Drilling a well isn’t exactly an inexpensive endeavor. The equipment required to perform the drilling is expensive, and the costs to run and fuel the equipment alone can be high—let alone any repairs that need to be factored into its use. On top of the cost of operation, there is also the cost of manpower and the cost of the steel casing that is required to prevent overburden material—that is, the excess dirt, sand, clay, and gravel—from caving back in on the well.
How is the cost of drilling a well calculated?
The cost of drilling the well is calculated based on the depth of the well—as well as the type of material that has to be drilled through to reach the groundwater supply. The steel casing that protects the well from overburden is only required until the drill hits bedrock; thus, the further you have to drill through overburden to reach bedrock, the more costly the well drilling process will be. Similarly, the deeper the well has to go to reach an adequate water supply, the more expensive the well will be.
There are a lot of variables that can influence the cost of drilling your well, and a lot can go wrong in the process of drilling. There is, after all, always the chance that the well will be dug in the wrong location. You have to pay for the drilling whether the well driller hits water or not, and digging a dry well essentially incurs twice the expense, since you’ll have to drill another well in hopefully a better location.
The costs of well drilling just keep adding up—but isn’t there a better way to rule out some of the variables that can add to those expenses?
Fortunately, there is. New technology has made a big breakthrough in the water finding industry. The days of using dowsing rods are over—so move over water witches, Seismoelectrics is here!
What is Seismoelectrics?
Seismoelectrics essentially enable you to see below the ground—an extreme benefit when it comes to locating the most efficient source of groundwater for your well. Seismoelectrics can be used to measure groundwater depths and yields, enabling you to determine the transmissivity of water from the surface without having to drill into the ground. The technology is sensitive enough to be able to estimate in gallons per minute or liters per second the yield of groundwater available in any given spot. With seismoelectrics, you can be sure to find the absolute best location on your property for your well.
How does it work?
Our seismoelectric survey equipment is uniquely designed to detect the electric signals that are generated by the passage of seismic impulses through layers of rock, sediment and soil. The equipment sends a seismic impulse down through the earth, then reads the signal that is reflected back to determine the amount of fluid available within the rocks and soils. Seismoelectric water surveillance essentially enables a form of low-cost, non-intrusive aquifer quality mapping, which is a feature that could drastically reduce the amount of guesswork involved in the well drilling process; and eliminating some of the variables that can get in the way of well drilling can go a long way in keeping the costs down.
Here at American Water Surveyors, we use state-of-the-art technology to find the groundwater depth, yields, and groundwater suitability for our clients before they begin to pay the high costs of drilling. If you need to dig a well, let us help you first so you don’t end up stuck paying for a brand new and expensive dry well. Call us today at 1-877-SEISMO1 (734-7661) to get started.
