arkansas) is to bury water lines at two feet. Usually there's never a problem, although I prefer burying them at three feet.

Thanks very much, Ozarks. Then, 3 ft is is! Glad to hear from someone nearby.
~Easyday

Oh, just noticed dh is logged in. That's okay. Know that we are together, "mtman" and "easyday".

Ole Man Legrand · #16 09/14/04, 11:54 PM

WE have a neighbor with a ditch diggin bussiness. He charges 30 cents a foot but you must have at least 100 feet. I have never rented a ditch digger since he went in to bussiness. He stayes busy all the time.

Nevada · #17 09/15/04, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EasyDay

My DH thinks that he can rig a pipeline from the good well across that 1/4 mile to draw water to the house, at least temporarily.

Before trying to install all that pipe I would try to drive a new small diameter well nearby. If conditions are right, you may be able to drive a new well up to 100 feet deep for very little, perhaps only about $500. Take a look at this link:

http://www.fdungan.com/well.htm

You will also need to get a double-drop jet pump, since conventional submersible pumps are too large for the 2 inch casing used in drive-point wells. Other than the pump, the rest of your system should be compatible.