How to Pull a Water Well
A water well that is no longer useful is a conduit for potential groundwater contamination unless you properly abandon the well. Well abandonment begins with pulling or removing the well casing, then filling and sealing the borehole. Some states will allow you to abandon, or decommission, a well on your property without oversight, or they may require assistance from a state-certified well driller. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Drill rig with hollow-stem augers
- Sledgehammer or jackhammer
- Chain with hook
- Bentonite grout
- Water
- Shovel
- Barrel
- Grout pump
- Topsoil
- Grass seed or pavement cover
- Safety glasses
- Safety gloves
- Earplugs
- Hard hat
- Safety shoes
Instructions
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1
Break up and remove any concrete pad surrounding the well. Use a sledgehammer or jackhammer to split the pad into manageable pieces. Dispose of the pad material as construction debris, along with the well materials from the borehole.
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2
Overdrill the well to remove all of the grout, bentonite and sand surrounding the well casing and screen. Use a hollow-stem auger with an inside diameter that is slightly larger than the outside diameter of the well casing, and place the hollow interior of the auger over the casing. As you drill, the casing and screen should remain intact while the bentonite, grout and sand surrounding the casing break up and expel from the ground. This process will loosen the casing and screen from the surrounding materials so that you can pull it from the subsurface.
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3
Pull the loosened casing and screen from the borehole by hand or by using the drill rig. Wrap the chain around the casing and hook it to the rig. Use the rig to lift the casing from the ground.
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4
Mix the grout in a barrel with water and stir with a stick or shovel. Fill the open borehole with bentonite grout by pumping the mixture into the borehole from the bottom up. Depending on the depth of the borehole, you may need to mix more than one barrel of grout. By pumping the grout from the bottom of the borehole upward, you will ensure that all of the open space is full of grout for a proper seal.
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5
Spread topsoil and grass seed, or apply pavement, over the borehole after the grout sets.
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Tips & Warnings
Disconnect and remove any permanent pump equipment and electric lines before you begin to pull the water well.
For extremely deep wells, fill the well casing with gravel to a depth of 20 feet below the land surface before you pump the grout into the hole.
The state environmental or water bureau can provide a list of certified drillers in the area if one must be present.
Remove wells that are 6 inches in diameter or more using a solid stem auger rig that can pull the well from the subsurface. Alternately, use the rig to break up the casing and remove the pieces from the borehole.
Wear all safety equipment while abandoning a well, even when the rig is not running.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
