Developed Well gone cloudy

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Jerry Joyce

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We dug our well (229 ft) in Mid July. Bore Drilled. We installed a pump teck pump and pumped it clean. Just before we put it to the house it went silty and cloudy (just as a low front was moving in). We pumped it clean again and then hooked it up. prior to a rain as the low approached the well went silty and cloudy again. Kinetco wants to put a $2200 system in and Servi-Soft tried an inline filter and re-bed of my backwash filter. It clogged the 5 micron filter in 1 day. Pumped it twice yesterday and it went clean, then I hooked it up, bypassed the filters and flushed the house. Then I put the cartridge filter on (by passing the backwash one b/c it is clogged - reduced pressure a tone). By last evening it was crystal clear, drinkable, good tasting and great. I ran it all day. Turned it off at night. Morning came and it was great! Clear enough to shower and drink (BTW no bacteria - it passed that test). I did not leave it on today, got home this afternoon and it was gray and cloudy again. Currently pumping it to try and clear it back up. I thought that once a well cleared up it stayed clear? Do they often go from clear to silty to cloudy to clear to silty to cloudy? This is the 3rd time it has gone south (maybe 4th). The driller keeps telling me to pump it but I can't leave water on all day every day? I can't contentiously pump. To his credit he offered to dig a new one at no cost, but trenching and other costs will of course occur. Not sure what to do. Is the casing maybe cracked? Is there a crack somewhere else allowing silt in? Does the level of a well really rise when a low comes in? Is it a bad well? Will pumping it more stabilize it? Do I pay to simply have it filtered with the infusion tanks instead of drilling a new well?
 

Smooky

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We dug our well (229 ft) in Mid July. Bore Drilled.

What type of well do you have? Is it a bored well? Or a drilled well? Is it a gravel pack? What type of casing? How much of the total depth is it cased? What diameter is the well? What part of the world are you located in might help too. Do you have a submersible pump? If yes what depth was it set?
 

Valveman

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It sounds like when you leave the pump off for a while, the water level rises to a part of the well that has net been developed yet. When you first turn on the pump, the silt from the upper part of the well gets washed into the water. This is a hard part of the well to develop, because the water is only this high in the well when the pump has been off for a while. I wouldn’t think the atmospheric pressure would make much difference on the static water level, but I guess it could make some.

I would let the well sit unused as long as possible, then pump it hard until it cleans up. Then repeat this process until the water clears up.
 

LLigetfa

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I think valveman nailed it. If you can open up more spigots, then you should be able to pump for shorter periods between the recovery rest periods.

Drillers will sometimes surge develop the well by running a surge block up and down. Of course to do that now would require pulling the pump.
 

Masterpumpman

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Valveman explained it best
I would let the well sit unused as long as possible, then pump it hard until it cleans up. Then repeat this process until the water clears up.
It should eventually clear up and stay clear. If it doesn't eventually clear up I suggest that you call the driller again because it's his problem. The driller may be able to run a down hole camera in the well and see what the problem may be. Down hole camera's are quite inexpensive today and most drillers own one of their own. I'd say any filtering is a waste of time and money.

The word "Bore Drilled" to 229 feet throws me as most wells aren't bore drilled to that depth. I'm not clear if this is a sand or rock well? The drilling contractor probably knows me!
 

Jerry Joyce

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This is fantastic detail everyone thank you! Valveman it sounds like that is where the problem lies. When it sits for a while it clouds up. To answer smooky - sorry it was rotary bit drill not a pounding rig - not sure the exact terminology to use. Not sure the exact pump. Here are all the details I can give quickly. We are in Mesopotamia OH (Northeast OH - Trumbull county) neighboring well is 89 feet and 54 feet. First hole they dug was 329 no water so they moved and dug a second. Hit water at 227, the screen is from 227-229. Not sure where the casing ends but I will check the well log and get back on another post. Produces 5gm at least and rises to 54 feet. The pump is set to pump the well down to 200 feet and then it stops. (maybe the silty water sits in the well between 229 and 200 which is why it is not getting all out when I pump it? Anyway the pump goes down 200 feet and stops then the pump tech system waits an hour and half and pumps it again. The material it went though is sand, gravel, clay & silt. No shale or or heavy rock. The photo I tried to attach if this works is our water yesterday when we ran it all day after it cleared up and the right (cloudy) is today when it sat all day. IMG_0897.jpg My big question is how long should I keep trying this before I have them dig a new well? Sounds like that is probably what I should do? He committed to dig another hole at his cost.
 

Valveman

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and the right (cloudy) is today when it sat all day. View attachment 21234 My big question is how long should I keep trying this before I have them dig a new well?

Let it sit all day. Or at least long enough to let the water level recharge to 54’. That is where your cloudy water is coming from. If it doesn’t stay off long enough for the water to recharge up to 54’, then you are not developing the well in the bad spot. If the pumptec turns it back on every hour and a half, it hasn’t had time to recharge up to the problem area. I would say if you can’t get the well to clean up after doing this maybe 30 times, then call the driller and see if he can maybe use some surge blocks on that top area.
 

Jerry Joyce

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Thank you so much valveman this is great advice. I can turn it all off tonight and let it sit all night and then tomorrow I can pump it all day - repeat that on an ongoing basis. I'll just have to get a schedule so that we can have it clearer by the morning and can show, we just moved into the house. But this is the best advice I have gotten since we dug the well. it seems very logical to me.
thank you!
 
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