NWA Area

[TristanDickey]

I live in Northwest Arkansas and survived the Siberia freeze of 2022. Only problem we had was the well head water line had a ball of ice in it where it meets the pump. The well house is 2 foot underground. Surrounded by blocks with insulation stuffed inside all the way down to the ground. Luckily no busted pipes in my house. It's a small space and was curious. Besides heat tape and a thermocube...What would be the best option for keeping it freeze proof? I had my water dripping. Guess it should have been a steady stream. According to the weather we had -30 Degree windchills that night.

 

[ljjhouser]

Welcome to the Forum. If it was dripping or slight stream (very small) at the faucet, then the water line shouldn't freeze. But if there is a leak or condensation outside the pipe or connection, that water will freeze on the outside. If there is a leak, fix it - If not a incandescence light bulb may help a lot in a small enclosed area.

Also, I always thought only the actual temperatures were involved in freezing pipes, not any wind chill value.
I live in SW Missouri. These temperatures (+5 - -10) seems to happen every couple of years. I am in Branson - all bedrock. Some of the water line can freeze. There is a place it is only 6" deep. My line seems to be ok down to about 5 degrees. I always trickle water at night when it goes below that. But if there is no leak and the enclosed well head, a good flood lamp should work at that point. You could even put a thermometer in there to see if it is warm enough. Best Wishes, Welcome to TBN

 

[TristanDickey]

We're thinking a flood lamp on a thermocube would be good for our setup. The reason i bring up wind chill is i think the roof for the enclosure was cracked letting that 30 mph+ wind get inside

 

[ljjhouser]

We're thinking a flood lamp on a thermocube would be good for our setup. The reason i bring up wind chill is i think the roof for the enclosure was cracked letting that 30 mph+ wind get inside

I think if you fix the roof and make sure everything is well insulated (maybe with Styrofoam sheet), a lamp may make a big difference. Was there a small leak at the connection? Can I assume, since you were dripping, that there were no frozen lines?

I almost forgot - many years ago we put a light in the dog house when it got a little cool and put a #10 can (food can) over it. We mounted the old cermanic light fixture and then mounted the can over it. That can seemed to radiate a lot of heat.

 

[ponytug]

FWIW: If you wire two incandescent light bulb sockets in series, you get mostly infrared heat rather than light.

I would start by insulating the pump house well, and fixing any air leaks, though you may want some air flow in the summertime to keep mold/mildew down if your wellhead isn't absolutely dry.

I really hate dealing with frozen pipes, so I go to a lot of effort to prevent them. Everything in the well house is is insulated with at least an inch and a half of foam, plus overwrap, plus styrofoam on the doors and walls.

Good luck,

Peter

 

[Oaktree]

I'm a bit surprised you had your well freeze that quickly. What type of well is this, and how is it configured? Is the pump in the wellhouse or somewhere else? Sounds like the lightbulb method a couple others mentioned should do the job if there's an easy way to get power there.

I'm in northern N.H. where subzero temperatures happen every winter, and I don't think I've ever had my well freeze. It's a shallow (surface water) well with a wood "doghouse" on top of it. It is not insulated. The pipe to the house is probably 4' underground, the inlet is maybe 3' from ground level, typically water level is to within a foot of ground level.

 

[m1garand762]

Living in northern Ohio I am used to those temps, but we were in Texas at my brothers during the freeze and it blew my mind how not prepared they are down there. I couldn’t tell you how many iced over fire hydrants I saw and what blew my mind was me brothers septic pumps to 2 sprinkler heads that essentially made a ice rink in the back yard

 

[ovrszd]

We're thinking a flood lamp on a thermocube would be good for our setup. The reason i bring up wind chill is i think the roof for the enclosure was cracked letting that 30 mph+ wind get inside

Depending on how well your well house is sealed, a 100w lightbulb will create quite a bit of heat. 50 years ago most farmsteads here had a well house. Almost all were heated with a lightbulb or heat lamp depending on their size and efficiency.

 

[TristanDickey]

I'm a bit surprised you had your well freeze that quickly. What type of well is this, and how is it configured? Is the pump in the wellhouse or somewhere else? Sounds like the lightbulb method a couple others mentioned should do the job if there's an easy way to get power there.

I'm in northern N.H. where subzero temperatures happen every winter, and I don't think I've ever had my well freeze. It's a shallow (surface water) well with a wood "doghouse" on top of it. It is not insulated. The pipe to the house is probably 4' underground, the inlet is maybe 3' from ground level, typically water level is to within a foot of ground level.

its a submersible well i believe is what my grandfather told me. 650 feet deep. the well head is 20 feet from the tank/pump and the tank/pump is enclosed two feet deep with blocks stuffed with insulation.

 

[TristanDickey]

Depending on how well your well house is sealed, a 100w lightbulb will create quite a bit of heat. 50 years ago most farmsteads here had a well house. Almost all were heated with a lightbulb or heat lamp depending on their size and efficiency.

that seems to be the best option