Agri Vehicles Insurance from Greenlands

Author Topic: Borehole for water supply  (Read 7565 times)

Mickey

  • Joined Jul 2012
  • Dumfries & Galloway
Borehole for water supply
« on: March 16, 2013, 10:33:57 am »
Hi,
Our search for a smallholding continues and lots of questions still to be answered!  One question concerns boreholes for domestic water supply.  I've looked around the Internet which suggests that boreholes are not a problem, cost a few grand to put in and some need a filtration system.  It appears that if the borehole was dug deep enough then it is unlikely to run dry.

Please can anyone offer any advice as to what we should be looking for/ asking about when we visit a property that has no mains water supply but uses a borehole?

Thanks,
Mickey


SteveHants

  • Joined Aug 2011
Re: Borehole for water supply
« Reply #1 on: March 16, 2013, 12:11:38 pm »
Does it dry up?


The first fish farm I worked on drew all of its water from a borehole and also used said same water for the supply in the tied workers flat (mine). All that was needed to make it safe to drink was to pass it under a UV light. Environmental Health will be able to help further.

Tala Orchard

  • Joined Nov 2012
  • North Cornwall
    • Tala Orchard
Re: Borehole for water supply
« Reply #2 on: March 16, 2013, 12:27:32 pm »
All our water is from borehole and it goes through a filter system, we use it for personal use, animals and watering the poly tunnels.

The cost can be expensive the cheaper is if the bore hole only goes down 150ft this can be done with a mobile gantry on the back of a trailer or such like, if there is a need to go deeper then you will have to have a full drilling rig just like an oil well. As for drying up we have not found it so yet and we draw our maybe 5-6 cubic metres a day.you can extract up to 20 cubic meters a day with out a licence if you are going to use more then you need an abstraction permit from Environment Agency.

As a guide 1 cubic metre of water is equivalent to 1000ltrs.

On the plus side is if you have your own water and a treatment system for waste you have no water rates to pay, just the emptying of the sewage every 3 yrs.

Tala
Pigs are human tooo

Mickey

  • Joined Jul 2012
  • Dumfries & Galloway
Re: Borehole for water supply
« Reply #3 on: March 17, 2013, 03:59:17 pm »
Thanks for those replies, we should be looking at a place very soon.

oor wullie

  • Joined Jun 2012
  • Strathnairn
Re: Borehole for water supply
« Reply #4 on: March 18, 2013, 07:31:47 am »
Water quality - the water from my borehole is quite different from my neighbors which is only 250m away.
Treatment - I drink from mine without any treatment at all.  Most people would recommend a filter and UV light.  If there are contaminants (eg iron, manganese, hardness) you may need further treatment.  The more you have the more it costs.
Annual maintainance - will vary depending on how much treatment you need, but expect some cost for flushing pumps / changing filters etc..
Pump lifespan - no idea how long they last but one day it will need replaced and it won't be cheap.
Does the system supply the house direct (so you have the equivalent of mains pressure water) or does it pump to a header tank which then supplies you?
What happens if there is a power cut (do you often get power cuts in the area)?  Can you hook up a wee generator so you still have water when there is no mains power?

lachlanandmarcus

  • Joined Aug 2010
  • Aberdeenshire
Re: Borehole for water supply
« Reply #5 on: March 18, 2013, 08:03:41 am »
I know that installing filters coming into the house from a well water supply up here in Aberdeenshire you can get a grant for the full cost of the filters. So it would be worth investigating anything similar applies to installing filters for boreholes supplies. It can save a few hundred pounds (nb you have to apply before going ahead as it were but it was quite simple process)

Mickey

  • Joined Jul 2012
  • Dumfries & Galloway
Re: Borehole for water supply
« Reply #6 on: March 18, 2013, 08:10:58 pm »
Very useful tips, thanks for those.

Mickey

Red

  • Joined Mar 2011
  • North Yorkshire
Re: Borehole for water supply
« Reply #7 on: March 19, 2013, 08:08:19 pm »
Check the depth of water as when we had ours drilled we hit water at 35 metres but we asked them to drill to 55 to make sure it never runs dry ... The water isn't treated and it tastes cold and lovely! My neighbour said he had never had his water treated but just watch out for the smell of rotten eggs as that means treatment is needed
Red

scarlettoara

  • Joined Feb 2013
Re: Borehole for water supply
« Reply #8 on: March 20, 2013, 10:15:00 am »
most places around here have private water, which means a borehole/well.
a friend of mine had nothing but trouble with his. he was quoted £12k to be put on to mains water when he bought the farm but chose to renew the well and be self-sufficient. but after 10yrs, he has spent much more on the well, than the initial £12k. i think this was mainly due to the expensive new system that was fitted wrong and has always played up. its hard to fix it when its all been buried again, and being without water is a nightmare when you have livestock. even now this chap buys bottled water for drinking as his water has a red colour to it.

another friend was wanting to build a new well and had the man out who can tell where the natural water supply is (yes - they really use the metal stick thingys) but his natural supply was too close to the neighbours soakaways.  you can never be sure where the neighbours soakaways are so beware - our neighbours - who are v close - have just found a second septic tank they never knew they had, and the soakaway isnt marked on any plans but is right next to our house , in our field. so in theory, we could have build a well in  that area thinking it was clean.


 

Forum sponsors

FibreHut Energy Helpline Thomson & Morgan Time for Paws Scottish Smallholder & Grower Festival Ark Farm Livestock Movement Service

© The Accidental Smallholder Ltd 2003-2024. All rights reserved.

Design by Furness Internet

Site developed by Champion IS