Anyone ever reactivate a disused residential well? How much $$$?

[K_W]

My 1958 home has city water service, but used a well until about 1997, one neighbor still uses his for primary water source for his family of 4, so there is good water down there somewhere.

The pump is still there in the basement, not connected electrically, has all of it's electrics, but is not safe to leave connected full-time anymore due to an missing junction box cover, leaving exposed 120v wiring and terminals ... but the pipes are still connected to the outside through the wall.

I looked at well pumps and mine is easily twice the size of any I have seen, so either its just that size because its old tech, or the well head is way down deep... and the well, as best i can tell, is outside somewhere, but I cannot find the darn thing to see if there is water or concrete in it...

What puzzles me is there is clear evidence that they bored into the roof of the outcropping from outside at some point in the past for some strange reason.

I would like to reactivate the well with new electrics and a new pump and hook it to an irrigation system.

Am I opening a can of worms or can old wells like these be revived?

 

[singlestacksig]

check local laws, many places prohibit any well if there is city service..

 

[THard6]

I don't know much about reviving the well itself, but before you hook it all up to you irrigation system, be sure to get the water tested, I used to install irrigation as my very first job. We did alot of work with wells, but you have to make sure the water quality is right. They sell things to balance them out, and keep the sulfur levels down. I hope you get it worked out!

 

[92ThoStro]

I never heard about local law not allowing wells if you have city water. We had a deep water well drilled on our property for irrigation a few years ago.

I for one DO NOT believe the well itself is located in the basement inside of your foundation. I just don't believe they can do that. You sure that pump isn't a sump pump?
If it is a well, then the well itself is probably outside, and the pump might be in the basement. I don't know. I have only taken basic construction courses.

If the well is in your basement, I don't think it's legal, and I don't think you can reactivate it. Have one drilled outside. I would get someone to come out an inspect it for you.

 

[Scout]

I never heard about local law not allowing wells if you have city water. We had a deep water well drilled on our property for irrigation a few years ago.

I for one DO NOT believe the well itself is located in the basement inside of your foundation. I just don't believe they can do that. You sure that pump isn't a sump pump?
If it is a well, then the well itself is probably outside, and the pump might be in the basement. I don't know. I have only taken basic construction courses.

If the well is in your basement, I don't think it's legal, and I don't think you can reactivate it. Have one drilled outside. I would get someone to come out an inspect it for you.

When I was house hunting I found a house that was on a well. The well itself was outside, the pump was in the basement.

My current house (I'm renting) is the same way, pump in the basement, well outside. House is on city water, but the old well pump is still in the basement. I turned it on once, it's very noisy and has a leak,.

 

[Whosyer]

Found this info.
http://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/wq/WQ-22-F1.html

Down toward the bottom, it references IC requiring the capping of wells that have been abandoned for more than five years. I think that is intended for farm wells, especially hand dug, to prevent groundwater contamination from run off. It is not uncommon for wells to actually be drilled in a basement, in older homes. I think it was discouraged starting in the 50's. Many homes have a well outside, with the pump and pressure tank in the basement.

 

[92ThoStro]

When I was house hunting I found a house that was on a well. The well itself was outside, the pump was in the basement.

My current house (I'm renting) is the same way, pump in the basement, well outside. House is on city water, but the old well pump is still in the basement. I turned it on once, it's very noisy and has a leak,.

That makes more sense. Especially for the pump and or pressure tank. But I don't think they dug a well in the OPs basement. I don't know though, it was in 1958, who knows what they did back then. I just remember from class that you can't put a well inside of a foundation.

Our house is 1902, the barn is 1899 and the well is way too close to the house, the vertical hole is a few inches away from our exterior wall. I believe it has more to do with the fact that the wall is part of an ADD ON and not part of the original house. They might have built closer to the well. It is also 2 feet away from some device that I do know know.

We just call it the "cistern", anyone know what it is? It has a circular man-hole made of cement. The water from the sink in the kitchen runs to it, before it goes to the septic. When we do the dishes after it rains, water floods out of the man cover. In the winter out back patio is always frozen because it floods and freezes from the cistern. Our best guess is that it is used to collect the grease and stuff, so it doesn't go into the septic. Our septic system is very weak, it has never been updated. We don't drink the well water, it smells like rotten eggs, full of sulfur, calcium, and lime, and stains the bathroom sink yellowish orange. We have drinking water delivered to us.

We have another well, but it's a shallow well located in the pasture, horse and cow manure probably has it contaminated. But there is no smell, and it's not as hard as the house well.

 

[Whosyer]

And that was number 1000.

 

[Whosyer]

Still working on that " 50 quality posts" though.

 

[92ThoStro]

Still working on that " 50 quality posts" though.

I swear last night you were suppose to get to 1,000 in some other thread, you were at like 996 or something lol.
Gratz!

 

[K_W]

I'm sorry, my memory was a bit off... details edited in OP.