How much to drill a well?

[chris142]

That is just evil and you shouldn't live there. Why do some pepople insist on living where humans are hated?

house has been in the family forever. Well forever to me.

 

[DoubleO7]

Everything has to be tier 4 and they do check

Your local well drillers must have really old equipment......................

"Large Fleet Phase-Out: Beginning January 1, 2024, large fleets are banned from operating Tier 0 vehicles or model year 1994 or earlier vehicles."

 

[chris142]

Your local well drillers must have really old equipment......................

"Large Fleet Phase-Out: Beginning January 1, 2024, large fleets are banned from operating Tier 0 vehicles or model year 1994 or earlier vehicles."

They had green leakers when I saw or heard them.

 

[jwal10]

Lots of people haul water from the city fill station in the summer, even here in Western Oregon where it rains a lot, in the winter. You learn to live with little water. Compost toilet and water reuse for garden plants. I have a spring box 3' deep, way up on the hill. I had a 6' well to water livestock with a hand pump, from a seep. Use rain barrels but when the rains stop and you use that up, you are out of water. Dad had a 12' hand dug well for the dairy, until it was found it had dead rats in it. He dug a new well and to get more water, they drilled into a sulfur vein. It was good water but had a smell. There are springs piped along the highway ditches where you can fill water containers. Wife and I had 100 gallon tank in a Class A RV, it would last 2 weeks when we would boondock. Even with all the rain, there is a lot of sulfur well water here. The city put in an aquifer storage and recovery well and were never able to make it work because of unstable salt water. It was suppose to make a large bubble of fresh water to reclaim in the dry season. The city finally put in a purple water pipe (reclaimed water) for irrigation. The state has taken twice as long as was calculated to permit a new dam. The city installs flash boards to raise the water level 3' right after Memorial day until they loose normal overflow. 50 million extra gallons of storage. It has been said, the next war in the west will be over water....James

 

[chris142]

Lots of people haul water from the city fill station in the summer, even here in Western Oregon where it rains a lot, in the winter. You learn to live with little water. Compost toilet and water reuse for garden plants. I have a spring box 3' deep, way up on the hill. I had a 6' well to water livestock with a hand pump, from a seep. Use rain barrels but when the rains stop and you use that up, you are out of water. Dad had a 12' hand dug well for the dairy, until it was found it had dead rats in it. He dug a new well and to get more water, they drilled into a sulfur vein. It was good water but had a smell. There are springs piped along the highway ditches where you can fill water containers. Wife and I had 100 gallon tank in a Class A RV, it would last 2 weeks when we would boondock. Even with all the rain, there is a lot of sulfur well water here. The city put in an aquifer storage and recovery well and were never able to make it work because of unstable salt water. It was suppose to make a large bubble of fresh water to reclaim in the dry season. The city finally put in a purple water pipe (reclaimed water) for irrigation. The state has taken twice as long as was calculated to permit a new dam. The city installs flash boards to raise the water level 3' right after Memorial day until they loose normal overflow. 50 million extra gallons of storage. It has been said, the next war in the west will be over water....James

Nothin like that here. I just cant believe the prices Im being quoted. Guess I shouldnt be suprised....

 

[DoubleO7]

Nothin like that here. I just cant believe the prices Im being quoted. Guess I shouldnt be suprised....

Curious, when you bought this place?
And how long did the well work before it failed?

 

[Fritz Maurer]

the next war in the west will be over water..

Thanks to all these feel-good regulations by the environmentalists ... foreign property owners can have all the water they want to grow alfalfa, while our own countrymen's property values are regulated down to zero..... meanwhile diverting a few billion gallons of fresh water into the ocean.

 

[chris142]

Curious, when you bought this place?
And how long did the well work before it failed?

My parents bought it in 1974. I inhearated it in 2017 when they passed. We had to pull $60k in equidy out to do repairs and dispose of the asbestos siding. Well quit 01-01-23. Since then the water table came up some so we put another pump down to the dirt,pulled it up 2ft and its been working but the water table is slowly dropping again and I expect it to quit pumping in a few weeks.

I cant afford a mortgage and a well payment of the same amount. Without a well here its not worth much more than vacant land. Maybe $50 k but thats what I owe.

 

[DoubleO7]

@chris142
Man you are in between a rock and a hard place for sure, you have my sympathy.

I would be looking for a used milk tanker and hiring somebody to go fetch water with it when needed,
Or a semi load of water in those 250/300 gallon totes. But you have likely looked into that already.

 

[bc]

Most states require water wells to be licensed and recorded because of water rights, etc. Should be able to find the map online with the state or county.

Any day now you may have all the sea water you want when California falls into the ocean.

 

[chris142]

@chris142
Man you are in between a rock and a hard place for sure, you have my sympathy.

I would be looking for a used milk tanker and hiring somebody to go fetch water with it when needed,
Or a semi load of water in those 250/300 gallon totes. But you have likely looked into that already.

I have a tote for emengencys. hauling water and filling my tank is for the birds. I brought a water truck home last year.

 

[Blackhole49]

house has been in the family forever. Well forever to me.

A house "

My parents bought it in 1974. I inhearated it in 2017 when they passed. We had to pull $60k in equidy out to do repairs and dispose of the asbestos siding. Well quit 01-01-23. Since then the water table came up some so we put another pump down to the dirt,pulled it up 2ft and its been working but the water table is slowly dropping again and I expect it to quit pumping in a few weeks.

I cant afford a mortgage and a well payment of the same amount. Without a well here its not worth much more than vacant land. Maybe $50 k but thats what I owe.

You don't say where in CA, but it's hard to believe a house built in CA in the 50's isn't worth $110,000. Good luck.

 

[chcase]

Chris I feel for you., Your state regulations make it hard for the normal person to update a well without drilling a new well. Please check into the California state water association as most states have funding to help replace a well if your total income and age of existing well qualified.

prices are crazy high here now. last year was $125 a ft. Talked to a neighbor who just paid $150 a ft.

I need to go 400 ft!

 

[DoubleO7]

You don't say where in CA,

Mojave Desert per post #24

 

[onefarmer]

I had a well drilled way back in the late 90s. It cost 2500. By your figures it would cost 15k. Even with inflation that's seems very excessive.

 

[Janicholson]

My parents bought it in 1974. I inhearated it in 2017 when they passed. We had to pull $60k in equidy out to do repairs and dispose of the asbestos siding. Well quit 01-01-23. Since then the water table came up some so we put another pump down to the dirt,pulled it up 2ft and its been working but the water table is slowly dropping again and I expect it to quit pumping in a few weeks.

I cant afford a mortgage and a well payment of the same amount. Without a well here its not worth much more than vacant land. Maybe $50 k but thats what I owe.

I would drop a 3m liner in the existing casing and sluice the cave-in dirt! (I don't give up easily) Jim

 

[caterpillar guy]

Diameter of the well would also dictate some on the price a 6 inch well is one thing a 15or 24 inch well for irrigation would be a different thing.

 

[chris142]

Diameter of the well would also dictate some on the price a 6 inch well is one thing a 15or 24 inch well for irrigation would be a different thing.

They are saying 6 inch casing. My old well is 8 inch

 

[chris142]

I would drop a 3m liner in the existing casing and sluice the cave-in dirt! (I don't give up easily) Jim

I wish I had a way to do that.

 

[Check Break]

Your problem is solvable but from what I've read, you aren't helping your situation. Well depth 300', cave in at 288', water at 286'. Don't know who you've been talking to or why they haven't offered a solution to your situation. Are they idiots or deceitful. Doesn't matter. Hope you have the video or can procure a copy from your driller. It will help the next driller help you. That well casing can be swaged at 286' (to the bottom of the hole) and the hole saved. First problem is the old pump. You haven't mentioned what you did with the old pipe. Did it break off or did you break it off at 288'. The facts determine the amount of work ($$$$$) involved. You'd better get a second opinion re deepening the well. You can install a six inch liner in an eight inch casing and surround the cavity with with a gravel pack and well seal. Not sure why the County would be against that. Maybe they're just against everything and don't even know what's right or wrong. Liners are installed every day to save wells with rotted casing. If you have an interest, I might be able to provide you with the name of a driller in Central CA who salvages wells. If he won't travel to your neighborhood, he might know someone in your area. Most wells I see salvaged are Ag wells with far more damage than yours. You have 286' of good hole. Start with the positive and overcome the negative.