[RE-wrenches] Water level testing

[Ray Walters]

I agree with Windy and this article, the electric sounders can be 
finicky.   I've never tried the airline method, but some well folks from 
Texas taught me to use an inverted plumbing fitting on a string.   When 
it hits the water you can feel it on the line, because the small pocket 
of trapped air causes the weight to stall momentarily.   You can confirm 
by repeatedly raising it and "popping" it at the water surface.  If its 
quiet, you can hear it too. The bottom of the well can be sounded just 
like with any weighted line: raise and lower repeatedly, finding the 
spot that the line goes slack.  I've used this as deep as 800 ft.
For shallower wells we just attach this fitting straight to our 300 ft 
measuring tape; if it's deeper, we tape the string to mark the water 
level and Total depth, then measure the string after.

R.Ray Walters
CTO, Solarray, Inc
Nabcep Certified PV Installer,
Licensed Master Electrician
Solar Design Engineer
303 505-8760

On 4/25/2015 2:36 PM, Allan Sindelar wrote:
> For those Wrenches that work with deep-well water pumping 
> installations, the attached guide is useful to file away for later 
> use. Windy sent it to me, and it has three options for determining the 
> depth of water in a well.
> I taped a 1/4" plastic irrigation tube to the hand-installation-method 
> bundle of flexible pipe, wire, signal wire and safety rope in an 
> installation yesterday. Easy rough-in for testing water table drop and 
> pump submergence over years.
>
> The guide was published in 2000 by the Oregon State University 
> Extension Service.
> Allan
>
> *Allan Sindelar*
> allan at sindelarsolar.com <mailto:allan at sindelarsolar.com>
> NABCEP Certified PV Installation Professional
> NABCEP Certified Technical Sales Professional
> New Mexico EE98J Journeyman Electrician
> Founder (Retired), Positive Energy, Inc.
> *505 780-2738 cell*
>
> **
>
>
> -------- Forwarded Message --------
> Subject: 	air tube for water level testing
> Date: 	Wed, 22 Apr 2015 19:07:37 -0600
> From: 	Windy Dankoff
> To: 	Allan Sindelar
>
>
> Following is a very cheap means of testing depth to water, pump running or not.
>
> Allan - Get 230 feet of 1/4" irrigation tube to put down the well. It will be used to make pressure test at any time, using a bicycle pump.
>
> Instructions attached. This will be for use of the "Air Line" method shown on this doc. Tape the tubing to the pipe, along with the level probe
> cable. The bottom of tube can be where the probe is - just above the check valve.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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