Well water

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Gasman
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Well water

Postby Gasman » Mon Aug 24, 2009 4:47 pm

We moved into a property 3 years ago in the campo in the Huelva hills (Valverde-del-camino) that has a well 100mtrs deep. Recently we have been experiencing problems getting water from it, we have neighbours either side of us and all have wells.I have been told that you can't sink another bore hole within 30mtrs of an existing one, is this correct,and how do I know that my neighbour is not using all the water.I don't understand how these bore holes/underground reserves work, can anybody advise me on this please.

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country boy
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Re: Well water

Postby country boy » Mon Aug 24, 2009 7:37 pm

It sounds like a borehole not a well , they are likey to silt up, especially if they don't get a lot of use. Try lifting your pump a couple of metres, if flow improves you have a silt problem, consult a pozo man for a pump out!

olive
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Re: Well water

Postby olive » Tue Aug 25, 2009 1:17 pm

We were quoted about 950 euros to clear a borehole of possible debris.

Lifting the pump helped a little. If you have depth switches they may need cleaning. A careful swish about in some agua fuerte might help.

What problems have you been having? Just a lack of water available to pump out? The water table is generally falling (i.e. getting lower) everywhere as a result of more water being extracted and generally lower rainfall these last few years. Our local pump maintenance and install company have just equipped a new well not far away that is an astonishing 510 metres deep. Imagine the tubing and electric cable for that!

I believe the "rule" about proximity to another persons bore hole is not within 100 metres. Don't forget that you have no guarantee of hitting water with a new bore hole and you have to apply for permissions beforehand. It can be an expensive gig if you don't hit water.

As far as neighbours using all the water. You will quite likely be using the same aquifer/aquifer system or possibly an underground "pond" of water. I would say there is a great likelyhood of their usage excacerbating your problem (and vice versa). Apart from a gentlemans agreement there is very little you can do. Modern legal wells will have an upper yearly extraction limit and a sealed approved accessible meter to verify this. Of course there are millions of old bore holes that escape this requirement.

One final point. It might be cheaper to strike an agreement with your neighbour if their well is superproductive compared with yours to get extra water from them at a cost or build a balsa and collect rain water/have it delivered at say 100 euros for 10 cu m.

olive

Lavanda
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Re: Well water

Postby Lavanda » Tue Aug 25, 2009 4:08 pm

Just to add to Olive's comprehensive post ...
... if your borehole is legal then you do have more security in times of water shortages than a neighbouring borehole that is not registered. These can be shut and will be shut before yours. Most Spanish people have historical boreholes but do not fork out the €800, or so, to register it.

Gasman
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Re: Well water

Postby Gasman » Tue Aug 25, 2009 11:22 pm

Thanx for all your replies, this is my first time on this forum and I am well impressed. Yesterday when I was filling my reserve tank up,I noticed air bubbles in the water that was coming directly from the bore hole, could this be another sign that the water level is low or a pump malfunction. I am still having trouble getting to grips with underground water,having in the past always been on town water wherever we have lived, but this is the best water we have ever tasted.Thanx again for all help.

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Re: Well water

Postby Pianosteve » Sun Jul 22, 2018 6:46 pm

I know this subject has not been broached for several years but can someone explain to me how the well water system in Andalucia works, whether you have hot water on hand whenever you want it and how much it would be for a rural finca to be connected to the mains?

olive
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Re: Well water

Postby olive » Sun Jul 22, 2018 7:58 pm

Welcome to the forum.

Plenty of info if you search on wells on here. The key thing to remember is just because a well has water now , there is no guarantee year on year. A modest household might use 500 to 700 litres a day. This goes up a lot if you syart irrigating gardens.

Hot water on demand. Three practical methods. First instantaneous gas heater running on a bottle . Budget about 200 euros for the boiler. Best nes have ignition system rather than a permanent pilot light. Next is an electric boiler. You might need a dedicated wired cct to the consumer unit i.e a 16 amp. These are fine but rural properties ( am assumng you are talking about a rural property ) oftenhave limited power supplies e.g. 5.5kw so an electric boiler would subtract from the running total of appliances you could run together. A kettle could be 2 kw. Third is solar . No experience of these but obviously need sun.

How much to connect to mans. It is not a universal requirement in Spain to have all dwellings on mains. So you would likely end up paying . Could be thousands. How far is it to town water? A final thought is rural hamlets often have their own water company and well and may not allow new connections.

I would advise against buying a house and ending up having water trucked in.

Hope that helps

Pamela1
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Re: Well water

Postby Pamela1 » Mon Jul 23, 2018 7:07 pm

Where we are 5 neighbours shared the same water hole...well to be exact there are 2 water wells or water deposits..im not up on this kind of thing and have little understanding..what has happened aparently over the past years is that the water deposits are in such bad repair that they are no longer viable..the neighbours have been receiving their water from a neigbour with a big water supply but only when he can be bothered to divert it..does any of this make sense? All 5 neigjbours including us are in some kind of water payment for water that we cant get..i said so why pay if no one is getting the water...the answer was if you come out of it its hard to get back in...
Since then all of us have paid to have new pipes conected from the nearby lake..the water gushes out and everyone is happy..however it cost a few pennys...The mad thing or not mad in others opinion is that those with more land than others paid more for the work even though those with most land had less pipe work....The interesting thing is we have 12hours of water per month on the escrito but the person in charge of our area says we actually have 20hrs.....im not going to argue that one..

Gasman
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Re: Well water

Postby Gasman » Mon Jul 23, 2018 11:37 pm

As OP I can report back after a few years of experience ... that was the only time, so far - touch wood - that we experienced a genuine shortage of water, and in spite of various dry spells since, our supply has been good. However, with all this experience behind us, I can confirm Olive's post and agree that water is the most important service to consider in buying a house - if you cannot confirm the water supply, or if it is shared, you need seriously to consider if it is worth walking away.
Most rural, semirural, and just outside town limits houses do not yet have access to mains water and it is just too expensive for many villages to consider expanding their network. Really out-in-the sticks houses cannot expect to have mains. Also if you have mains water, by law you have to have legal means of dealing with the waste water - not an old established pozo negro, that is a waste away cess pit, but either sewage system provided by the town, or a proper fossa septica, septic tank system - which you are liable for pay for if you need to put one in.
Again by law, EU I think, any urbanisation adpted by a town should have provided mains water, mains electric of course, public lighting, childrens play areas, even bus service - needless to say, a semirural urbanisation hasnt a hope in H-ll of getting all that, and considering the upheaval and costs to the house owners, it really is not something most people harp on about.
So If you are thinking of buying a rural home, ask about the water, the well, the aquifers, check the well is registered and marked on the cadastral plan, check your electric supply is legal too, and ask politely about the drains - a good pozo negro will cause no problems, and legally does not need to be upgraded unless interfered with, or there is a local byelaw to adhere to - as far as I know anyway! Unless you get put onto the mains !!!

Pamela1
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Re: Well water

Postby Pamela1 » Wed Jul 25, 2018 7:18 am

After reading Gasmans post i guess we are lucky enough to have mains water out in the campo and just as lucky to now have the water for the land coming straight from the lake at a cost of around 160 euros a year..The water preasure is amazing and dosent alter no matter if all neighbours are using it at the same time...This is one time when im glad we didnt walk away but i get that it might not be the same outcome for another place in the campo..


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