Clarifying Questions on Clarifying Water and more

[matthewh]

So, I did it myself! I pulled the submersible pump at my cabin (a 220v 1/2 hp Franklin that was sitting on the bottom of the well and completely encased in a clay sediment, it was a bear to get out), cleaned the clay pack from the well screens and reinstalled the pump 20 feet above its previous position. It now pumps about 10 gallons per minute for a total of 8 minutes after a 9 hour rest (so 80 gallons) before running dry. I'm not hooked up to any plumbing (just a open pipe pouring out water when the electrical breaker is switched on). My questions are these:

1. Is it possible to run the well until it runs clear if I keep drawing the water level down to the pump itself? If not, how do I go about clearing it?

2. I shocked the well with bleach overnight, ran it out, ran the well dry multiple times, and then, for good measure, poured a gallon of bleach down the well to let it sit for a time to get it SUPER CLEAN. So, how long should I leave the bleach in the well, and what is the maximum time I can leave the bleach in the well before risking damage to my well components? Will I risk damaging them if I leave it for weeks (I've not done this but I'm wondering)?

FYI: 240' deep well, water at 110' below ground level, pump set at 220' deep, 5" casing, 1" black poly drop pipe, water flows at 10gal per min for 8 minutes before drawing down to pump.

FOR FUN: see the attached file for a picture of my jankity well pulling rig.

 

[Reach4]

1. https://terrylove.com/forums/index.php?threads/murky-water.59472/#post-440673
https://terrylove.com/forums/index.php?threads/developed-well-gone-cloudy.53314/

There are devices that can shut your pump off for a programmable time when you run out of water. https://cpkits.com/collections/cycle-sensor-pump-monitors/products/cs1ph1-2hp230v is one.

2. How do you expect to get the bleach to the bottom of the well? With liquid bleach, you need to recirculate the water to get it down to the pump. You need a flooding volume to get the area below the pump and into the strata.

https://terrylove.com/forums/index....izing-extra-attention-to-4-inch-casing.65845/

Much of that applies to a 5 inch casing, although a 5 inch casing opens the possibility of using pellets.

You also probably want to add vinegar. I suggest pH test strips and high range (sanitizing) free chlorine test strips. Blood and saliva test paper is good, although the range is a bit higher than the bottom of the good range for this purposes. That paper is good for measuring the untreated pH of the well too. Paper that covers from pH 1 to 13 or 0 to 14 is not going to be as good as a narrower-range paper for this purpose.

I like the guy strap on your "rig".

 

[Sponsor]

 

[matthewh]

Reach4,

Thanks for your quick response. I read the posts that your links go to. Thanks! I think the idea of recirculating the water would work well, and easily in my situation and points out something I wasn't considering (nice diagram by the way on getting bleach down below the pump).

So, do you think I'm contributing to my cloudy / dirty water by simply running the well "dry"? Will I help by recirculating the water down the well, thus cleaning the sides of the well casing? I'd expect this to get dirtier at first and then clearer as sediment settles and is removed by further pumping.

Also, how long can I leave the bleach in my well? Will I do any damage by leaving it in for a longer period?

 

[Reach4]

I don't know about long periods. Is that a steel casing or PVC? Playing water down the casing and pitless is going to sanitize, and it seems like it could be good for cleaning.

In my recent sanitizing, I ran my recirculation water through a 20x4.5 filter. I had taken the cartridge I used out of service after over a year. It follows my backwashing sulfur+iron filter in line, so that cartridge did not have much on it. It looked sightly gray after the whole-house use. The housing I had bought for that purpose. Besides removing things, it also serves as an indicator of stuff being circulated. This was my second sanitizing.

Edit: added a photo of the cartridge in the housing. I had previously drained the water, and it was orange. Let the thing sit for a week oriented to allow drainage, and I opened it only today. The cartridge had about 1/16 inch of solids lightly adhering, and that broke away at places as I pulled the cartridge. So not a lot of solids, but besides not putting that back into the well during recirc, I get to see what was caught.

 

[matthewh]

I like the idea of recirculation at first and then purge all the water out down to the pump. Maybe a filter later.

My big concern is how long to leave the bleach in. I've had it in over 24 hours now and wondering.

 

[Reach4]

I like the idea of recirculation at first and then purge all the water out down to the pump. Maybe a filter later.

My big concern is how long to leave the bleach in. I've had it in over 24 hours now and wondering.

I think 24 hours after it is mixed should be enough.

I am not a pro, and I don't know what accelerated damage might occur from 200 ppm of chlorine for a week.

 

[Valveman]

If chlorine is too strong and left for too long it will eat holes in copper pipe and other fittings. And if you pump it into a septic system, the septic will quit working.

 

[matthewh]

I don't have my pump hooked up to any plumbing yet. It's at my cabin, and at this stage is simply a pump in the ground with a 1" black supply line (pex?) coming out of the ground over to a drainage ditch. So, no septic to worry about.

 

[Reach4]

I scraped some of the stuff from the outside of my filter element into a jar. It was like a thinner version of peanut butter maybe. The materiel contracted as it dried. I think it is clay with some iron, since it dried to some fairly hard particles.

It is not a lot to have been collected on the filter, since I did a lot of recirc. It really was a very thin layer on the outside of the cartridge. I was also drawing a fair amount of water up from the aquifer while recirculating, since I drained my system of chlorine with a separate hose from the WH drain to the ditch. My purpose with the filter was to not only remove stuff, it was to collect/monitor what solids were there.