Welcome to the exciting world of residential water wells! Whether you are looking to save money on water bills, take ownership of your water supply, or are located off your city’s public water grid, a private water well is an investment that will return for years to come.

Most Florida water wells rely completely on the Floridian Aquifer System, located anywhere between 100 and 3,000 feet underground. Unsurprisingly, tapping into this aquifer is no easy task. Digging such a deep well requires specialized machinery, an experienced team of well drillers, and a variety of county- and state-specific permits and licenses that make planning a tedious and instrumental part of the water well installation process.

To make this process less overwhelming, North Florida Water Systems Inc has summarized the three major planning areas that precede most Florida water well installations.

Site Selection

Well drilling companies pay close attention to a variety of geographic features when deciding on the site for your new well installation. The selected site determines the yield, water quality, and future maintenance requirements of your water well. If poorly selected, your well can suffer from a variety of well water problems, such as contamination, low water pressure, and more.

To first determine the availability and quality of water on your property, most local well drilling companies will perform a comprehensive groundwater survey to pinpoint all potential access points to aquifers and groundwater reserves. Additionally, groundwater surveys can identify any possible areas of difficult terrain and groundwater contamination.

In general, well drilling companies will avoid selecting a site near septic systems, flood zones, buildings, and known areas of water contamination. The water well should be easily reached by large machinery for installation, maintenance, and repair purposes. If your property is located within the bounds of your county’s delineated areas of groundwater contamination, additional water treatment systems and permits may be required to proceed.

Calculate Household Water Demand

Calculating the water needs of your household is an important part of the well installation planning process. The more water your household uses, the larger the capacity of your well will need to be.

To estimate your household’s daily water requirements, your water well contractor will need to measure the volume of water consumed during a time period of peak demand. Typically, this peak demand occurs when all members of the household are home and awake, early in the morning or in the afternoon, right after work and school.

The calculated peak demand, measured in gallons per minute, will inform your contractor what size residential well pump and well pressure tank will be sufficient to meet the needs of your household. There are a number of factors that go into determining the appropriate well pump size for your water well that should be evaluated and addressed in this phase of planning.

Legal Preparation

If your household’s demand is excessively large (over 100,000 gallons per day) or will be used for large-scale agricultural irrigation, Florida regulation requires that a water usage permit be obtained before any other construction-related permits can be issued.

To install, repair, or abandon any water well in the state of Florida, a well construction permit is required to ensure the well continues to meet all safety and health regulations. To further guarantee that all water wells in the state of Florida stay well-maintained and potable, only licensed water well contractors are allowed to install residential and commercial water wells.

At North Florida Water Systems Inc, we never cut corners when it comes to our water well drilling and installation services. To learn more about our planning process or to schedule your free consultation, contact our well drilling company today!