Water is an essential need in our daily lives. We drink it and use it for baths, laundry, cooking, cleaning, toilet flushing, washing our beloved car, and almost everything else. No one can deny its importance, so it is always the number one priority of every household.
But, if you need extra water to fill in swimming pools, flourish your beautiful garden, or maybe service a multi-hectare irrigation plan, then there is nothing better than a borehole that beats a source of cost-effective water where it is needed.
Boreholes
Boreholes are shafts that are drilled into the ground horizontally or vertically. Even though these shafts are narrow, they are intense. An installed water borehole taps into aquifers or underground stores of water that are created through rain and evaporation in the permeable geological matter.
Boreholes are drilled and lined with a proper casing and screen. Just around the screen, an annulus is placed and then packed with rounded inert silica sand or gravel that acts as a filter. To prevent polluted surface water from entering the borehole, a seal near the borehole’s top closes the drill holes in the pipe. After that, a sealed chamber is installed that houses the surface valve and well-head, and a stainless steel pump is submerged into the hole.
If you think you might need a borehole at home, there are a few things you need to know first before installing one:
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Dry Holes
Because this water supply is too deep, drilling contractors cannot guarantee that the borehole will hit the water. Therefore, you shall take a risk, and regardless of the result it yields, you will still be responsible for the cost of the borehole. The potential success of hitting the water would be around 65 to 70% only. However, if you ask a professional water dowser to assist your drillers, then you will have a 90 to 95% success rate. But there is still a risk. If you are lucky, the first drill will be the last one. However, if you are unlucky that day, then you might ask for another hole and cause you to pay more.
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Borehole’s Life
If all equipment is of high quality and the borehole is installed correctly without any defect, 20 years of life can be expected for all major components.
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Noise And Damage
Drilling causes noise pollution, which might annoy your neighbors. It is also a messy process, so you are advised to give a heads-up to your neighbors and ask for their patience. Modern drilling rigs are heavy and very large. This means that in the process of drilling, even though the contractor has taken reasonable care, unavoidable damages might still occur on your property, particularly in garden areas. In such cases, contractors cannot be held responsible. So you are advised to remove anything of value away from the drilling area or do a complete makeover in cases of damages.
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Cost of Borehole’s Installation
Boreholes require a good investment. This means you need a large sum of money for its installation. The Borehole Water Journal Online enumerated these expenses:
- Locating and site selection of boreholes
- Construction of boreholes. This includes installation of the well-head, sanitary seal, gravel pack, solid screen and casing, casing entailing supply, drilling per meter, equipment mobilization to the site and back to base, and well-development that includes cleaning of the borehole after construction.
- Cost of pumping test and aquifer performance
- Cost of hydrochemical analysis and water quality testing.
- Cost of installation for reticulation system, potable water storage tank, and pump.
- Cost of maintenance for checking equipment annually and pipe repairs for any failures.
- Cost of electricity for running a pump every time it is switched on.
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Borehole Registration
National Water Act said that groundwater for domestic purposes does not need to be registered. This includes:
- Watering animals
- Small gardening
- Reasonable domestic use in every household
- Filling swimming pool
- Household emergencies like putting out a fire
Once you’ve gathered the required permits and thoroughly examined the geological conditions, the process of water borehole drilling can commence, ensuring a sustainable and reliable water source for your home.
Conclusion:
A borehole adds significant value to your property and will be a good investment over time. So, if you plan to have a borehole at home, choose only experienced borehole drilling companies to ensure that you will get most of your risk and expenses. Having them work this task for you take off a lot of a load of stress and delivers you what you exactly need for your purposes.
