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Ponds & Aquatic Plants

Water feature over existing well?

16 years ago

We have an old well just off our back deck that has not been used for many years and we would like to put a water feature over the top. I would like to get an antique well pump and have it pump water into a whiskey barrel which would then over-flow back into the well. We would cover the well with a sturdy steel grate and then cover the grate with rocks so that the water could run back into the well. My concern is that this might be expensive to maintain, the pump might be too noisey, the pump might get clogged, etc. Another option would be to cover the well with a concrete slab and not use the well water at all--just have the water from the well pump/whiskey barrel re-circulate without going down into the well. I am not sure which option would be the best--the second option would be cheaper but it would be nice to have the sound of water falling into the well. I would like to leave some sort of access to the well so that we could use it in an emergency but I really want it to be safe. At this point it is a 5' x 5' hole in the ground that is 18' deep from top to bottom. Any ideas or suggestions would be really appreciated. Thanks so much in advance.

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Comments (3)

catherinet
16 years ago
Hi gardengal,
Do you have any concerns about children falling down in there? Also, there might be certain laws about messing with old wells......I just don't know. I don't know if you are presently risking contaminating your water source by keeping this well open.???
I would find out those issues first. Can you just walk up to this big hole and look down 18'? That's a little scary! I think I would be tempted to seal it off or fill it in, and then just have a water feature wherever you wanted it. Good luck, and don't fall in! :)
P.S......if you wanted to maintain this as a working well, I would suggest having an old fashioned priming hydrant installed, and covering up the space around it, for safety sake.
Gardenweb has a great plumbing forum that might be able to give you better suggestions. (no offense to anyone here).
sleeplessinftwayne
16 years ago
Ditto. The EPA and other agencies that monitor water quality would have a hissy with this. At the very least you would be contaminating ground water. Is this an artesian well? You may have other problems when there is heavy rain anywhere up stream. My BIL ignored a similar situation and wound up with a damaged foundation, cracks in the basement walls, and all the door frames and window casements damaged. The whole house was no longer level. While this may not ever happen to your house you need to be proactive with this. Ignoring it won't make it go away. Sandy
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gardengal327
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks so much for the advice. I think we will just cover it up somehow and put in a hand pump just in case we ever need it. To answer your question, catherinet, we used to have a pump house over the top but recently moved it to add on a deck. Unfortunately, we now have a huge 18' hole that is being temporarily covered by lumber. We don't have any small children around but it definitely is a big concern. Sleepless..I don't think this is an artesian well--the water is 5' from the surface and used to have a pump many years ago. Anyways, I will call a local well company tomorrow to see what they suggest regarding covering it up. Thanks again!!

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