Know Your Well
Imagine turning on your faucet one morning and nothing comes out. No water for your morning coffee, no shower, and no way to water livestock, pets, or gardens. For many well owners, that scenario seems unlikely until it happens. The good news is that many well problems can be identified long before they become emergencies. The key is knowing your well.
If you own a water well, chances are you depend on it every day. It provides water for your home, livestock, garden, or business. Yet many well owners know surprisingly little about the well they rely on. Do you know how deep your well is? What aquifer does it produce from? How far below the ground surface the water level sits? Do you know where your well records are located? Many well owners only begin asking these questions when something goes wrong. By then, a small issue may have become a costly problem. That is why one of the best things a well owner can do is take the time to know their well.
A great place to start is by making sure your well is registered with the Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District. Well registration helps the District collect better groundwater data and develop a stronger scientific understanding of local aquifers. Better data leads to better groundwater management decisions that benefit everyone who relies on groundwater.
Registration also benefits the well owner directly. Registered wells are eligible to participate in the District's Well Watch Program, a free voluntary program that measures water levels in participating wells twice each year. These measurements allow well owners to track changes in their wells over time while also helping the District better understand groundwater conditions across Bastrop and Lee Counties.
Registration may also make well owners eligible for the District's Groundwater Mitigation Program. If a well is impacted by permitted groundwater production, the District may be able to assist with mitigation measures such as lowering a pump or helping offset the cost of a replacement well, depending on the circumstances and program requirements.
Another important step is locating your well records. If your well was drilled after 2003, there is a good chance a State Well Report exists in the Texas Water Development Board's online database. This report contains valuable information about your well, including its depth, casing, pump information, water level at the time of completion, and the geologic formations encountered during drilling. The District also maintains information on registered wells through its online database, giving well owners another valuable resource for learning more about their wells.
Knowing which aquifer supplies your water is also important. Here in Bastrop and Lee Counties, wells may produce water from the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer, Sparta Aquifer, Queen City Aquifer, Yegua-Jackson Aquifer, or other groundwater-bearing formations. Using the District's online Bore Tool, well owners can identify which aquifer their well is completed in and learn more about the groundwater resource they depend on every day.
Many well owners know how deep their well is, but have no idea where their pump is set. Knowing both numbers is important. The distance between your pump and the water level is one of the best indicators of how much available water remains in your well. If water levels decline over time, knowing where your pump is located can help you and your pump installer determine whether the pump can be lowered before problems occur.
Perhaps the most important piece of information a well owner can know is the water level in their well. Unfortunately, many well owners do not think about water levels until they turn on the faucet and no water comes out. In some cases, declining water levels can leave a pump suspended above the water column. When that happens, the pump can run dry, overheat, and fail. Sometimes the damage extends beyond the pump itself, leading to repairs that are far more expensive than they otherwise would have been.
Tracking water levels over time can help identify trends before they become emergencies. If a declining water level is identified early, lowering the pump may be a relatively simple and affordable solution. Waiting until the pump fails can result in much higher repair costs and, in some cases, the need to drill a new well.
One of the easiest ways to stay organized is to create a well binder. Keep copies of your State Well Report, pump records, water quality test results, water level measurements, maintenance records, and any information received from the District. Think of it as a health record for your well. Having this information readily available can save time, money, and frustration when questions or problems arise.
A well binder can also be incredibly valuable years down the road. Too often, well records get misplaced as ownership changes or time passes. Having everything organized in one location means you will always know where to find important information when you need it, whether you are troubleshooting a problem, selling your property, or working with a driller or pump installer.
Your well is one of the most valuable pieces of infrastructure on your property. The more you know about it, the better prepared you will be to maintain it, protect it, and respond to potential issues before they become major problems. A little time spent learning about your well today can help prevent costly surprises down the road. If you need help finding out information about your well, give Lost Pines GCD a call at (512) 360-5088. Think smart and know your well!