Shallow Well Design for irrigation

[surffisher2a]

I moved into my home (eastern NC) about 12 years ago and it had a shallow well installed for just irrigation.

Unfortunately I had to remove the well in order to install a pool this winter. I want to replicate the old well because it worked perfectly.

My plan is to jet dig the new well about 10 - 15 feet away from where the old well was.

What I know about the old well:
It was approximately 40' deep
used 2" outer casing (not sure of depth)
had 40' 1.25" inner PVC with a foot valve attached to the end.
Used an above ground shallow well pump (no pressure tank, just a pump with a relay hooked to my irrigation controller).

I was able to remove the inner 1.25" PVC in tact, but I couldn't get the 2" outer casing out, so I don't know anything about it that you can't see from the top.

Upon doing a lot of research it seems to me that it was designed that at the end (in ground) of the 2" PVC outer casing was a well screen with a point that went down 40 feet plus the depth of the well screen, and inside the 2" pipe was the inner 1.25" with just a foot valve hooked to it that sat somewhere in the well screen once fed down the pipe.

So my current plan is to put a 2" sandshark (washdown) valve on the end of a 2" well screen and feed that down 40 feet. Then feed 40 feet of 1.25" PVC / foot valve) down inside the 2" outer casing.

Do I have the right idea for this? I just want to make sure before I start buying supplies and wasting money.


PS -- my ground is almost all sand!

 

[Reach4]

I have no comment on the well digging.

Your idea of having the foot valve down the 2 inch PVC casing is good. The pump only has to work based on the depth to water while pumping, and not the placement of the foot valve. If the foot valve is down 35 ft, you cannot lose prime by sucking the well down; if the water level drops, the flow will adjust to what the well can deliver.

In selecting a pump, you will want to consider how much pressure you will want. Impact sprinklers take a lot of pressure, and drip irrigation takes just a little pressure.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[surffisher2a]

I have no comment on the well digging.

Your idea of having the foot valve down the 2 inch PVC casing is good. The pump only has to work based on the depth to water while pumping, and not the placement of the foot valve. If the foot valve is down 35 ft, you cannot lose prime by sucking the well down; if the water level drops, the flow will adjust to what the well can deliver.

In selecting a pump, you will want to consider how much pressure you will want. Impact sprinklers take a lot of pressure, and drip irrigation takes just a little pressure.

Thanks, I just replaced the well pump last summer, so I am going to reuse it. Like I said, the well was working perfectly. so I want to replicate it as much as possible. I just don't know how the 2" outer pipe was designed, so I am only guessing at that part.

 

[Valveman]

Should have a screen on the well point. You might be able to wash it down, but is made to be driven down. It is important the screen is in the water bearing formation and not too shallow or too deep.

 

[Reach4]

So my current plan is to put a 2" sandshark (washdown) valve on the end of a 2" well screen and feed that down 40 feet. Then feed 40 feet of 1.25" PVC / foot valve) down inside the 2" outer casing.

Interesting-looking product!

Wash-Down Valves PVC

Upgrade your facility is infrastructure with Atlantic Screen and Mfg PVC wash-down valves the epitome of reliability and efficiency. Invest in quality assurance

www.atlantic-screen.com

Also called “Sand Shark”, PVC wash-down valves are designed to position well screens in sandy soils and to thin drilling fluids.
A ball valve opens under pressure from a water stream and rises into a closed position when the water is turned off.
The internal female pipe thread allows the water pipe to bypass the screen for jetting.