dug well issues

Hello there. Recently after being unsecessful in obtaining a driller to travel out to my rural home to drill a well I decided to have an excavator do the job of digging a shallow well. At roughly 7 feet we hit tons of water in the middle of a very dry july. we continued to dig to approx 20 feet to allow room for the water to collect. Soil characteristics included lots of sand with a layer of gray clay under the top of the water table. once the hole was complete we dumped a couple of feet of rock in the bottom, sat a 20' culvert pipe on top (water wont be for drinking) and filled around the culvert with several feet of rock followed by backfilling the remainder with the original soil. After a few hours the 2 foot diameter culvert is filled with 9 feet of water. However my problem is that the water is gray and murky and it hasnt settled after 48 hours. will pumping off this initial water allow clean water to enter the culvert or do i have a larger issue? ? The water thats in the well is the initial fill - is it possible it is dirty due to disturbing the ground after all the digging? Thanks to anyone who can help!

Curt, you gotta pump that bi t ch dry... Keep pumping her and see if you can pump her dry... Pumping her will open up some draw veins and allow the water to flow... If you can pump her dry - keep a record of how long it takes for the well to re-charge itself. I have the same type of dug well up North. I could only get down 8 feet.. I use a submersible pump. The well gives me 55 gallons every 24 hours. The water will clear up as you keep pumping it

Mike Pastorelli said:

Curt, you gotta pump that bi t ch dry... Keep pumping her and see if you can pump her dry... Pumping her will open up some draw veins and allow the water to flow... If you can pump her dry - keep a record of how long it takes for the well to re-charge itself. I have the same type of dug well up North. I could only get down 8 feet.. I use a submersible pump. The well gives me 55 gallons every 24 hours. The water will clear up as you keep pumping it

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Thanks Mike, I've used a 3/4hp pool pump and a gas powered forest fire pump neither of which would pump the water this height. I dont yet have my jet pump/pressure tank installed. Should I install this system and use it to pump the well dry? Also in your experience does pumping the well dry result in a clean recharge? Thanks again

curt21 said:

Thanks Mike, I've used a 3/4hp pool pump and a gas powered forest fire pump neither of which would pump the water this height. I dont yet have my jet pump/pressure tank installed. Should I install this system and use it to pump the well dry? Also in your experience does pumping the well dry result in a clean recharge? Thanks again

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Not sure about those pumps you have. You could look up the specs and see if they have 20' suction ability. Remember its easier to push water then suck water ( also read the sticky on How many feet a pump can suck ) Yes, in my experience pumping my well dry and letting her re-charge gave me a good result with crystal clear water.. See if you can borrow a submersible pump from someone and pump the crap out of it.. If you get a good result, then go ahead and plumb her in with your set-up.

At my dug well, I use a submersible pump and I found out my re-charge by filling a 5 gallon bucket about 10 times every morning. Its all the water I need for my small camp.

Mike Pastorelli said:

Not sure about those pumps you have. You could look up the specs and see if they have 20' suction ability. Remember its easier to push water then suck water ( also read the sticky on How many feet a pump can suck ) Yes, in my experience pumping my well dry and letting her re-charge gave me a good result with crystal clear water.. See if you can borrow a submersible pump from someone and pump the crap out of it.. If you get a good result, then go ahead and plumb her in with your set-up.

At my dug well, I use a submersible pump and I found out my re-charge by filling a 5 gallon bucket about 10 times every morning. Its all the water I need for my small camp.

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Hey thanks, I bailed it dry with a rope and bucket ha-ha. In less than 24 hours it recharged with over 150 gallons, however still a bit cloudy but getting clearer. I'm in the process of hooking up the pipe hose and tank now. I will pump her dry again with the jet pump. Thanks for all your help I will update with a final condition of the water clarity. (In checking the pumps, the two I have only have a 8' suction height which seems to be typical for most.

curt21 said:

Hey thanks, I bailed it dry with a rope and bucket ha-ha. In less than 24 hours it recharged with over 150 gallons, however still a bit cloudy but getting clearer. I'm in the process of hooking up the pipe hose and tank now. I will pump her dry again with the jet pump. Thanks for all your help I will update with a final condition of the water clarity. (In checking the pumps, the two I have only have a 8' suction height which seems to be typical for most.

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Hi again. After emptying the well twice woth my jet pump, the water is a little clearer but still cloudy gray and doesnt settle when left in a container overnight. How can i clear the clay from my water? Can i add chlorine to shock it or do i need some sort of filter?

Just keep pumping it, it will clear up!