Any water well experts here?

[BAGN1T]

We moved into our new-to-us garageless house about a year ago. We are about ready to start with the garage build but we have a bit of a situation. I was hoping someone here may have some experience with wells.

Here is the best photo I could find of the culprit:

When we were looking at the house, my thought was, "what idiot put a planter in the driveway? We'll have to take that out." It turns out I should have said, "what idiot drilled the well in the middle of the driveway?" Once we pulled back some of that English Ivy planted in the middle of it, we discovered one of these:

My question is, is it possible to dig down around it, "chop off the top," and surround/cover it with something similar to this:

We are looking to build the garage in the grassy area to the left of the house as you are looking at it in the photo. That will put the well right in front of the garage doors. Worst case, we can try to align it so the well is centered between the two doors and just reduce the size of the circle of block around the well. But I would like to bury it down if it is economically feasible.

I know it isn't ideal to bury them. My thought of doing it with a structure like that is that it will still be "above ground" within the structure and wouldn't have the issue of getting ground water or whatever down into it because it would have the space around it supported by the structure. It would also leave plenty of room around it for service, if necessary.

 

[jhelrey]

I wouldn't want anything running over or that close to mine. Crack the casing and you'll be drilling a new $15K well.

Incorporate a turn around and a larger island with the well in the center. Make it so you can't cut the turn to tight and have a trailer hit the well.

 

[Jackfre]

I doubt according to code that you can bury or put it sub-grade. A good well is a treasure. Putting it sub-grade will open the possibility of bacterial contamination which is why the code requires it protrude above ground. I’d put up strongly anchored posts surrounding the well and be happy that you have a good well. Can you re-orient the driveway and direction the garage doors face

 

[marineman]

No you either can't or shouldn't do that. I don't know if it's a law but the reason they're above ground is to prevent water intrusion. If you bury it like that water, antifreeze, road salt and anything else on the ground or dripping off your car could get through the seal and go directly into your well water.

 

[BAGN1T]

Unfortunately, they weren't thinking about much when they placed this house. The house is right in the corner of the lot, so there isn't room to expand it at all or orient the garage doors another way. We are going to be barely meeting setbacks with the garage.

As it is, I can't get around the circle. I have to make a 3 point turn every time I come home. It looks larger in the photo that it actually is (REALTOR photo magic right there). We're planning to cut back the mulch bed over there by the tree to allow for a bit more room...but we can't get much more than that.

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[mrobins297aaa]

well here's what you have there. The pump hangs on the bottom of that pipe that says "pipe to pump". the outlet to your house (where it says "pipeolet") is usually down 4 or 5 feet, one reason for that so it won't freeze.
The pic doesn't show the electrical the wires come from your house up threw that 3/4" conduit next to the casing and just follow the pump pipe down to the pump.
I don't know if you could cut it off but the top as you see it supports the pipe and pump so you would have to some how move the hole out fit down.

 

[toyotadriver]

Stupid place to put a well but it's there now. You are not supposed to have the well casing below the surface to prevent contaminates from entering your well. I'm afraid you're stuck with it.....or you need to drill a new well somewhere else and seal this one.

 

[Lassen Forge]

This is (sadly) common up here where people buy a lot, sink a well, then decide to build on the property and realize a well in the dead center of the lot maybe wasn't such a good idea after all. And it's not only "not ideal", it's not legal, and you risk contaminating not just your water supply, but anyone on that water table.

What my solution would be is to build the garage in front of the house (grassy area), and convert most of the driveway, like the left and back part of what is currently driveway (behind and next to the well) back into a landscaped yard. That way you avoid the issues you will face with your casing right there.

 

[BAGN1T]

What my solution would be is to build the garage in front of the house (grassy area), and convert most of the driveway, like the left and back part of what is currently driveway (behind and next to the well) back into a landscaped yard. That way you avoid the issues you will face with your casing right there.

When you say grassy area in front, are you talking about to the right of the driveway as seen in the photos? Where those few small trees are? If so, there isn't enough room there. The required setback there goes to within feet of the deck of the house.

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[mrobins297aaa]

I know you probably don't want to drill a new well but I would check and see if you can find out how deep it is (it maybe written on some of the equipment inside your house) and maybe if it's not to deep it maybe a option to just drill another one.
Another reason that it's sticking up above grade is that type of setup is called a "pitless" it's so you change out the well pump without any digging. hence "pitless" no digging.

 

[YeCats]

One positive thing about that well placement, it’s convenient to get a service truck to.

 

[ard]

Im betting there is a solution to put that below grade...a containment cellar, concrete vault, etc.

 

[58Yeoman]

Two years ago, my well pump took a dump. My well pump is behind the house and under trees. He was just able to get his truck in place with a large tree limb over him. He replaced the piping as well, all 80' feet of it. I doubt that I'll have trouble again as long as I'll be here, but if I do, that tree limb will be down.

 

[Showkey]

Im betting there is a solution to put that below grade...a containment cellar, concrete vault, etc.

Code says nope (at least in my area).......Sep 20, 2012 · If you are planning on having a new well drilled keep in mind the well casing height needs to extend a minimum of 12 inches above outside grade (above ground).

 

[doctordirt]

Wells need to be located a minimun distance from the septic. That is probably why it is there. No, you can not cut it off and bury it, it extends above grade to prevent contaminates from running down the well casing.

 

[doctordirt]

You may want to locate your septic tank and field first, as this may change your garage location.

 

[BAGN1T]

You may want to locate your septic tank and field first, as this may change your garage location.

Those are toward the other end of the house in the grassy area to the right in the photo, a ways out of the shot.

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[Boilerhouse]

Im betting there is a solution to put that below grade...a containment cellar, concrete vault, etc.

That's the way mine was done, long before I moved in. In this case, 36 inch well tiles. I believe it was done this way to keep everything below the frost line @ 4 ft. I don't believe there is an advantage in the OP case as the tiles still need to be protected with the cover. I also mark the cover in case I need to find it in the winter and it is under 3 ft of snow.

 

[BAGN1T]

That's the way mine was done, long before I moved in. In this case, 36 inch well tiles. I believe it was done this way to keep everything below the frost line @ 4 ft. I don't believe there is an advantage in the OP case as the tiles still need to be protected with the cover. I also mark the cover in case I need to find it in the winter and it is under 3 ft of snow.

That is exactly what I'm talking about.

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[yeldogt]

This is a good thread to link with the other thread about buying mountain property .. sometimes the lot determines how you have to build on it ... my guess --- septic as well on this property. It's been my experience that the septic field becomes the hardest to site ... once that is done you have a big circle that gives you the distance to the well .. at least 100' in my area. All of this has to fit within setbacks and lot use requirements. Now you place your house. I did have rocks on one property and the cost between one area and another to dig the well became a problem.

The well head needs to be protected from surface water -- there are codes w/ slope requirements so a flood would not contaminate the well. It has to sit above that flood line.

People often reject getting professional advise -- but IMO interviewing a couple architects for a site proposal is money well spent. Your property layout is going to have to be done correctly so the garage does not impact the property value.

 

[yeldogt]

That's the way mine was done, long before I moved in. In this case, 36 inch well tiles. I believe it was done this way to keep everything below the frost line @ 4 ft. I don't believe there is an advantage in the OP case as the tiles still need to be protected with the cover. I also mark the cover in case I need to find it in the winter and it is under 3 ft of snow.

That's interesting -- is there drainage in there? Maybe specific to your area ... Is that the high point of the area? I could not do that.

 

[ScottsGT]

Is it for whole house water, or just irrigation? Friend has one that is below grade in his yard. He has a man hole type cover to access it. Check your local codes and talk to a well drilling company. Might be doable with the proper man hole set up you can drive over.

 

[Boilerhouse]

That's interesting -- is there drainage in there? Maybe specific to your area ... Is that the high point of the area? I could not do that.

There is no engineered drainage, the cap and casing are still somewhat elevated from this lower elevation by about a foot so small amounts of incidental water incursion can drain away. The water table in this area is far below the well cap, and the tiles presumably keep out water infiltration. I am assuming it works, I test the well water occasionally for bacteria and have never had a positive result.

 

[BAGN1T]

I just double-checked the flood map. The well is about 1/3 mile and approx 180' elevation from the closest flood zone.

My thought is if I can get something similar to what boilerhouse has, and add a drain pipe out the side, the top of the casing would still be above the ground inside the structure so any groundwater that comes in from the driveway would be able to drain away before it were to fill up to the level of the top there. And my thought would be to make the top of the casing just below the outside grade, but inside the bottom of the dug out area could be like 3' below the top of the casing.

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[yeldogt]

I just double-checked the flood map. The well is about 1/3 mile and approx 180' elevation from the closest flood zone.

My thought is if I can get something similar to what boilerhouse has, and add a drain pipe out the side, the top of the casing would still be above the ground inside the structure so any groundwater that comes in from the driveway would be able to drain away before it were to fill up to the level of the top there. And my thought would be to make the top of the casing just below the outside grade, but inside the bottom of the dug out area could be like 3' below the top of the casing.

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In my area it's surface runoff -- in a heavy rain .... say 1" per hour ... water could (would) flow into the well. Thats' what you are up against -- should be easy to check out w/ code oficial

 

[MTY]

There are two types of well connections. Pit and pitless. Pitless does not refer to the fact that you do not have to dig a pit to access the outflow fitting.

A pitless connection refers to the fact that the well head does not have to sit in a pit to have the connection below frostline.

A well head sitting in a pit to get it below frost line generally has the entrance for power and exit for water through a sealed cap unlike a pitless well cap.

Pitless is generally cheaper. Also, the connection for a pitless connection often sits below the top of the water table. It is sealed just as the top of a pit connection is.

If it meets code in your area, you should be able to excavate below the pitless connection, build a concrete pit, maybe add a sump pump, cut the well head off, use a sealing well cap, and cover it with a steel plate that overlaps the edges of the concrete like the lid on a shoebox.

It is not unusual to have the well head, pressure tank and electrical components in the pit. It is just a mini basement. The only difference between yours and normal would be that most have a mini shed built over them.

A simple call to whomever does well work in your area should get you enough info to know if this is doable. Here there is no contact with the local government when one drills. The driller pulls a permit, and logs the results with the state.

It is common for a tag with a number to be attached to the well pipe. That number should be listed in the state well logs, often available online. The log should tell you who drilled the well, what types of soil were penetrated, how deep the well is, the tested gpm, when it was drilled, how it was sleeved etc..

 

[b-dog]

That's the way mine was done, long before I moved in. In this case, 36 inch well tiles. I believe it was done this way to keep everything below the frost line @ 4 ft. I don't believe there is an advantage in the OP case as the tiles still need to be protected with the cover. I also mark the cover in case I need to find it in the winter and it is under 3 ft of snow.

Mine is similar and I'm not sure on the history of events at my place before I bought it. The well is about 5' away from the original exterior wall. An addition was later added over the well area. I'm not sure if the well cap was ever above ground but it's about 5' down in a pit under one of my bedroom closets now. The whole thing is a little ridiculous but in old houses, I believe they call that, "character".

Definitely not a well expert as the thread title is requesting...

 

[bullnerd]

Code! lol! Know what the "code" is for buried plastic gas line is in my area? 12"! You can hit that with a spade in one shot!

"A simple call to whomever does well work in your area should get you enough info to know if this is doable. "

Id start with this.

My well head is buried, never even seen it in 25 yrs in the house.

Why not lower it and SEAL it in a box. Like an irrigation system box with an o-ring gasket lid. Cant contaminate it if no water even gets in.

Nice house BTW.

 

[BAGN1T]

Nice house BTW.

Thanks!

Planning to call a local well guy. But I assumed I would get a quicker response here and I wanted a few opinions.

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[GarageGuy89]

Yes it is possible. Code doesn't allow it, but who likes to follow codes anyways.

My well cap is 18" under ground with no protection. Only reason I know where it is, is because the guy who sold the house dug up the conduit run to find the dam thing. It's under my deck...

I know of plenty well caps that are underground. Most of the older ones are underground before there were codes. Why it has to be above ground is beyond me.

 

[ard]

Im no expert, but those insisting "it must be above grade"...

there may be an interpretation that a concrete box, sealed, with a standby sump, is in fact creatingin a new 'grade'. Or code may in fact allow other methods 'to prevent intrusion of surface water'.


For OPs situation a nice concrete vault with a cap that can sustain car traffic would be a great solution.

 

[6768rogues]

I would put a curb around it and put a pole with a parking lot light on it, or a flag pole, maybe both.

 

[rburke65]

Oh you may get a quicker response here but quicker isn't right.

 

[TractorJeff]

Interesting comments!
Mine is above ground with a gasketed cap to prevent Bug Infiltration but if you look real hard, it has a wire screened vent hole.
Why? You ask.
Well think about it, if a well was truly sealed then I would "assume" that as water is drawn off a vacuum would be created in the well pipe which would diminish flow..

For what its worth, my neighbors is down in a well hole below a pad that the windmill sat on. He told ne that a sump pump keeps it dry down there but if he was ever to do something with it, he would need to have the casing extended above ground to meet local code by preventing ground water and pollutants from poisoning the aquifer.

 

[jetnow1]

My house has an old jet style well, everything is buried, pump is in basement. When the piping cracked I found it was buried 5 feet down, fortunately my next door neighbor had a backhoe and dug it up for me. He had to have a new well dug, they told him new wells here must be same style as OP, cost him 15.000 went down 315 feet, water is hard. My old jet well is soft water, 100 feet deep. City water is just a block away but they say it is too expensive to run down to us as it would only effect about 12 houses.