Need advice about adding a well.

[dmccarty]

The real question you have to answer, is how deep will the well have to be to hit water? Nearby wells can give you a clue.

You could run solar to run the pump. Even if the pump only brought up a small amount of water per day if you have enough water storage that might be all you need.

Solar should be able run a pump to pressurize the drip lines as well.

With solar or a generator you will need to secure as best you can the equipment.

You have some options but I think what you do will depend on how much each option is gong to cost.

Later,
dan

 

[creekbend]

The other members have offered excellent advice in regards to several methods. My only two suggestions are these:: Depending on the depth of the main aquifer in your area, I would suggest you dig your well deeper than your present needs. There are many times that water tables decrease due to rainfall;etc. Another suggestion is: If you decide on utilizing a submersible pump, be sure to not place it so far down in the well casing that it draws all the sediment left from the drilling. This will most definitely increase the life of your pump. Our well is 446 foot deep and was dug 18 years ago. The original pump is still working properly. I replace the filter around every 3 months due to the granite dust that is drawn through the system. There is still accumulation of granite particles even though the submersible pump is 110 feet from the bottom of the well. Just a thought. Best wishes.

 

[Soundguy]

same here.. we had a sediment trap and even 12ys later.. i am still dumping sediment from our well and our casing is much deepere than the element is hanging..e tc.

 

[Western]

You have to think carefully about this because he said he wanted to do drip irrigation. Drip irrigation systems typically require about 15-30 psi. 1 psi = 2.3 feet of head, so that's 34.5 to 69 feet of elevation required to run the drip irrigation system. I say this as someone who has tried to do drip irrigation via a gravity feed system: as far as I can tell, both practically speaking and by the numbers, it doesn't work.

If the water is in a storage tank or cistern, the OP can use any method of delivery he needs. via PTO pump, generator and jet pump. The main thing is getting the water out of the ground into a holding tank (If he goes that route). Bet option of course would be to run electricity, but that doesn't sound like an option here.

 

[turnkey4099]

You need to start by finding out if you can even drill a well. Some places you need official approval before drilling.

Harry K

 

[CJBOTA]

Thanks for all the input. I will only be using this system from June thru August. Also, I will never need to water the entire orchard at any one time.I have several different varieties of peaches so they go thru different growth stages. I figure I will only ever need to water two rows at one time. I don't think I am interested in gravity feed. I am thinking about maybe pumping into a 500 or 1000 gallon holding tank then pumping it out of the tank with a separate pump into my system. I will put a level switch in the tank so when the level lowers to some point the submersible pump will kick in to fill the tank. I will make sure the system pump has less output then the sub pump so the sub pump will stay ahead of the system pump. This system will not require a pressurized holding tank. I realize it is an extra pump but I don't think the sub pump will provide enough pressure to reach the furthest distances of my orchard. This is just my first idea. What do you think?
CJ

 

[aczlan]

Thanks for all the input. I will only be using this system from June thru August. Also, I will never need to water the entire orchard at any one time.I have several different varieties of peaches so they go thru different growth stages. I figure I will only ever need to water two rows at one time. I don't think I am interested in gravity feed. I am thinking about maybe pumping into a 500 or 1000 gallon holding tank then pumping it out of the tank with a separate pump into my system. I will put a level switch in the tank so when the level lowers to some point the submersible pump will kick in to fill the tank. I will make sure the system pump has less output then the sub pump so the sub pump will stay ahead of the system pump. This system will not require a pressurized holding tank. I realize it is an extra pump but I don't think the sub pump will provide enough pressure to reach the furthest distances of my orchard. This is just my first idea. What do you think?
CJ

How much water will you need to put out at a time? How deep do wells run in that area? How many GPM will they generally put out?

Sounds feasible to me as long as your well can supply enough water.

Aaron Z

 

[TheGoose]

Talk to a local driller and get a price for a 4-6" well.

Forget a windmill, a lot of expense and maintenance. A solar pump will do everything you want for about 1/2 the cost.

Either use the solar to pump directly to your irrigation system or pump to a non-pressurized storage tank. But then you have to have a second pump to distribute the water.

Running electricty is almost always cheaper if you can get it.

 

[flusher]

My well has a 1.5 hp submersible pump at 120 ft depth. Bottom of the well is 154 ft (in the 3rd strata)and stationary water level is at 90 ft. I run lawn sprinklers and driplines about 200 ft from the well. Pressure is set at 65 psi in the main lines and about 15 psi in the driplines. The pressure tank is about 30 gallons.
My neighbor irrigates his 30 acre alfalfa field from a well when the water district limits his allotment from the irrigation canal that runs through this area. He uses a diesel engine from an old Nissan sedan to run a jet pump that operates in the 2nd strata about 50-60 feet down.
I've seen some of the English walnut orchards around here irrigated from wells via jet pumps that were driven by tractor pto's.

My 10 acre place formerly was an almond orchard. There's an old broken down well on the West fence line (probably about 25-30 ft deep into the 1st strata) along with an above ground concrete cistern with ~1500 gallon capacity. The concrete footing for the well pump is still standing. I assume the former owner(s) used a jet pump driven by an electric motor (the power lines run North-South along my West fence line) to fill the cistern and then pumped it through driplines in the orchard using another pump.

Good luck.