Questions about horizontal well

[riverside67]

Ok so I have a recent thread thread posted regarding a vertical turbine well on my property that I was attmepting to clean up to use as the domestic source for a new home I am building. Unfortunately we found oil in it.

There happens to be another well on the property that was drilled in early 1970 and it is a horizontally drilled well into the foot of a mountain. I am planning on flow testing the well this weekend but know nothing else about it.

I'm sure the quality will be great but I am worried that the flow will be mush less than normal domestic demand would be.

Does anyone have any experience with horzontally drilled wells, thier pros/cons?

[riverside67]

I performed a flow test on this horizontal well and found it ran somewhere between 6-8 gpm. The only problem was that the water coming out of this well had a very strong odor of sulfur (rotten eggs). I'm not sure why this would be but maybe it has something to do with it sitting unused for 20 years?

I'm thinking of using this well to fill a 5000 gal tank and use that tank for irrigation water around my new home.

- Any thoughts on the sulfur odor?
- Does using this for irrigation seem like a smart idea?
- Would running a small pressure tank and jet pump to feed the irrigation system be more economical than running my 10hp vert turbine well to feed the same irrigation system?

Thanks!

[riverside67]

No one has any input on this situation?

Has no one here dealt with a horizontal well before?

Would a 33 yr old 2" galv line produce sulfur smell on its own if it hadn't been flushed for 10+ years?

[riverside67]

We are now considering using this for potable use as well. If we allow the water to flow into a 5000 gallon reservoir would the sulfur odor come out of solution and vent to atmosphere thus eliminating any smell at our taps?

I plan to have the water tested soon.

Thanks

[speedbump]

Could be bacteria your smelling. The odor is very similar. If you can get some chlorine it the well and can get it from top to bottom, you may get rid of the odor. Then on the other hand, if it's sulphur you will have to deal with it for domestic use.

bob...

[riverside67]

How would I chlorinate a horizontal well?

I would have to inject it into the well using air (or water at a higher pressure than the discharge?) I assume in order to push the chlorine plug down the entire 500 foot length?

[speedbump]

Is it level or is it somewhat horizontal?

bob...

[riverside67]

Aren't level and horizontal the same thing?

Anyway, I have not placed an actual "level" on the pipe to see what angle it was drilled at. From what I can visually tell it appears to have been drilled along a horizontal plane (i.e. perpendicular to vertical).

When you open the valve on the end of the pipe water comes out. I would assume that CL2 would have to be "injected" (forced) into the well to get an effective chlorination done.

[speedbump]

Actually you could put a pipe into the well with a check valve on the end upside down. Then elbow up and pour the bleach into the pipe, chased with water to force it through the check valve. Then pump that up until you smell bleach.

What I meant to say was is it level or on a slight angle.

bob...

[riverside67]

What I meant to say was is it level or on a slight angle.

- I figured that's what you meant.

I like the backwards check valve idea!

Now I'll just have to figure out how to get a 100 gallon reservoir (The well should hold ~ 75 gals of water) of chlorinated water and a pressurized water source up to the site so that I can inject a water/CL2 plug along the entire 500' horizontal length.

How long would I want that CL2 plug to remain in the line?

[speedbump]

Minimum 4 hours, 24 would be better.

bob...

[Gary Slusser]

I suggest you treat the water as it enters the tank. It is much simpler and standard practice. That will also help reduce the cleaning etc. of the 'cistern' you mention in another thread. Why more than one thread?

You need to test this water so you know what and how much of it is in the water. You should pump off the well to get an idea how much water you can use from it so you don't need 5000 or 10,000 gallons in storage as you mentioned in the other thread.

[riverside67]

You should pump off the well to get an idea how much water you can use from it so you don't need 5000 or 10,000 gallons in storage as you mentioned in the other thread.

The well production at the outlet doesn't even keep the 2" line full when the valve is fully opened. This is why storage is needed.

[Gary Slusser]

Yeah I haven't been paying attention, and didn't recall it being a 2" well.

[riverside67]

I ran this well to atmosphere for 24 hours this last weekend. It still smelled of rotten eggs after 24 hours.

Initial flow = 12 gpm
Final flow = 2-3 gpm

It doesn't look like this well will be useable afterall based upon the final flows. It would take two days to fill a 5K tank and this would not work if it were being used for irrigation (especially during the summer).

I have one last well on the property that I can investigate. I have a DWR well log on it and will begin taking a look at it in the near future. Hopefully I will have better results with it.