Underground water depth etc.

[scorecard]

My Thai son's wife has inherited 20 rai of land in the Tak area and they are in the process of estblishing an orchard.

 

Apparently this area has limited water available (except for rain and local small streams, often dry). They've asked my Thai son to help finance the equipment/installation of the equipment to tap underground water. Supposedly quite abundant but quite deep.

 

My son is not so familiar with anything to do with farming etc., the information my son has:

 

- Water extraction pipe needs to be about 40 metres deep, maybe more. Locals tell son to spend more and install good quality stainless steel pipe. About 2 to 3 days to install.

 

- Cost of all equipment and the cost of instaling the underground pipe plus a solar powered remote (inernet) controlled pump about 65,000Baht.

 

- There's 2 large big ponds at the location used to store rain water. Could be used to store water pumped from the underground water supply, and the ponds could be increased in size.

 

I'm hoping some members are familliar with the subject, can you please share some comments.

 

Thanks. 

[norbra]

https://thinglishlifestyle.com/thinglish-lifestyle/home-garden/drilling-water-well-thailand/

This is worth a read,hope it is helpful 

[scorecard]

13 minutes ago, norbra said:

https://thinglishlifestyle.com/thinglish-lifestyle/home-garden/drilling-water-well-thailand/

This is worth a read,hope it is helpful 

Yes, well worth a read, thanks.

[nigelforbes]

Some limited pump water table knowledge here:

 

It doesn't make a lot of sense to me to use stainless steel pipe over the typical blue pipe. We have a 35 meter well that is lined with blue pipe that has been in place for several years and works just fine.

 

Cost to drill a well in the North was/is around 1,000 baht per meter, add another 20K for a decent submersible pump and control box.

 

Those ponds are interesting, are sure they don't reflect ground water level, they do around where I live. Ponds, solely to store water would have to be lined with a constant feed, otherwise evaporation and absorption into the ground would see them empty in no time..

 

Our water table sits at about 3 meters in the wet season, at the end of the dry season it's around 10 meters.

[MJCM]

2 hours ago, nigelforbes said:

Cost to drill a well in the North was/is around 1,000 baht per meter, add another 20K for a decent submersible pump and control box.

Around here (Buriram) we paid 20k for a 50 Meter well. But that said we paid for all the PVC pipes ourself.

The Well is 6" in diameter and has never run dry in all the years (3+) that we have it.

 

We installed a Solar Submersible Pump and Solar Panels so it's filling our pond every time when the Sun Shines. That install was another +/-25k.

 

  

2 hours ago, nigelforbes said:

Ponds, solely to store water would have to be lined with a constant feed, otherwise evaporation and absorption into the ground would see them empty in no time..

Spot on, when we don't fill our Pond regularly it empties very quickly especially in this heat.

[nigelforbes]

19 minutes ago, MJCM said:

Around here (Buriram) we paid 20k for a 50 Meter well. But that said we paid for all the PVC pipes ourself.

The Well is 6" in diameter and has never run dry in all the years (3+) that we have it.

 

We installed a Solar Submersible Pump and Solar Panels so it's filling our pond every time when the Sun Shines. That install was another +/-25k.

 

  

Spot on, when we don't fill our Pond regularly it empties very quickly especially in this heat.

Yes indeed, something is not quite right with the part about the ponds, there are several near us, they rise and fall with the seasons unless there is a feeder from a klong or similar.,

[Dene16]

1 hour ago, MJCM said:

Around here (Buriram) we paid 20k for a 50 Meter well. But that said we paid for all the PVC pipes ourself.

The Well is 6" in diameter and has never run dry in all the years (3+) that we have it.

Just had a well drilled in Surin  they turned up with 12 x 3 metre rods  ( used all of them) so I guess this is quite normal. We brought the 5 or 6 inch pipe ourselves which is approx. 4 metres long (only about 1000baht if I remember correctly)

The cost to drill the well was 4000baht

GF's friend  was having it done and stated it was a very good price so if we wanted one, get it done now

We needed water to build a house on the land, have yet to place a pump onto it as decided that the contractors can bring their own pump to use, rather then destroy ours over the next 10 months 

[scorecard]

5 hours ago, nigelforbes said:

Some limited pump water table knowledge here:

 

It doesn't make a lot of sense to me to use stainless steel pipe over the typical blue pipe. We have a 35 meter well that is lined with blue pipe that has been in place for several years and works just fine.

 

Cost to drill a well in the North was/is around 1,000 baht per meter, add another 20K for a decent submersible pump and control box.

 

Those ponds are interesting, are sure they don't reflect ground water level, they do around where I live. Ponds, solely to store water would have to be lined with a constant feed, otherwise evaporation and absorption into the ground would see them empty in no time..

 

Our water table sits at about 3 meters in the wet season, at the end of the dry season it's around 10 meters.

What is the diameter of the blue plastic pipe please?

 

And is there any special fittting at the end of the pipe? E.g. a basic rigid filter?

 

Does the typical blue plstic pipe come in different thickness/quality? What's recommended for this purpose.

 

Thanks for sharing. 

[nigelforbes]

4 minutes ago, scorecard said:

What is the diameter of the blue plastic pipe please?

 

And is there any special fittting at the end of the pipe? E.g. a basic rigid filter?

 

Does the typical blue plstic pipe come in different thickness/quality? What's recommended for this purpose.

 

Thanks for sharing. 

My well is 4 inch but 3, 4 5 and 6 are not uncommon. The availability of submersible pumps is a consideration, as is the cost of the different size of pumps. 4 inch pumps are very common.

 

The bottom two meters of the blue pipe are slotted to allow water into the pipe. You can buy the pipe this way or make it yourself using a grinder.

 

The pump has a filter on it, the well lining does not although the lining itself keeps large debris from the shaft. After the well is drilled there is a process to flush out the debris at the bottom of the well, chipping etc, the shaft is therefore fairly clean of debris.

 

Yes, there are several different quality/thicknesses of blue pipe, as I recall we used a middle grade. 

[scorecard]

6 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

My well is 4 inch but 3, 4 5 and 6 are not uncommon. The availability of submersible pumps is a consideration, as is the cost of the different size of pumps. 4 inch pumps are very common.

 

The bottom two meters of the blue pipe are slotted to allow water into the pipe. You can buy the pipe this way or make it yourself using a grinder.

 

The pump has a filter on it, the well lining does not although the lining itself keeps large debris from the shaft. After the well is drilled there is a process to flush out the debris at the bottom of the well, chipping etc, the shaft is therefore fairly clean of debris.

 

Yes, there are several different quality/thicknesses of blue pipe, as I recall we used a middle grade. 

Thanks, you entioned "... 4 inch pumps are very common."

 

Could this be a solar powered pump with remote (internet) controls?  Expensive?

 

Thanks again.

[nigelforbes]

7 minutes ago, scorecard said:

Thanks, you entioned "... 4 inch pumps are very common."

 

Could this be a solar powered pump with remote (internet) controls?  Expensive?

 

Thanks again.

I don't know anything about solar powered pumps with internet controls, they sound sexy but also sound problematic......dunno, just a feeling. I haven't seen any of those at Global House,. Thaiwasadu HomePro.

 

Franklin Pumps is the best name in submersibles, they are US made and available in Thailand, beware cheap Chinese made pumps that proliferate. A 4 inch Franklin for use at 35 meters will cost around 25k, including the controls box (which is a significant piece of tech). Grundfos also has a good reputation. Lucky is Chinese, as is Samson.

[MJCM]

1 hour ago, Dene16 said:

Just had a well drilled in Surin  they turned up with 12 x 3 metre rods  ( used all of them) so I guess this is quite normal. We brought the 5 or 6 inch pipe ourselves which is approx. 4 metres long (only about 1000baht if I remember correctly)

The cost to drill the well was 4000baht

GF's friend  was having it done and stated it was a very good price so if we wanted one, get it done now

We needed water to build a house on the land, have yet to place a pump onto it as decided that the contractors can bring their own pump to use, rather then destroy ours over the next 10 months 

That is very cheap, did you only put 1 pvc pipe in?
 

And if I read it correctly 12 x 3 = 36 meters deep? Ours they found water at 40 meters but they drilled through till 50 meters and it never ever run dry in all the years we have it, the only thing is that the water is a bit hard, but nothing a filter can’t solve. 

[MJCM]

38 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

Yes, there are several different quality/thicknesses of blue pipe, as I recall we used a middle grade

AFAIK there are 2 grades 8.5 and 13.5 with 13.5 being the thicker one and the more expensive one.

 

 

[nigelforbes]

1 minute ago, MJCM said:

AFAIK there are 2 grades 8.5 and 13.5 with 13.5 being the thicker one and the more expensive one.

 

 

I'm sure you're right, it's been years since we did this. There's also the choice between self jointing pipe and pipe that requires a separate joint.

[asf6]

There's an app called Badan4Thai from the Thai Department of Groundwater Resources that shows the location of bore holes in Thailand. You can look at bore holes already in your area to find out what depth the others are. That might help you with estimating what depth you need to drill for your bore hole in your own location. 

 

[MJCM]

1 minute ago, nigelforbes said:

I'm sure you're right, it's been years since we did this. There's also the choice between self jointing pipe and pipe that requires a separate joint.

Yep Hua Baan and Hua Riep. (Don’t know if that is correctly written) ????

[MJCM]

50 minutes ago, scorecard said:

Could this be a solar powered pump with remote (internet) controls?  Expensive?

We have a solar submersible pump but not with Internet / remote controls, maybe talk to someone like @Muhendis or @Crossythey could maybe guide you in this.

 

we just turn it on manually and usually leave it running to fill our Pond

 

the install including the submersible pump, solar panels, pvc pipes, controller, cables etc etc (but excluding the stand for the Solar Panels (3 panels)) came to around +- 25k.

[Dene16]

2 hours ago, MJCM said:

That is very cheap, did you only put 1 pvc pipe in?
 

And if I read it correctly 12 x 3 = 36 meters deep? Ours they found water at 40 meters but they drilled through till 50 meters and it never ever run dry in all the years we have it, the only thing is that the water is a bit hard, but nothing a filter can’t solve. 

yes only 1 PVC pipe was used. This is normal practice as it is only used as it goes through the top soil/earth( i presume) after which you will hit rock and does not need any piping. It comes up looking like scalpings.

I believe they only go deeper so that you have less chance of running out of water in particularly dry seasons as the water level drops obviously.

Yes you did read correctly 12x3 36 metres. they hit water before that, obviously, but I have no idea at what depth

[scorecard]

5 hours ago, MJCM said:

We have a solar submersible pump but not with Internet / remote controls, maybe talk to someone like @Muhendis or @Crossythey could maybe guide you in this.

 

we just turn it on manually and usually leave it running to fill our Pond

 

the install including the submersible pump, solar panels, pvc pipes, controller, cables etc etc (but excluding the stand for the Solar Panels (3 panels)) came to around +- 25k.

Thanks.

 

You mention 'solar submersible pump'. Does that mean the actual pump is at the bottom of the pipe? Or?  Thanks.

[nigelforbes]

19 minutes ago, scorecard said:

Thanks.

 

You mention 'solar submersible pump'. Does that mean the actual pump is at the bottom of the pipe? Or?  Thanks.

Yes. The pump contains electronics that are sealed within the pump and a cable runs from the pump, up to the surface, to the control box. The pump sits about two meters from the bottom of the well shaft and is activated in accordance with instructions from the control box on the surface. 

[MJCM]

8 hours ago, Dene16 said:

yes only 1 PVC pipe was used. This is normal practice as it is only used as it goes through the top soil/earth( i presume) after which you will hit rock and does not need any piping.

I am not sure if that is normal practice, reason being that if you only have one pipe what about "cave ins". I believe it's much better to have PVC pipes all the way down but that is of course not doable for 4000 THB only ????  Maybe some better informed member can comment on this.

[nigelforbes]

Lots of farmers are competing for water which means they keep drilling deeper and deeper. I live on the edge of a very large rice field plain covering hundreds if not thousand of acres. Ten years ago, when we first moved here, our fifteen meter well and its centrifugal pump were adequate for our garden irrigation needs, albeit the pump is limited by about 9 meters of draw.  By the end of the fifth year the pump would go dry, two months before the end of the dry season. We now have a 35 meter well and a submersible but the fifteen meter well is only usable for half the year. If I was to do it again I might drill to fifty or 100 and be done with it, that also would mean cleaner water and less iron deposits (which is a problem).

[MJCM]

24 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

I might drill to fifty or 100 and be done with it, that also would mean cleaner water and less iron deposits (which is a problem).

Our Well driller said (but don't know if it is true) that it is a matter of luck if you go deeper it would mean less iron deposits, we are now at 50 meters and are going to install a Resin Filter because we don't have mains water and we rely on Rain Water for the House, but as the rains seem to be "easing" off we have to have a Plan B and thus use Well Water which goes through a Resin Filter (with Salt) and then is stored in the tanks.

 

Even with this many tanks we are (NOW) running out of water

 

[nigelforbes]

4 minutes ago, MJCM said:

Our Well driller said (but don't know if it is true) that it is a matter of luck if you go deeper it would mean less iron deposits, we are now at 50 meters and are going to install a Resin Filter because we don't have mains water and we rely on Rain Water for the House, but as the rains seem to be "easing" off we have to have a Plan B and thus use Well Water which goes through a Resin Filter (with Salt) and then is stored in the tanks.

 

Even with this many tanks we are (NOW) running out of water

 

Wow, that looks industrial strength, do you have the contract to supply the entire province! ????

[MJCM]

5 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

Wow, that looks industrial strength, do you have the contract to supply the entire province! ????

I know you are joking, but read below and then you will see you use more water a day / week / month then you think you will use.

 

We are a 2 person house hold. We also have 2 dogs.

 

We both like to take a shower in the morning and also in the evening before going to bed. (sometimes when it's really hot outside we even take a shower during the day)

 

Suppose the shower uses approx 8-9 liters per minute.

We usually take around 5 minute showers

 

So 5 minutes * 8 liters = 40 Liters (for 1 shower) * 4 = 160 Liters used and that is for 1 day!

 

When my wife washes her hair (every other day) she showers around 10-15 minutes. (She has LONG hair)

So 12 (avg minutes) * 8 liters per minute = 96 liters of water used

 

We use approx 3 tanks per month. So 3 * 2500 Liters = 7500 liters

 

So the usage per day that is around 7500/30 = 250 Liters.

 

So 21 tanks (we currently have) lasts us only 7 months!!

 

So only with showering we are almost at the amount, and that still doesn't include the following

 

- Doing the Dishes
- Washing our clothes (running the washing machine around 2 - 3 times a week)
(My wife loves gardening so dirty clothes in the evening go into the Basket for Washing)
- Showering our Dogs (2 dogs once every 2 weeks 10 mins each approx)
- Toilet use
- Cleaning the house

 

I wonder how much water you use in your house. How many units of water do you pay for every month?

 

Please Note: 1 Unit is equal to 1000 Liters (M3)

[nigelforbes]

14 minutes ago, MJCM said:

I know you are joking, but read below and then you will see you use more water a day / week / month then you think you will use.

 

We are a 2 person house hold. We also have 2 dogs.

 

We both like to take a shower in the morning and also in the evening before going to bed. (sometimes when it's really hot outside we even take a shower during the day)

 

Suppose the shower uses approx 8-9 liters per minute.

We usually take around 5 minute showers

 

So 5 minutes * 8 liters = 40 Liters (for 1 shower) * 4 = 160 Liters used and that is for 1 day!

 

When my wife washes her hair (every other day) she showers around 10-15 minutes. (She has LONG hair)

So 12 (avg minutes) * 8 liters per minute = 96 liters of water used

 

We use approx 3 tanks per month. So 3 * 2500 Liters = 7500 liters

 

So the usage per day that is around 7500/30 = 250 Liters.

 

So 21 tanks (we currently have) lasts us only 7 months!!

 

So only with showering we are almost at the amount, and that still doesn't include the following

 

- Doing the Dishes
- Washing our clothes (running the washing machine around 2 - 3 times a week)
(My wife loves gardening so dirty clothes in the evening go into the Basket for Washing)
- Showering our Dogs (2 dogs once every 2 weeks 10 mins each approx)
- Toilet use
- Cleaning the house

 

I wonder how much water you use in your house. How many units of water do you pay for every month?

 

Please Note: 1 Unit is equal to 1000 Liters (M3)

Our water bill averages around 110 baht per month, from memory we use about

6.X units per month. Since we also are a two person household but don't have dogs, our usage is not dissimilar. We have a fairly large garden but all our irrigation needs are met by the well or by the klong that flows through it.

[MJCM]

3 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

Our water bill averages around 110 baht per month, from memory we use about

6.X units per month. Since we also are a two person household but don't have dogs, our usage is not dissimilar. We have a fairly large garden but all our irrigation needs are met by the well or by the klong that flows through it.

Water for our garden (2,5 Rai but slowly expanding to 6 Rai) is only fed by the Water from the Well that 1st goes in to the Pond (to settle) and that is then via (another) Solar Pump pumped into the Garden Tank (4000 Litre). Sometimes we have to refill that Tank it every single day especially during this HOT season. (normally it will last 2-3 days).

 

We don't have any mains, but we do have a government lake in front of the house, but you don't want to use that water for your house as the farmers let their buffalo's etc etc swim in that lake. Also the run off from all the rice fields goes into that lake (imagine what it contains, for example fertilizer etc etc etc), so that is why the Option for Rain Water (for the HOUSE), it seemed to be a good idea at that time (but the investment was substantial as All the Tanks are Food Grade tanks so safe to store water for longer periods (no algae growth etc etc) and they were around 7-8k per tank).

 

So now we are planning a Resin (with Salt) Filter to at least be able to top up the House Tanks in periods of drought with the Well Water and not suffer from Hard Water.

 

We are now (until we get the Resin Filter) rationing the Rain Water, what I mean by that is mixing 1 tank of Rain Water with 1 Tank with Well water so the water is less hard and the rain water lasts longer.

[MJCM]

I have heard (again don't know if it is true) that technically you should have license to have a well.

 

Anyone know if that is correct?

[nigelforbes]

1 hour ago, MJCM said:

I have heard (again don't know if it is true) that technically you should have license to have a well.

 

Anyone know if that is correct?

I have heard that a permit is required, beyond a certain depth but I've also heard that it's universally ignored.

[MJCM]

1 hour ago, nigelforbes said:

I have heard that a permit is required, beyond a certain depth but I've also heard that it's universally ignored.

5555555555

 

Typical TiT