Dig a Well now building in 5 years ?

[happylogan]

Greetings; I have one year remaining on a 2yr well permit cost was 450$. The property is elevated at 10,000 ft.-- water is 250-350 feet on the dig, I'm told.  My question is- if I dig the well within the year permit time-- but do not have a complete cabin build for say 5-6 years-- do I lose well water depth and compromise the well integrity?? Should I collar, cap and run a pump every 3 months?/ thoughts and knowledge appreciated.
8-)

[Amanda_931]

Welcome to the forum.

I've no clue as to the answer.

(although I'll bet I have to reapply for a septic tank permit if I decide to put one in up the hill)

[desdawg]

I would think if you went ahead with the well now it would save you some $$$ later. Fuel for the driller, copper wire to the pump, etc. seems to be on the rise. A properly cased well should stay good indefinitely I would think. Glenn was a driller at one time and he may have more insight but this is my opinion. And a property with a well is more valuable than one without if you never build on it.

[glenn kangiser]

Hi happylogan.  

I am going to guess that at that elevation they are going to be drilling rock.  Not much to deteriorate in rock.

They should be able to drill it - air develop it and you could leave it sit without any problem I can think of.  Ask you driller for his opinion also.  They should put a minimum 20' or to hard rock seal at the top.

Please keep us posted with the details of what you do.

What area are you in?

[happylogan]

Thanks-- The land is in CO. in an area called Valley of the Sun- which is near a small town called Fairplay which west of Denver.  The drilling company has put wells in this area before- they are familiar..  I can get out there this summer-- I would like to see it.. I understand they need to get several flatbed rigs up into the land for all there tybes, gears,etc.  I don't want them butchering the land.  So, how do I decided where the well goes???

[fishing_guy]

Last fall we bought some land in northern Minnesota.  It had a 143' well dug in 1979 on the land.   The well had never been used.  It did have (still does) a 6" steel casing though.  We popped the top this spring.  Water is down 16' from the surface and the well is still open all of the way down.

So they can stay viable for quite a while.

As for the location, I would think about where you would lide to put your buildings eventually and go from there.  Our buildings are going to be somewhat limited as the well is already there, and we don't want too much distance from the house (cabin) to the well.  Luckilly, it works where we would like to site the buildings.

[happylogan]

That's the question where to site the cabin.  Think I can do this myself?  The acre is heavy with tall trees..?? I want to buils a 24X30 with loft or other basic design..

[glenn kangiser]

You may have to look things over and decide that yourself.  Remember that the well has to be 100 to 150 feet away from the septic system leach lines or drilled cesspool (not used in many areas) - the well uphill from it would probably be good if on a sloped area.  Keep that in mind when laying out the cabin location.  The driller may be able to assist with a good location if you have made up your mind on cabin location.  Septic lines and  tank  should run downhill from the cabin or things will get deep fast.

Getting equipment into the site is one of the things you have to live with - this stuff is heavy and there are no methods of movement  that  allow the equipment to get onto and out of the site leaving the land untouched.  You could put a road in for them with adequate turnaround areas or deal with it afterward if they mess up something.  Much of this type damage is pretty well self healing after you knock down the bumps and humps.  In a year or so leaves - pine needles - grass etc will reclaim it.

[happylogan]

That's good to know..the lot- 1 acre-  has frontage 190ft or so - and gentty slopes down the backside. Maybe I'll take a day and look it over- haven't seen the lot in 5 years- wow! yikes.. The driller did say he has some big rigs---this ain't gonna be cheap...  :'(

[skiwest]

Just a question for you, are there other lots near by?  Just wondering if you can cut down on the mobilizing cost by spliting it between several wells.  Would have to find out who could use a well nearby but would save $.

[happylogan]

5 years ago last time Iwas up there some homes, more now I understand.  Are you saying feed off someones well? I'm not clear on this? can you explain more?

[happylogan]

hate to reply to my own post but... yikes! spoke with a local well driller - 28$/ft plus $2100 for 3/4 glow (sp) pump $1000 for cement/collar/cap  plus pump and tank or cabin $750 all added assumin we hit water at 300ft== 12k

are they pickin my pocket

oh, and a driveway needs to go in first for access 4k :-/

thoughts please

[skiwest]

5 years ago last time Iwas up there some homes, more now I understand.  Are you saying feed off someones well? I'm not clear on this? can you explain more?

What I mean is there someone else who needs a well drilled.  A certain part of the cost is just getting the crew and equipment to site.  Its referred to as the mobilization cost.  If another person needs a well you could split the cost.  Contracter may not have broken out this cost but there is a real cost to getting there.

[glenn kangiser]

That price may or may not be unreasonable.  The only way to find out would be to shop it locally there.  Talk to neighbors who have had one put in and see who they used - if they are happy - if there are others available.  Also ask the health department if thye have a list of local drillers available.  Many times they cannot recommend one but can tell you of all available.

I don't know if you are in rock all the way or cased all the way - it seems high if you are not cased all the way down.  I am not familiar with your local conditions so that is about all the help I can give you.  Please keep us informed on what you find out.

[happylogan]

Okay, so well share is when someone else needs a well and you and the other person split "mobilization costs?"  What about tapping into someones line or other type share. I thought someone told me youcouls, for a one time price buy into someones well, then another person could buy and tap off you , etc. Am I off base here??

[skiwest]

Okay, so well share is when someone else needs a well and you and the other person split "mobilization costs?"  What about tapping into someones line or other type share. I thought someone told me youcouls, for a one time price buy into someones well, then another person could buy and tap off you , etc. Am I off base here??

I would think sharing would become a legal problem wouldn't it.  Not now but when you sell or they sell would want to have it on paper work that you have "rights" to water.  

[optionguru]

Also keep in mind water availability.  We have a well at our main house in NH and a couple of years ago we went through a dry spell and the water level was getting low.  A good rain storm fixed it but I can't imagine if there had been two houses sucking off the same well.

[BassLakeBucki]

I think a well will rarely go bad from sitting. I would go ahead and get it done, you will need it someday. Just be sure that the location does not interfere with the buildings, septic or other things. My other concern would be that regulations continue to change and get more strict. I have a lakefront lot I inheritated from my parents, 40 X 120, in their day it would have been no problem getting a septic. Today, there is no way a septic system would be approved ....  lot too small to seperate the well and septic and to keep away from neighbors systems. We were fortunate enough to purchase the other 40' lot next door. I am still a few years out from building, but I went ahead got a septic and well so I am grandfathered. (We do have a small cabin on the property now that we use). I did not want to get caught with a lot that I could not do anything with. Also, having a well will increase the value of the lot as well. Lastly, that is one more thing on the building list that is done.

Glen is right, get more estimates and talk to locals who recently had wells installed. Find out what they got and what they paid. In many counties well driller logs are available on line so you can see the specs on other wells drilled near by. Also, educate yourself as to what is truely required in your area for well specifications so that you only pay for what you need ie. don't pay for nice to haves but not necessarily required.

Also,
Talk to the drillers and see if you can't get a deal if you are willing to wait for their slow time of year. As you are in no hurry, maybe they will work with you.

[MountainDon]

I would be leary of sharing a well with another just because "you never know" and the money you save might be spent on a lawyer down the road a ways.

If you drillers are like the ones around here they're never in slow season

[desdawg]

Here in the desert country of AZ shared wells are common. A person will take say a 5 acre property, get it surveyed and split into 4 1.25 acre pieces, have a well drilled and write a Shared Well Agreement. The agreement is then recorded and becomes a CC&R that goes with each lot. As each lot changes hands down the road the new buyer is agreeing to the terms of the Shared Well Agreement when making the purchase. Typically each land owner pays a monthly fee which goes into an account for the well. When there is a repair or maintenance needed there will be funds in the account to deal with it. Of course there are disagreements sometimes. "Lot A has 99 horses and I have one dog. Yet we both pay the same amount each month." The agreement then becomes a very important document and becomes the basis for resolving these differences. I have my own private well and prefer it that way. But sharing a well is a way of spreading out the expenses. Water is a big deal here in the desert. My well is 586' deep and considered shallow for this area.

[MountainDon]

Wow, Desdawg. With a 586 foot well considered shallow, I can see the point in shares. What makes me shy away from a shared arrangement is that it only takes one irresponsible idiot to spoil the fun. I do have a cynical view at times, so take that into consideration.

[glenn-k]

I also have a hard time sharing but it could be a solution for the right people.  Finding out if you or they are one of the right people is the problem,

I guess I'm a bit of an independent dude.

[happylogan]

That's it "shared well agrement"!!!  I suppose who the neighbors are is important!! I might just suk it up ;Dand get my own well.
Now, I have the bug to snag a parcel in northwest GA south NC, Murphy or the Blairsville area. I called a local driller just for kicks and was told and confirmed that "on average" water is 645ft./ $15/ft plus $10/ft casement- what? so about 10k for that... just a comparison from Colorado to GA/NC.  Anyone have a build in this area?  ( off topic)

[John_C]

Now, I have the bug to snag a parcel in northwest GA south NC, Murphy or the Blairsville area. I called a local driller just for kicks and was told and confirmed that "on average" water is 645ft./ $15/ft plus $10/ft casement- what? so about 10k for that... just a comparison from Colorado to GA/NC.  Anyone have a build in this area?  ( off topic)

I'm just a bit south of Blairsville and I don't think an "average" depth means much.  My well is 235' deep. My 2 closest neighbors are 85'  &  135'.   I know people with much deeper wells and some with deep dry holes.   If you are on a mountaintop and all your neighbors have had trouble finding water it is likely you will too.   A mile or so down the road 100' may well provide plenty of water.  Something to look into before buying  IMHO.

[Sassy]

Our well is 625 or 675 ft deep although we only have the pump at 180 ft (these are rough guesses - Glenn knows exactly) but the people right below our property have lots of water & probably didn't have  to dig too deep (again, Glenn would probably know how deep)  as they are benefiting  from our year round spring...