We are in the process of buying a 3 acre lot in a subdivision to build a new home, all of the lots are on 2+ acres and are on wells. The well on our lot goes to another home and they have exclusive rights to that well. We will be on a shared well agreement with the adjacent lot, I was told that well produces 30gpm. The seller and the owner of the adjacent lot want to install the pump and do the tests then split the costs 3 ways as part of the sales agreement. The deal seems fair but I'm not familiar with wells and have been reading about some of the concerns with shared wells. The adjacent lot with the shared well agreement is also undeveloped at this time, there will only be two homes on this well when it does get developed. Please see the bid, am I missing anything? Does the bid seem reasonable? I'll review the agreement before signing and have a storage tank installed as part of construction but short of the well failing to produce I don't know if there is an issue here.
Opinion Please
- Thread starter rjlein
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Cacher_Chick
Test, Don't Guess!
For that money I would look into getting my own well. A single family home only needs 10 gpm and the VFD system is a complete waste of money that will only be trouble down the road.
Pricing varies greatly from one area to another, so the dollar figures are meaningless to anyone who is not located where you are.
Pricing varies greatly from one area to another, so the dollar figures are meaningless to anyone who is not located where you are.
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VAWellDriller
Active Member
The pump system doesn't sound totally unreasonable, but the bigger question is why you don't have your own well... is there a pump house? How is the equipment protected (its not frost proof as it's going to be on a seal and not a pitiless)? and who pays the power bill? The whole story sounds REALLY fishy; why do you have a well on your lot that your can't use; I would want my OWN well located on my OWN land and not have any other folks involved if at all possible.
Boycedrilling
In the Trades
That is about where pricing should be for a 25 gpm 5 hp sub pump set 400 ft deep. There is no pressure tank included. The transducer for the VFD at the pressure tank.b multiple tanks are not needed. Are you in an area that freezes?
That being said, I highly discourage home owners from shared wells. Who pays the monthly power bill. Who pays for maintenance and repairs. Is a fund set aside for repairs. It's hard enough to get a husband and wife to agree on spending money, let alone neighbors.
The original lot developer saved money by only drilling a well for every three lots.
That being said, I highly discourage home owners from shared wells. Who pays the monthly power bill. Who pays for maintenance and repairs. Is a fund set aside for repairs. It's hard enough to get a husband and wife to agree on spending money, let alone neighbors.
The original lot developer saved money by only drilling a well for every three lots.
Craigpump
In the Trades
That's a pretty cheap price compared to Connecticut....
I foresee a whole host of issues
A) power bill
B) repairs, what if your neighbor can't come up with money?
C) chlorinating, now all the houses have to be done with a multitude of fixtures
D) what if the guy with well on his property wants a reduction in monthly bill because it's on his land?
E) what if he gets nasty and won't let anyone on the property?
Some might scoff, but I've seem the above happen, it isn't pretty and makes for really hard feelings.
Have your own well drilled and be done with it.
I foresee a whole host of issues
A) power bill
B) repairs, what if your neighbor can't come up with money?
C) chlorinating, now all the houses have to be done with a multitude of fixtures
D) what if the guy with well on his property wants a reduction in monthly bill because it's on his land?
E) what if he gets nasty and won't let anyone on the property?
Some might scoff, but I've seem the above happen, it isn't pretty and makes for really hard feelings.
Have your own well drilled and be done with it.
I hear it all the time.
“The guy down the street keeps his lawn like a 3-hole golf course. I only water two tomato plants and my water bill is as high as his. Not to mention he wears out the pump and I have to pay a big part of that every time.”
Shared wells are a good way to make life long enemies. Starting with the fact that 2 houses don’t need a pump anywhere that large, unless you both have a lot of dairy cattle or something. Then if you put in a storage tank, you will need your own booster pump and controls, so you really don’t need a very large well pump, much less a variable speed pump, or CSV.
You probably need something like a 1HP well pump with a small pressure tank and pressure switch to feed 2 storage tanks wide open and at low pressure. Then you need a booster pump with a CSV at the storage tanks to feed each house. That way a meter on each feed line from the well could help appropriately divide the costs of the shared well energy and maintenance. Also you would not be paying the energy cost for your neighbor to pressurize the water, which is an expensive part of the total energy costs. The well pump would also last 5 times longer and cost much less up front and in the long run.
If there is anyway to make it happen, it would be better to spend a lot more on your own well now than have to deal with a shared well.
“The guy down the street keeps his lawn like a 3-hole golf course. I only water two tomato plants and my water bill is as high as his. Not to mention he wears out the pump and I have to pay a big part of that every time.”
Shared wells are a good way to make life long enemies. Starting with the fact that 2 houses don’t need a pump anywhere that large, unless you both have a lot of dairy cattle or something. Then if you put in a storage tank, you will need your own booster pump and controls, so you really don’t need a very large well pump, much less a variable speed pump, or CSV.
You probably need something like a 1HP well pump with a small pressure tank and pressure switch to feed 2 storage tanks wide open and at low pressure. Then you need a booster pump with a CSV at the storage tanks to feed each house. That way a meter on each feed line from the well could help appropriately divide the costs of the shared well energy and maintenance. Also you would not be paying the energy cost for your neighbor to pressurize the water, which is an expensive part of the total energy costs. The well pump would also last 5 times longer and cost much less up front and in the long run.
If there is anyway to make it happen, it would be better to spend a lot more on your own well now than have to deal with a shared well.
Ballvalve
General Engineering Contractor
Got 1800$ legal fees and rising on one shared well this month. Neighbors are monsters. Shared wells work if the neighbors are normal and reasonable, and they save you money by dividing costs. Be certain a lawyer write or reviews the contract carefully. Also DEED interests in the actual well to avoid contract disputes. That cost of the pump looks ridiculous. Check it online.
My neighbors use 98% of the water and my tenant uses about 20 gallons a day. Still they disgree about pumping costs when a meter is in their face.
My neighbors use 98% of the water and my tenant uses about 20 gallons a day. Still they disgree about pumping costs when a meter is in their face.
Wow, thank you for the input. This is gonna sound a little wonky. The selling real estate agent and his partner were the original developers. It was an old grass farm on a hilly area outside Salem Oregon. I'm betting their intention was to have the well on the lot we are looking at service our lot and the one below us since it did not have water. When they found out that well only did 5gpm they put our lot on a shared agreement with the adjacent one which reportedly does 30gpm. The adjacent lot is owned by a family trust of which the selling real estate agent is trustee so I don't think it will be sold and developed any time soon but eventually someone will be there. I have seen the water agreement and easement so it is in the deed. Maintenance and electricity are to be shared equally and potential disputes go to the home owners assoc. Each party must maintain a pressure tank, domestic uses have priority over irrigation and lawn irrigation is only allowed if the well meets the domestic demand, no commercial uses are allowed. This is just what's in the CCR's, I understand things can go to you know where in a hand basket once neighbors are involved. I suppose someone could try to put in a 2 acre lawn but so far no one in the development has. There are pretty restrictive on landscaping to preserve view and that rural feel. I feel a little better seeing a legal water agreement and easement along with CCR'S to help guide dispute resolution but if the sale moves forward I'll definitely talk to the contractor about putting in a new well.
Ballvalve
General Engineering Contractor
All so true. But... my real estate agent drilled me a well because 1 month into the share the neighbors revealed themselves to be monsters [They changed the well share contract, submitted it to escrow, I never reviewed it because they said the original was fine- but their change regally screwed me] the agents drilled me a backup well as cheaper than a court case. But the damn well failed 2 years in at 2 GPM and pumping some fine clay powder and rocks sticking to the screen. Pulled the pump, lined the well to 250', shortened the string. Pump failed in a few months. Went back on the neighbors well [Which I had drilled and set the pump in 20 years earlier, with bottled water quality and 30GPM - also built their house for my parents, so these cretins are a real stone in my shoe] Now, 10 years later we are headed to court because they can't read a meter, or even abide by the well share that they illegally re-wrote. Astounding. As for your A,B,C,D,E - those are in the contract- well share. But if you have trash neighbors, contracts are junk. its all about calling the sheriff and then going to court. If you are right and prevail, the neighbors get to pay your legal fees and your 'harm' while you were without water. Headed just that way right now. No scoffing here. But I do have 3 other well shares with good people that work flawlessly.
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