A well is needed to obtain water in a private house in the absence of a central water supply. When building a house, consider where and when you will dig the mine. Water will be required during construction and for living. When it is better to dig a well, a beginner should know in advance in order to plan expenses and time.
How to choose a place
The well is located in a place where groundwater passes as close to the surface as possible. This will reduce the time of digging a hole, the cost of work.
When choosing a place for a well, observe the following rules:
- it should not interfere with the passage and passage of vehicles;
- the place is selected in accordance with the plan for the construction of the house;
- should be near the garden to be watered;
- nearby should not be a toilet, cesspool, compost pile;
- Choose the most elevated place on the site;
- the final location should be selected taking into account groundwater;
- the best time to dig a well is the end of summer - the beginning of autumn.
The choice of materials for the well
When choosing a material, be guided by quality, durability, price, labor.
Concrete rings are difficult to install due to their heavy weight. Rings are subject to destruction. Additional work on sealing joints increases the total cost.
To equip a mine, you can use a tree. This method requires quality wood. Not every tree is suitable for these jobs. An error in the choice of material will lead to an early repair of the mine. The tree must be dried and not infected with parasites. If these conditions are not met, the well will quickly become worthless, and capital repairs at a price will be commensurate with the construction of a new one.
Plastic rings have worked well. The term of use reaches 50 years. Plastic is lighter than reinforced concrete rings, which simplifies its transportation and assembly. Plastic rings are easily joined and do not allow water to pass through. Resistant to corrosion and tolerate temperature changes. The cost of plastic rings is lower than concrete and wooden structures.
Digging in a drought
To determine when it is better to dig a well in the country, determine the pros and cons of weather conditions.
The arid period in late August - early September allows you to:
- choose the best place;
- work is simplified;
- groundwater is at maximum depth, so the risk that they will leave is minimal;
- the likelihood of additional work in the future is missing.
Well in the spring
What time of year it is better to dig a well depends on how urgently you need it. Spring is not the best time of the year for this event. Melting snow leads to an increase in groundwater, therefore, there is a high risk that the water will leave and will have to deepen later.
But if you start digging a well in late spring, you can get a number of advantages:
- own water will be in summer when its presence is most relevant;
- the cost of work may be lower due to the lack of high demand;
- There are no problems with the delivery of equipment and the selection of a contractor.
If you do not build a well at the time of snow melting, then digging a mine with minimal losses and risks is quite possible.
If you want to get a well in the midst of high water, entrust digging to professionals who dig a mine taking into account the time of year.
Digging in winter
When choosing when to dig a well, the season should not play a major role. The fact is that you can dig a mine at any time of the year, but with its pros and cons.
It would seem that digging a well in winter is a stupid undertaking, but professionals say the opposite. With properly organized work, winter provides several advantages:
- low groundwater level will not let the aquifer pass;
- the construction of the mine is possible to a great depth, which will give confidence that the water will not dry out;
- the cost of work will be lower than in summer and even in spring;
- easier to find a contractor in a short time;
- the cost of the material is reduced in winter.
Well digging rules
After you decide what time it is better to dig a well, learn the rules of digging. First of all, a decision is made on choosing a place.
For independent digging of the well, prepare shovels, pointed and shovels, scrap, buckets, a thick rope, safety equipment, a reliable tripod, a pump will come in handy.
When buying rings, pay attention to the special holes for moving the rings. Rings can be bought concrete or plastic, but give preference to new ones. The used material can become unusable, crack, and then the savings will be insignificant, you will have to spend time installing and buying a new ring. When determining the depth, you can focus on the depth that the neighbors have.
Choosing a place for the well and making markings, you can remove the top layer of soil. The fertile layer is stored separately, it can be used in the future to improve the home garden or create an alpine hill.
Clay extracted from the pit should be stored separately, not far from the work. It is useful for waterproofing rings.
After digging to the depth of one ring, install a mechanism that will be responsible for raising and lowering the rings and objects. Further, the principle of operation may be different:
- closed - the first ring is installed, and digging under it continues;
- open - the well rummages to the full depth, and only after that the rings are installed.
The first method is more convenient in that it is easier to install the rings, the ring lowers itself as the digger moves, but if a large stone gets under the ring, it is very difficult to pull it out.
The second method is complicated in that the rings have to be installed at a sufficient depth and there is a risk of a shaft collapse. When it is better to dig a well to avoid collapse, the question remains rhetorical.
To eliminate the disadvantages of both methods, a mixed method is often used. At first they dig in an open way, and at the first signs of instability, the soil continues to be closed.
Budgeting
To determine the cost of the finished well, include all costs in the estimate.
First of all, include the number and cost of the rings that will be inserted into the shaft. Who will dig the well? If on their own, then the costs of workers are not included in the estimate. If you hire a brigade, then find out the cost of the work. The price depends on whether you plan to manually dig or using equipment.
Add the cost of consumables to seal the rings. We take into account the presence or absence of a filter, whether water pumping, installation of a pump is required.
Well service
To increase the life of the well, it is necessary to clean the rings once a year. To do this, all water is pumped out of the well and a worker is lowered into the mine. He cleans up the accumulated dirt and debris, checks the joints for sealing, inspects for cracks, covers them.
If disinfection of the well is required, bleach is used after cleaning. Then the water is pumped out 2-3 times.
Expert Advice
When is it better to dig a well for a layman? Experts advise doing this at the end of summer. Keep up to the rains. You can not stretch the work for several weeks, everything can be done in a week.
For digging, optimally 3 people can dig together. Be sure to follow safety precautions, do not take off the helmet in the mine.
At the bottom of the well, you can sprinkle small pebbles for natural filtration.