OK all you old timers (or young timers) PLEASE help me on this, We found land in S.E. Ohio with a good running spring, It was used many many years ago for water, Then the farm was abandoned. All that is left is the very crumble foundation. The water comes right out of a hill year round, I know I need to use a wellpoint and push it in the hill, But at what point do you push it in below where the water is running out or right where it comes out? This will be our drinking water so I want to do this right the first time. Any and all help will be GREATLY APPRECIATED

-- John (HawgDoc@aol.com), February 27, 2002

Answers

Here is one source of info. with pictures from Canada Spring Development, http://www.agr.gc.ca/pfra/water/waterf5.htm

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), February 27, 2002.

Here's a sight with instructions for installing a wellpoint: http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/naturalresources/DD0951.html

I have two useful springs on my property. One was used to supply water to the house many years ago and the other is down near the barn for livestock. A spring box was built up on the hill at the spring that was used for the house. A screened intake was inserted in the water collected in the box and an underground 1 1/2" line of black poly was buried all the way down the hill to carry the water to the house. The horizontal distance is about an 1/8 of a mile. The drop in elevation is probably something less than 100 feet.

We drilled a new deep well when we bought the place and don't use the spring water for the house, but we have used it for the garden. The amount of pressure it affords is incredible. At the house, the stream of water from that spring coming down the hill and into a garden hose will shoot a stream of water up to the top of a three-storey house.

So, if your spring has an elevation higher than your house, you may want to consider building a spring box and gravity-feed the water instead of using a wellpoint. Obviously the spring box has to be cleaned out once or twice a year and the water should be filtered and tested once in a while. Surface pollution is also something to consider with either a wellpoint or a free running spring. If you can keep the water flowing and underground enroute to the house you shouldn't have any problem unless the water freezes at the spring site. You'll always have nice cool water.

Good luck.

-- Ed (ecpubs@lynchburg.net), February 27, 2002.

John, We use our spring just as Ed suggested I guess. I am no engineer but our spring(actually it's springs, as several drain into that place)water comes out of the spring itself and drains into a pool that was created by damming up two sides. The resulting pool/pond is about 20ft. deep and maybe 40 feet in diameter. We had it scooped out 2 years ago, just to keep it from silting up(?). A 2" white pvc pipe comes down from the spring pond, a distance of 750ft., with a drop of about 70 feet in elevation. This produces a flow that shoots out a 1/2 " pipe sticking up out of our meadow and duck pond that is 3 feet high. I turn this off and water the meadow and can run 4 rainbirds with the water from this flow and still have water trickling into my various wading pools for the ducks. We have a well for drinking but that spring handles all of the outside watering. Very handy. Don't know if this will help you, I guess it depends on whether you have a difference in elevation or not. LQ

-- Little Quacker (carouselxing@juno.com), February 27, 2002.

I agree with ED. We had 2 of that kind for 25 yrs. worked great.

-- Elizabeth Quintana (rockshelter@webtv.com), March 02, 2002.