Let me tell you about this little experiment I did the other day. I was curious about how long it takes for a well to refill, you know, after you’ve used a bunch of water. We have a well at our place, and I always wonder about these things.
So, first, I had to figure out a way to measure the water usage. I started by checking the flow rate of our well pump. Turned out it pumps about 5 gallons per minute. That’s a useful starting point. Then I ran the water for a set amount of time, like I was filling a big tank or something, just to get a good amount of water out of the well. Let’s say I ran it for a solid hour. That’s 5 gallons per minute times 60 minutes, which equals 300 gallons of water used.
Start Timing
- Turn off the water: Once I had used up the water, I shut everything off. No more water running, no sneaky drips.
- Grab a stopwatch: Yeah, an actual stopwatch. I could have used my phone, but the stopwatch felt more official.
- Wait and watch: This is the boring part. I basically just had to wait and periodically check the well to see if the water level was back to normal. You can use a well sounder to measure the water level, or if you’re like me, just drop a weighted string down there and mark it when it hits the water. It’s not rocket science, but it works.
From what I read online, it looked like some shallow wells, especially those in sandy areas or near a river, can refill within a day. But our well is pretty deep, and the ground around here isn’t exactly porous. I read that some deep wells can take months or even years to fully recharge! But that seems extreme.
Observations
It actually took about 3 hours for the water level in my well to get back to where it was before I started. So, not too bad, I guess. I’ve heard that some wells can take up to 3 months to refill completely after a dry spell, so 3 hours is pretty quick in comparison. Of course, all of this depends on a bunch of things, like the type of soil around your well, the size of the aquifer (that’s the underground layer of rock that holds the water), and how much water everyone around you is using.
I also learned that when a well “runs dry,” it doesn’t mean it’s gone forever. Sometimes the water level just drops below where the pump can reach it. With enough rain and less pumping, the water level can come back up.
So, there you have it. My little well experiment. It wasn’t exactly scientific, but it gave me a better idea of how long it takes for my well to refill. If you’re curious, you should try it yourself! Just don’t blame me if you get bored waiting around.
