Water well pump kaput and can't get to it

[Alan L.]

We were having a nice Easter when our well pump quit working. The well service guys showed up this morning and tested the control box and determined they would need to pull the pump. Only problem is, it came 1.5 inches of rain last night and the service rig is now stuck in my yard. What thickness of white rock / caliche gravel should I figure on to assure no repeat in the future? Right now I don't think any amount of gravel would help - the truck is just too heavy and the clay soil which is like concrete when dry is like quick sand when wet.

Still without water - they will try to get it unstuck and continue the job tomorrow.

I found that I can take a "shower" in 2 gallons of drinking water. Not particularly pleasurable however.

 

[bcp]

Mine is 70 feet deep, using 1 1/4 pipe. I pulled it with a 4x4 tripod, wooden pipe clamp, and a hand winch since it is in a location no truck can get to (the house blocks the well access.) Didn't take long or much effort after I got a system going.

Bruce

 

[Alan L.]

When the well was drilled the driller picked the spot. I think he liked its proximity to the creek where he could pump water for use in the drilling and didn't even have to bring his water truck. When there well was drilled there was no fill dirt, no metal building, no house, no fence, etc. Now that we have all of that to get to the well head requires a trip around the septic, around the building, and the down a slope. In hindsight it would be better somewhere else.

The well is 500 feet deep with a 5HP pump. I don't believe I can handle those 21-foot sections of pipe with the weight of 400 feet of pipe full of water, plus the pump and motor.

 

[bcp]

The well is 500 feet deep with a 5HP pump. I don't believe I can handle those 21-foot sections of pipe with the weight of 400 feet of pipe full of water, plus the pump and motor.

I wouldn't want to try that by hand unless there was NO other way.

Bruce

 

[troutsqueezer]

I keep one of those plastic 80 gallon rain barrels from Lowe's filled for just such occasions. It sucks not having toilets, etc. while waiting for the well to get fixed or the power to come back on.

 

[ttriff]

I keep one of those plastic 80 gallon rain barrels from Lowe's filled for just such occasions. It sucks not having toilets, etc. while waiting for the well to get fixed or the power to come back on.

+1

We keep a full 55 gal drum on the main floor, plus a filled 275 gal IBC tote in the basement. The tote is on an elevated platform, so no electricity need when it comes time to refill the 55 gal drum

 

[oosik]

WOW!! That is a deep well. Mine is a very shallow (24 feet) well, dug with an extend-a-hoe and lined with 36" perforated cement rings. There is a nylon rope tied to the submersible pump that allows it to be lifted out for service. Very fortunately, I have the same pump I had installed 32 years ago. Actually, what I have here is a trapped spring.

 

[dmccarty]

Only problem is, it came 1.5 inches of rain last night and the service rig is now stuck in my yard. What thickness of white rock / caliche gravel should I figure on to assure no repeat in the future? Right now I don't think any amount of gravel would help - the truck is just too heavy and the clay soil which is like concrete when dry is like quick sand when wet.

Sounds like your "soil" is like our "soil."

I put down geotextile fabric on grade followed by 3-4 inches of ABC. I need a bit more gravel to control run off but our driveway does not rut except for one spot near the culvert where water runs down the road. Hence the need for a bit more gravely in a few spots. The driveway does not rut up from travel though. The neighbors that just throw down gravel, keep putting down gravel as the rock is pushed into the "soil." Some get the grave regraded which works but most keep spending money on more gravel.

In spite of my better judgement, in January I tried to grade an area that was bull dozed. With winter rains, low temperatures and sleeping trees, the soil was saturated. I try to stay on gravel during the winter because of the wet soil... Well, I got some work down moving stumps and slash but I had to give up due to the mess the tractor was making in the mud. A week or so ago, the "soil" had dried out enough for me to really get some grading done and fix the mess I made in January.

To get their truck moving, I wonder if they can get some of the huge wood pallets the logging companies use? They plop down a few of those pallets/matts and off they go. I never thought about the well truck getting to our well in the winter... Not a good thought at all.... I would have to put down gravel, which I don't want gong to the well, or put down pallets/matts.... I guess if I had to put down gravel, I would cut down a few trees and widen a tractor path I use... <shudder> Don't even want to think about that one either. :shocked:

Good Luck!
Dan

 

[bcp]

Some temporary ideas:

Excavator mats

Swamp Pads, Excavator Pads, Crane Mats, Tundra Mats, Dragline Mats

GOT MUD? - CarlWood Lumber

Sterling Lumber > Safety

 

[wjmst]

+1

We keep a full 55 gal drum on the main floor, plus a filled 275 gal IBC tote in the basement. The tote is on an elevated platform, so no electricity need when it comes time to refill the 55 gal drum

I keep one of those plastic 80 gallon rain barrels from Lowe's filled for just such occasions. It sucks not having toilets, etc. while waiting for the well to get fixed or the power to come back on.

Not to hijack this thread, but do you have these storage barrels plumbed in to your water line? How do you get the water out, with a shallow well pump? How do you fill them?

Just curious.