Hand Dug Water Well Troubleshooting FAQs

Dug Well Losing Water / Running Dry Q&A

Our dug well won't hold water but we see water in the well bottom

I have a hand dug well that is proximately 2 1/2 feet wide and 9 feet deep. I’m guessing it was a homestead well at one time because it’s lined with rock.

My question is I see you water running through the bottom of it but But it won’t hold water. What can I do stop the water from running through and fill up the well? On 2018-02-07 by Chip

by (mod) -

Chip

If the well has running water at the bottom then you're close to water, but unless you dug the well deeper and installed a water-retaining liner water will just run back out.

I would not spend anything on such a well without knowing the location (country, city, province or state, thus local regulations) and its intended use and required flow rate to make use of it = and thus having an idea what's worth doing.

Use the picture frame icon to include photos of the situation if you can.

07 by Chip

The well is located in Cynthiana Kentucky . The intended use for it would be as a back up in case the county water ever went dry or had a problem with the water in the rural area.

I’ve thought about digging it deeper, thinking it just filled in with dirt over time and seeing if that would work.

Reply by (mod) -

Sounds reasonable provided we can keep the costs down

 

How do we get water after the hand dug well ran dry?

I bought this property with a hand dug well, approximately 25' it had water in it for the first 1 years then we had a drought and this year the pond that is close by is real full but the well is dry.. The pond is frozen on top still.

Can there be away to clean or blow the water jackets to fill the well again? (Feb 25, 2016) Joe Deer Par

Reply:

Possibly, one can sometimes rod the soil around the well sides and bottom to encourage a limited improvement in water entry.

My friend Paul Galow's dad used to drop dynamite into their well to restore its water flow.

Watch out: We DO NOT RECOMMEND use of explosives to shock a well into giving more water, as someone could be killed or the well will collapse.

We have no water at our 100 year old hotel after our dug well pipe was repaired

I don't understand, I had a broken open pipe I had to repair than day go's by than it was the filters on the pump, but a few days later I have no water now. Can you help me ? The Hotel is 100 years old I live in Coalmont BC On 2012-10-03 by Michelle Cole

by (mod) -

Michelle Cole,

We don't have a scrap of information about your water system: is it a drilled well, dug well, driven point well, what? Where is the pump? I can't say that there is a relation between a broken pipe a few days ago and having no water right now unless the "broken pipe" repair has come loose again. Also if you were having a filter problem, a clogged filter can stop water flow; and a missing filter can admit enough debris into a pump to damage the pump impeller;

In other words, we'd need to know a lot more about what you've got installed before able to suggest specifics.
Rather it sounds as if you need an experienced well installer or plumber on the scene.

The article link titled WATER PRESSURE LOSS DIAGNOSIS & REPAIR takes you to a diagnostic procedure for lost or poor water pressure.

Add or Pour Water into a Dug Well?

Tip: Don't pour water into a well; use a cistern to store water. See CISTERNS, WATER STORAGE

Should I have water delivered to and dumped into our dug well?

I have a hand dug well that is 25 ft deep. It measures only 3 ft of water due to a drought we are in. Can I have water dumped into the well? On 2016-09-15 by Tammy

Answer by (mod) - No

Tammy,
I would not recommend delivering water, say from a water truck, INTO a dug well. You're likely to lose all of it to the surrounding soil. Rather you'd need to deliver to a sanitary cistern or plastic water storage tank intended for that purpose.

We had water put into our dug well and it disappeared: where did it go?

Recently purchased my home. Has a 16' deep dug well with 24" inside diameter concrete sections 4' long 4 high. We have had little to no rain here this summer so I checked the well for the first time. Dropped a tape with a weight down found 2 feet of water.

Had local fire dept fill it with 750 gal of water after an hour it was back down to 2 feet, and we used no water. Water supply seems to keep it at 2 feet haven't run out of water yet. My question is where did the 750 gal go? On 2012-09-07 by Mike Austin

We're having the same problem

Mike Austin, we are having the same exact issue. Any luck in figuring out where the water is going? by Amy g On 2012-09-19

Explanation by (mod) - putting water INTO a dug well during dry season pretty much guarantees that much of what you put there will seep backwards into the ground

Mike and Amy G:

Unfortunately, putting water INTO a dug well during dry season pretty much guarantees that much of what you put there will seep backwards into the ground. A better solution for this case is to install a cistern, either in ground or above ground, that you fill from a source (like your fire dept or a water truck) when the well is dry.

If you've not already done so, you probably should be considering water testing and water treatment as it's pretty difficult to keep such a shallow well sanitary, not to mention what happens to water that is delivered from a truck.

Eric:
People sometimes try digging a well deeper to improve water supply, but without knowing the properties of the aquifer in your area we can't guess if that's likely to help or hurt; Also, while there are some very deep dug wells, there are practical and safety limits to their depth.

We put 3000 gallons of water into our shallow well and in 24 hours it was gone!

my home and two others are served by a spring and shallow well on our property. It has been a very dry spring summer and fall. We have never had a problem with water abundance or pressure issues. Now we are out of water. We put 3000 gallons in and within 24 hours it had seeped out.

We turned our pumps off to see what the water table would do. It increased but ever so slightly. How do we know if it is Mother Nature or if there is something else draining the source - which we don't think there is as we all checked our toilets, etc - or if it is a potentially damaged pipe issue? On 2017-01-05 by joyce

by (mod) - Watch out: water delivered into a well simply will always run out: wasted water, wasted money; store water in a cistern, not a well

Joyce,

I am really really sorry to read, once again, a comment from someone who was bamboozled by a water delivery company. That's my opinion anyway.

Think of it like this: we have a hole in the ground into which, we hope, GROUND WATER FLOWS INTO THE HOLE FROM the surrounding rock, soil, aquifer: whatever is the underground water source, to be then collected and used: a spring, a dug well, or a drilled well.

When weather and site conditions are so dry that water is no longer lowing from the ground into that hole, what do you think happens if we then back up a truck and pour water into the dry hole?

The answer is that that WATER POURED INTO THE DRY HOLE FROM AN EXTERNAL SOURCE FLOWS BACK OUT of the hole INTO THE DRY AQUIFER soil, or whatever surrounds the dry hole.

If you want to have a reserve of water for dry periods, a reserve that can be filled from an external source (roof drainage or a water truck for example) then you need to construct a water tight cistern.

Can I store rainwater in a dug well?

We have a hand dug well from the 1900s. We live in Eastern Tennessee. My question isn't about the well itself but the rain water catchment system,

it has a cistern that flows into another small well and into the deeper well. I'm confused on the system and id like to get it working again but cant find any books on the subject. could you help me find information? (Sept 10, 2015) Melissa

Reply: probably not

Melissa

A rainwater harvesting system needs to store water in a water-tight cistern or container; sending rainwater into a dug well is likely to send that water onwards into soils around the well.

I'd need to understand more about what you're using and what's installed to be able to be more specific. Our CONTACT link at page bottom includes an email to which you can send photos.

See details at

CISTERN & RAINWATER HARVEST SYSTEMS

RAINWATER STORAGE CISTERNS

CISTERN & RAINWATER HARVEST SYSTEMS

GREYWATER RE-USE & RAINWATER COLLECTION SYSTEMS

 

Dug well runs dry in summer - can I have a water truck deliver water into my well?

(Sept 5, 2012) Corey M said:
I have a dug well that is just over 30ft deep. Due to an unusually dry summer I have had my well run dry several times (four teenage daughters!) the pump recently burnt out and I had to replace it and the pressure switch (30-50).

I have been able to refill the well using 45gal drums with municipal water, but I would like to know if I can install one of the drums as an indoor emergency storage tank close to the pressure tank in the basement and some sort of "Y" gated valve to manually switch between the well and the indoor tank.

That way I could still at least have water in the system to allow flushing toilets or running limited amounts of laundry or dish washing while the well replenishes itself.

Reply: not a good idea

Corey, pouring water back into a dried out water well to "refill it" is probably not useful and provides no lasting relief, and will perhaps lose and thus waste some of the water poured therein.

To install an emergency water system you could indeed feed your local water pump from water drawn from the 45-g steel drum, though it's not going to last very long.

I'd give some thought to a larger water storage tank installed in the building or outside above or on top of the building if the structure permits; when you have water in your well, even if it's at a very slow recovery rate, you can use it to slowly fill the larger storage tank that will act as a buffer to give functional water when you need it, recovering slowly when water is not being used.

Dug Well Collapse Repair / Prevention FAQs

Our Old Water Well is Collapsing - What Should We Do?

Do you know of a geotechnical engineer near Screven County Georgia that can assist me in determining what to do with my situation? From what I have been told in the past, there was an old well in my front yard; Very old.

In about 1970 my father walked past it, heard rushing water and the dirt that had been used to "fill it in" fell out the bottom. You could see down about 20-30 feet in the earth. So my father filled in this well with a brick chimney and for years it was fine.

In the last 6 months, the earth has begun to fall again in that area. We added some more soil. That soil is falling lower and lower.

I don't know who to contact in this area that has any expertise in this area. Do you know who to contact? - D.L., Georgia

Reply: Put Immediate Safety First where a Collapsing Well is Found

A competent onsite inspection by an expert usually finds additional clues that help accurately diagnose a problem around the well or at your site, including possible subsidence due to a sink hole or other similarly dangerous events.

If there are sinkhole or soil collapse risks the hazards are greater than just a problem with the well or with local groundwater contamination. It wasn't clear if you are asking about a drilled well or a hand dug well.

Watch out: First: rope off or cover or otherwise prevent anyone from walking anywhere close to the present collapsing well. The safety hazards of soil collapse around a dug well are still more worrisome and dangerous as they could result in someone falling into the opening - risking a fatality.

That said, you will want to

• Check with your local building department or cooperative extension to ask about soil formations, subsidences, and well collapses in your neighborhood
• If there is any indication that such problems are found in your area, just as you suggested, you will want to consult with a geotechnical engineer is the most competent way to assess your site and well.
• Although we cannot make an individual recommendation, your county or state officials or even local engineering firms should be able to recommend a qualified person who is closest to your home.
• See WELL RINGS: WHEN TO USE or OMIT

What do we do to prevent the dug well from collapsing

We need to change the waterline going from our pump to our hand dug stone well. Is there something you can put in the well to stop it from collapsing? July 8, 2016) Anonymous

Reply:

Yes, Anonymous: depending on the well's diameter, if its walls are not already safe and secure, you could insert pre-cast concrete well rings into the well to form safe sides.

At the end of the article series given above you'll see a live link

to WELL RINGS: WHEN TO USE or OMIT

Dug Well Abandonment Procedure & Safety FAQs

Tell me how to abandon a dug well

We have a 30" ID concrete-lined hand-dug well that is ~ 20' deep. It has become non-productive during the dry season, so we are considering filling it in. Does it matter if it is filled in with gravel or soil? We were thinking about a 4" RC slab six feet below ground and installing a septic tank. Your thoughts please. (June 21, 2015) Theodore

Reply:

Gravel and rubble should be used enough that you don't have a later subsidence problem if poorly-compacted soil alone is used to fill in an abandoned well.

Dug Well Caps & Covers FAQs

Do we need an air-tight cover for a dug well

Does a dug well with a single jet pump need to have a air tight top? (June 23, 2015) Anonymous

Reply:

No. It's common for there to be an air vent; the top may not need to be air tight but it should not allow surface runoff into the well.

Watch out: be sure that the well has a child-safe cover that will prevent anyone from falling into the well. It doesn't have to be airtight but it has to be strong-enough and secured in place.

Dug Well Pump Installation / Troubleshooting FAQs

What do I do if my dug well has water but the pump won't send water to the house?

I have a 25 feet dug well new pump new water tank was going good for two years well went dry 7, times we have water now but the problem is getting no water in the house What is wrong I need water please help (Sept 27, 2015) Anonymous

Reply:

I need more information as I don't have a clue about symptoms at your well. It sounds as if your pump is not working.

We give detailed diagnosis and repair steps at

• WATER PUMP WON'T START
• WATER PUMP WONT STOP RUNNING

Dug Well Sanitation / Potability FAQs

Tip: See the procedures at DUG WELL CLEANING, DISINFECTION, SANITATION PROTECTION

We bleached the water in our dug well and now it smells

I have a hand dug well that is 20-25 feet deep, we bought the house 5 years ago and have not had a problem. We do laundry and all our household things and have no problem with it running out of water, but my son told me to put bleach in the well and now I have a problem with the water smelling terrible, please tell me what to do? (Oct 10, 2015) Anonymous

Reply:

If you over-dosed the well with bleach you will probably have to nearly empty it out and allow it to recover.

See CHLORINE HAZARDS in WATER

Also see CLEANING & DINSINFECTING WATER CISTERNS AFTER FLOODS & HEAVY RAINS [PDF] U.S. CDC

Phuket water studies - is our well water safe to drink?

Thank you for feedback and info sources regarding Phuket water & studies. (I have homework! Lol)
I will share with neighbors. I guess avoid ingesting is the best solution.

Last question:
Is Phuket well water at least safe to shower/bathe in? And wash dishes? Thank you. On 2016-09-15 by Sky

Reply by (mod) -

Sky I've posted what information we could find in the article HAND DUG WELL WATER in PHUKET.

If you decide to have your water tested, if you have any information or comment from a water testing service that serves Phuket, or if you decide to and can make use of reverse osmosis or other water treatment, do keep me posted. Daniel

 

How do we correct brownish water from our hand dug well

I have a hand dug well. At times it may be a brownish color. I'd like to know what is suggested for filtering to the point where i can use it to wash dishes and bath. It is not for consumption. I've been told the brownish color is decay from ground leaves etc. (May 23, 2016) Henry

Reply:

Henry

Some brown contaminants are silt that an e filtered but others can be from iron or from such fine particles in the water (or chemicals ) such as the decaying leaf theory that most filters won't do much.

Try a charcoal filter and a chlorinator but first perhaps have the water tested so we know for sure what we're trying to filter.

Clear the leaves and organic debris from the well and from its water source. Have the water tested so that we know its safety.

Follow the procedures we detail at DUG WELL CLEANING & DUG WELL DISINFECTION