Proper Location & Construction of New Private Wells
The first step in providing a safe water supply is to properly locate
and construct your new well. Proper location is critical, as the possibility
of contamination can be found throughout numerous sources. One of the
most important things to consider in providing a good location for your
well is to find high ground, thus, making sure all possible surface contamination
sources are at a lower elevation than your well. It is also important
that your well is in compliance with the Illinois Water Well Construction
Code. Accumulation of surface water should not be allowed within a 15-foot
radius of the well, and a well must never be closer than 10 feet to sewers,
50 feet to septic tanks, or 75 feet to sewage seepage fields. Also, the
top 10 feet of the well casing must be watertight to ensure that bacterial
contamination is filtered and eliminated through normal soil.
- Bored wells are constructed in areas where aquifers
(a water-bearing geological formation or structure that stores or transmits
water to wells and springs) are shallow and low-yielding. Thus, they
typically range in depth from 30 to 100 feet. Bored wells have a larger
diameter to serve as storage reservoirs to help compensate for low-yielding
aquifers. However, this can create a greater potential for contamination.
To identify this type of well look for a relatively large stone or concrete
object sticking out of the ground or a 5-6 inch riser pipe for bored
wells that are constructed by the buried slab method. For information
regarding large diameter bored wells, and directions on how to disinfect
them, visit IDPH's online fact sheet, Bored
Wells.
- Drilled wells normally have narrower holes (4 to
10 inches around) and are deeper; ranging in depth from less than 100
feet to more than 1,000 feet. They can be identified by a pipe, ranging
4 to 10 inches in diameter, sticking about 8 to 12 inches out from the
ground with a flat or rounded cover on top. For information regarding
small diameter drilled wells, and directions on how to disinfect them,
visit the IDPH's online fact sheet, Drilled
Wells.
- To learn about the different options and concerns of a new well,
visit the University of Illinois Extension's online publication, Planning
Your Well: Guidelines for Safe Dependable Drinking Water (13 pages,
pdf).
- For more information on specific construction and installation codes
for Illinois, visit IDPH's web page, Water
Wells.
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