Self cleaning and minor repairs of the well

Owners of suburban real estate will agree that a well on the site is necessary. It can become the basis of an autonomous water supply system or simply be a source of water. In any case, from time to time it becomes necessary to clean and repair the wells. Usually, specialists are invited for these purposes, but the work can be done independently.

What can cause pollution?

The appearance of muddy and contaminated water in the well is possible for various reasons. The most common of them are:

1. The bottom of the structure has risen or is drawn in by silt. The phenomenon is very common when arranging a well on quicksand. Also, raising the bottom provokes excessive pumping of water, activating the process of sand washing.
2. Artificial pollution of the structure. It becomes the result of accidental ingress of an animal or plants into the well, as well as oil leakage from the pump.
3. Clay falling into the well. This happens due to the violation of the integrity of the clay castle around the structure.
4. Poor sealing of seams or the absence or contamination of the bottom filter, which leads to the appearance of muddy water.
5. Decrease in water level in a well.

The sludge-tightened bottom of the well must be cleaned, otherwise the water from it will no longer please with its initial cleanliness

How to carry out cleaning procedures?

As practice shows, most often cleaning and repair of wells are carried out simultaneously. Manual cleaning operations are carried out in stages:

• We begin with the dismantling of the house located on the well or the lid of the structure, since for high-quality work, free access to the upper part of the first ring and to the well shaft will be required.
• We pump out water from the structure. The operation is carried out in several stages. Primary - before the design diagnostics, the subsequent ones - during the cleaning process and the finish - at the end of the cleaning work.
• We wash and, if necessary, disinfect the internal surfaces of the structure. Organic deposits and deposits from the walls must be completely removed with a stiff brush. If possible, they use a high-pressure washer for these purposes, so the process will go much faster.
• Carefully inspect the well, its walls and bottom. Determine if repairs are required.
• If necessary, we repair the internal surface of the structure. Work methods depend on the method of manufacturing the well.
• We clean the structure from bottom sediments and silt. This will require a bucket and a shovel. During preventive cleaning, suspended sediment, sludge and soil debris are removed from the bottom. On average, their volume is usually three buckets, but in some cases it can reach six to seven.
• If necessary, change or install a bottom filter. It consists of coarse gravel with a layer of about 10 cm. The filter layer will reduce the agitation of water and strengthen the soil at the bottom.

You can clean the well mechanically using a pump.

Well repair technology

There are many recommendations on how to repair a well yourself. In order to navigate them, you need to understand that the methods of work depend on the method of manufacturing the structure.

Concrete well

In such structures, the most common reasons for carrying out repair work is the displacement of rings or the appearance of cracks. The use of low-quality cement during the construction of a well or soil features around the structure leads to this result. It happens that spring flood waters oversaturate the soil with moisture and erode the seams between the rings.

Slots formed on the surface are sealed with mastic

The complexity of the repair work depends on the degree of destruction of the sealing coating. If minor damage is noticed in time, the resulting gaps can be closed from the inside. Before processing, the crack taps, all unreliably held pieces of concrete are removed. The defect is carefully covered with waterproof mastic for concrete. It should be ensured that it is safe for humans, as it will come in contact with drinking water.

More serious damage will have to be repaired not only from the inside of the well, but also from the outside. A ditch is dug around the perimeter of the structure, it should reach a defect in the structure. The width of the trench is supposed to be such that it could carry out repair work. Having reached the crack, it is thoroughly cleaned of dirt and sealed with mastic for concrete. It is advisable to treat the seam with a waterproofing compound over the composition, which will prevent erosion of the material.

When displacing concrete rings, partial dismantling of the structure will be required.

An even more time-consuming repair is due to the displacement of concrete well rings. In this case, you will have to dig and dismantle the entire damaged area. Then reassemble it by installing additional connecting brackets on the rings. All seams are carefully closed, then the well is sealed and a new blind area is mounted.

Wooden structure

Most often, for the repair of a wooden well, the replacement of rotten logs will be required. This is a very time-consuming operation. To carry it out from thick boards they knock down the platform from which work will be carried out. She is using a cable fixed on a structure of beams installed above the neck of the well. The platform descends with the help of a gate or manually.

Crowns located above the defective area are fixed on the goats with the help of boards

The surviving part of the log house, which is located above the defective area, is fixed with the help of special “goats” installed on both sides of the well. Four logs are fixed on them, to which strong boards are nailed, the lower end reliably holding the log crowns. Alternatively, you can hang the crowns on the ropes with hooks. In any case, after installing the retaining structure, they begin to analyze rotted logs. Parts are removed to the surface and new ones are selected according to their size. Prepared elements are driven into the place of the destroyed and wedged tightly.

Brick building

The simplest way is to repair a brick structure. During the cleaning of the inner surface of the well, all defects that were previously invisible were clearly detected. The crumbled brick is removed, and a new one is installed in its place with the help of cement mortar. At the end of the work, the surface is carefully plastered.

Do-it-yourself cleaning and repair of wells is a feasible measure. Before you get down to business, you need to carefully read the recommendations of specialists. Competently carried out works guarantee a long faultless operation of the facility, which will delight its owner with invariably clean water.