Well water

[Perry]

The property we own has a dug well on it. The new septic was put in about 20 years ago, and at that time the existing dug well was redone and 6 concrete crocks and gravel were put in place. This well has not been used now for several years and we are getting close to the point where we would like to be able to use it. I am sure the water in there is stagnant from just sitting. When we move the trailer on I will probably have to dig a new line to the well as the old line is gone and buried when they tore the house down. I am thinking about renting a pump and pumping the well down a couple of times and perhaps even "shocking" the well to clean things up.
Anyone have any experience with this?
If it all becomes too expensive (well line, pump, etc.) I was wondering about maybe buying one of those food grade water totes. ($175)

Just set it up so it gravity feeds and have it filled up once a year. They hold 1,100 liters and I am sure I wouldn't go through all that just washing my hands and flushing the toilet. Other than that I would only need water to wash down my extracting equipment in the fall, whatever is left just drain out into the field.

[lazy shooter]

First things first, surely there is a public agency that test water in your area.  Have the water tested, to see if it is potable.  If the water is toxic, that's the end of the story.  Dip out a pint of water and have it tested.

I'm almost certain the water is good.  The rental places sell used pumps at low prices.  One of my pals bought a used gasoline sump pump that pumps 40 gpm for 150 bucks.  Sump pumps also have good lift capabilities.  I believe one would work for your application. 

[Perry]

Yep, all I have to do is bring a sample to the agency and they test it. I would definitely want to pump out the well a couple times just to get some fresh water in there. I have been told that the area has hard water and that sometimes an egg smell can be had, but you're right, first things first.

[neillsayers]

Perry,

One of the places we lived had a wonderful dug well that always had sweet fresh water. It was over a hundred years old. The refresh rate on it was slow and during drought it could be pumped dry. We had it tested on a few occasions and it was always good potable water. An issue to consider is if there are any large livestock or agricultural operations in the area. Shallow wells are susceptible to e.coli from livestock and fertilizer/pesticide contamination from ground water.
Where we live now is surrounded by national forests and we have several springs for drinking water. Our wash water is rainwater catchment from the roof. One inch of rain equals 1000 gallons of water.

[iddee]

First, like Lazy said, the water entering the well is probably good. I would go ahead and buy a submersible well pump and install it. Then, using a generator, I would pump for 10 hours or more, or until the well pumps dry. Do that twice, then take the sample. If it tests good, you have the pump installed for permanent use. Just add the holding tank.

Secondly, the 300 gallon tote would only give you 60 flushes if it was used for nothing else. You can expect to refill it about every 10 days of use.

[Slowmodem]

The property we own has a dug well on it. The new septic was put in about 20 years ago, and at that time the existing dug well was redone and 6 concrete crocks and gravel were put in place. This well has not been used now for several years and we are getting close to the point where we would like to be able to use it. I am sure the water in there is stagnant from just sitting. When we move the trailer on I will probably have to dig a new line to the well as the old line is gone and buried when they tore the house down. I am thinking about renting a pump and pumping the well down a couple of times and perhaps even "shocking" the well to clean things up.
Anyone have any experience with this?
If it all becomes too expensive (well line, pump, etc.) I was wondering about maybe buying one of those food grade water totes. ($175)

Just set it up so it gravity feeds and have it filled up once a year. They hold 1,100 liters and I am sure I wouldn't go through all that just washing my hands and flushing the toilet. Other than that I would only need water to wash down my extracting equipment in the fall, whatever is left just drain out into the field.

I brought one of these totes home from work.  It had acidic acid in it.  Seeing this thread, I believe if I rinsed it out good, I could hook it to the guttering somehow and have me a rain barrel type collection system for watering the garden during dry spells.  I'm amazed sometimes how one train of thought can lead to something entirely different.

[LazyBkpr]

Perry, check the yard sales and find an old sump pump.. You can use that to pump the well out, and its cheap. I have two i have scrounged.. One i use in the septic tank when i dont get the filter cleaned in time and it starts to back up. Takes about 3 minutes to get the water level lower than the filter. The other I use in the pond to fill the water tank for the grapes.
   if your not going to be drinking the water, does it really matter how good it is? With my pond in my front yard I always planned to run a line into it if we ever lose power so i can flush the toilets etc...  I doubt it would test well with all the fish and the farm field beside it, but I doubt if the septic tank will vomit if I use pond water.   

[kebee]

 Yes but he wants water to clean up after the honey harvest  so the water has to be good for that, and Perry you can get good pumps from Harbor Freight cheap, I have bought a few and still working good.

Ken

[Perry]

Ken, you're probably right. While I would never drink the water, I would be using it to wash down food grade equipment so would assume that the water used to wash things down would have to be suitable.

[Michelle]

I can't remember what we did for our dug well. I think we had to shock it with bleach and then pump it out to see how fast the flow was to refill it? Not too sure though Perry!

[Rugerbob]

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-power-tool/annapolis-valley/centrifugal-water-pump-2/1082033014

Perry household bleach and pump the well out.

[riverbee]

"This well has not been used now for several years and we are getting close to the point where we would like to be able to use it. I am sure the water in there is stagnant from just sitting. When we move the trailer on I will probably have to dig a new line to the well as the old line is gone and buried when they tore the house down. I am thinking about renting a pump and pumping the well down a couple of times and perhaps even "shocking" the well to clean things up.
Anyone have any experience with this?"

yes, i do have experience with this.......
test the water like lazy said FIRST, this can be done by yourself or from someone who services wells............(digs, maintains, etc.....)  we have a local guy who dug our well umpteen years ago, did some additional work for us, and they check and maintain our well and pump. they test our water, simple test.
before you invest any money, time and effort of things you don't need..........if your water tests fine, RUN the water through it..........that's it.
if you are concerned about it, hire a knowledgeable person on wells to give you some advise before you start running off on your own with something you don't need.......

shocking it out.............just run it...........and keep running water through........just my HO!

[apisbees]

As others have said test it first if the water is OK instead of buying or renting a sump to pump it out invest that money in the pump. Lines and getting the water system hooked up then use the water pump to flush the system. I think it was your uncle Jack that had Fuhr pump services. We should have paid more attention when we were younger.
How deep is the well? from the water level to floor height of the trailer when positioned, and also the depth of water in the well and diameter of the well. this could effect the pump type and placement. 

[lazy shooter]

On my someplace, I have four small diameter wells that were dug for irrigation purposes and one hand dug well that belonged to the original old settler.  i am going to put the old well in service when I have time.  I want to install a hand pump like the old timer's used.  It's just for nostalgia. 

When we take samples from oil wells, we are required to pump three times the volume of standing fluid in the well before taking the sample.  We do that by calculating the volume of fluid.  It oil wells its simple.  We know how deep the well is and we can determine via an electric line the top of the fluid.  Then it's simple math to calculate the volume.  I don't know if this is applicable to shallow water wells, as we seldom work with the local health agencies.

I once worked a job for the USEPA.  They were concerned about the possibility of arsenic in the well.  We used the above procedure before taking samples, and the EPA lady in charge told me that was their recommended procedure for well testing of DEEP wells.  It was the only time I have ever done such a job, and it was a long time ago so I don't remember all the nitty gritty details, but I do remember her being very concerned about THREE times the volume of standing water before testing.

[brooksbeefarm]

Perry had a Uncle Jack???  Now we know how he learned to do everything he does. Jack