Hello, dear readers. Let's start the story about organizing water supply suburban area using a needle well or an Abyssinian well. Wells of this kind are usually made by hand, since special equipment for constructing a well is not required.
This article is the quintessence personal experience author and hundreds of studied pages on specialized forums and is not theoretical material, but practical guide. As they say, smart person able to learn from other people's mistakes.
What you need to build an Abyssinian well
So let's begin. We will talk about the classic scheme for installing a needle well: driving it into the ground.
To plug an Abyssinian well we will definitely need:
- needle filter
- threaded pipe kit
- pipe couplings
- sanitary flax and paste for use in threaded connections
- two pipe wrenches
- well pump
- the tool that will be used to hammer in (we will discuss the options below)
Additional equipment that may be needed:
- Pipe clamp or die for cutting threads (if the thread gets damaged when driving)
- Two hydraulic jacks, if you need to raise a column of well pipes
Before we begin to present our personal experience, let us recall the basic principles of the Abyssinian well.
The diameter of the well is small - usually from one to two inches. This diameter does not allow the pump to be lowered inside the well, and water is pumped out using surface pumps - first when pumping with a manual column, then, after pumping the well, you can switch to an electric pump, which is always self-priming.
It is possible to raise water from an Abyssinian well only if the water surface is no deeper than 9 meters. If the dynamic level of the well is below eight to nine meters from the pump level, it will be possible to raise such water only by placing the pump in a caisson (pit), thus reducing the suction depth to the required value. It should be taken into account that only the highest quality self-priming pump can show the rated 9 meters of suction.
It is important to ensure complete tightness of the line from the water-suction filter to the pump - if a fistula forms in at least one coupling when clogged, water will not be sucked in from the depths.
A needle well is a pipe of small diameter, usually with an outer diameter of 1 inch (in construction markets and metal warehouses it is marked as a 25 pipe - according to internal diameter) and 1 ? inches. The fact is that the column-well will be driven into the ground without any drilling, and driving a larger diameter pipe can be extremely difficult.
How does a well-needle filter work?
The very first and important element needle wells - filter. It is made as follows: a 1.2-2 meter section of pancake pipe is taken and a meter section is marked for the future filter. On this section, holes with a diameter of about 8-10 mm are drilled in a checkerboard pattern so as not to weaken the pipe. A steel cone is welded at the end of the pipe near the filter, which will facilitate the passage of the pipe in the ground according to the principle of a spear.
The next step is to wind under the filter. The purpose of the winding is to create a gap between the pipe and the filter mesh, which is mounted on top of the winding. Without winding, water would be sucked into each hole of the filter pipe only through the section of the mesh directly above the hole. With winding, water will be sucked from a much larger surface of the mesh into the created gap, and then into the holes on the pipe. Thus, by performing reeling, we significantly increase the well's flow rate. Winding is usually done from wire of the same material as the filter mesh - for example, stainless steel to stainless steel, to avoid the formation of a galvanic couple. To help you when choosing, here is a metal compatibility table:
When assembling the filter, pay special attention to the compatibility of metals: some of them create a galvanic couple, and when they come into contact, the result is chemical reaction are quickly destroyed. For example, if you wind a pipe with aluminum wire and fasten a brass mesh on top, after a few months you will get holes where these incompatible metals touch. Therefore, in most cases, wire and mesh are taken from stainless steel, because these materials are easy to obtain.
How to choose a mesh for an Abyssinian well filter
The mesh for the needle hole needs a special one - galloon weaving. This mesh looks like metal fabric. Galoon weaving implies diamond-shaped cells - they are not clogged with grains of sand, which are basically cube-shaped. There are various types filter meshes, with different sizes cells - for different sands. Ideally, the mesh should be selected based on the sand fraction in the aquifer. The filter should pass about 30-40% of sand. Then, when pumping the well, small sand fractions will come out with water, while larger ones will form a natural filter around our needle.
Filtration meshes are metal and synthetic. The finest-grained metal meshes are marked P60 and are designed for dusty sand. Synthetic meshes come in even finer weaving - up to P200. At the same time, it is not recommended to take the finest mesh “with a reserve” - the finer the mesh, the worse the well’s flow rate will be. The finest sand under the pressure of water is compressed around the needle filter, preventing the movement of water.
The pipe is cut into pieces of 1-1.5 meters, external threads are cut at the ends. The pipes will be connected using couplings of the appropriate diameter. Short pieces of pipe are needed to make it easier to drive it into the ground.
What tool is used to drive the Abyssinian well needle?
Sledgehammer
The simplest and most barbaric way to hammer a needle is with a sledgehammer. If you have experience in carefully handling this powerful tool, perhaps everything will end well and no threaded connection under your ground will crack. Pros this method– the sledgehammer is easy to find, no need to bother with special equipment for scoring. Disadvantages - when striking with a sledgehammer, it is impossible to direct all the impact energy downward, strictly along the axis of the borehole needle. This means that the pipe will bend to one side and flatten. The load on threaded connections increases. If you decide to hammer the needle with a sledgehammer, do not hit the piece of pipe that you are planting in the ground. Screw a steel coupling onto the pipe and use a piece of threaded pipe to screw it into the coupling. Such pipe ends are sold in hardware stores under the name “thread” and cost pennies. They flattened one, replaced it and continued to score further.
Grandma and the womanizer
Hammering with a headstock is the preferred method. The design of the headstock can be different. Most often this thick wall pipe, one of the ends of which is welded. Handles are welded to the side; any iron can be welded to make it heavier. The weight of the headstock is usually 20-50 kg. At the upper end of the pipe being driven in, a “grandfather” is also attached through a coupling - a piece of pipe with a thread, which will receive the blow. The headstock in this design is put on the pipe being driven, and then rises 40-60 cm and is thrown down. Since the headstock is fully dressed on the pipe being hammered, it moves almost perfectly up and down, and all the energy of the impact propels the needle towards the target.
There is another option for the headstock design. This is a heavy cylinder with a hole not much larger than the diameter of the needle being driven. A coupling is screwed onto the pipe being driven in, and the next similar pipe is screwed into it. When driven, this pipe will serve as a guide for the headstock to move up and down. And it will hit the cradle - a steel cylinder, tightly fitted onto the needle tube, and resting on the coupling, which has a diameter several mm larger than the needle. The grandmother gets up and throws herself down onto the rack. This, in turn, pushes the pipe string down.
Let us note a very important fact - in order not to damage the threads on pipes and couplings, you need to select the length of the thread on the pipes in such a way that the pipes, screwed into the coupling, are docked inside it. Thus, the load from blows from the headstock will be placed not on the threads, but on the ends of the pipes.
Rod
Clogging a needle with a rod is also very common. The rod needs to be of such thickness that it fits freely inside the pipe of the Abyssinian well. We will hit the bottom of the lowered pipe column with a rod - into the opposite part of the cone that crowns the filter. The cone must be firmly welded to the filter pipe. Gradually, as the column is lowered, you can lengthen the rod (by welding, or by pre-arranging the threaded connection of the rods). If the mass of the rod is sufficient for impact, and its length is already shorter than the column being lowered, you can tie a steel cable to it and hammer in the needle, lifting the rod inside the pipe column by this cable and throwing it from a height. Hammering with a rod is considered more preferable from the point of view of preserving the threaded connections of pipes.
Hammering a needle hole with a hammer drill or jackhammer
Unfortunately, you cannot simplify your task by using a power tool. The reason for this is the large mass of the lowered pipe column. The hammer drill and the chipper will simply bounce off the structure, which has a larger mass. This fact has been verified more than once, so don’t waste time.
To what level should the needle be hammered?
The needle is driven deep until the filter is in the aquifer. Ideally this is coarse sand or pebbles, but usually the aquifer is fine sand. As we mentioned earlier, water from a well can only be raised from a depth of 8-9 meters. Does this mean that it is pointless to drill a well deeper than 9 meters? Of course not. It is not the depth of the well that is important, but the water level in it. Experienced drillers know that the water of the second aquifer often rises to the GWL (groundwater level). It even happens that from a well depth of 15-30 meters, water flows spontaneously.
The second question when driving a needle is how not to miss the aquifer? There is an easy way. Every half a meter, when driving needles into the pipe, add water. If the filter is located in an aquifer, the water will quickly flow into the pipe. The main thing here is that when passing through a layer of clay, the mesh does not become clogged with it. Otherwise, you simply will not understand that you have entered an aquifer. Water will not escape through a mesh clogged with clay in any case.
There is another way to determine which layer the needle filter is in. When you hammer in the needle, the upper tube must be constantly, every 10-20 strokes, tightened clockwise with a pipe wrench. This way we compensate for the self-unscrewing of the threaded connections of the column. If you can rotate the column completely so that the filter moves in the ground, it is easy to hear the friction of the soil against the filter cone.
Thus, clay makes almost no sound when turning the filter, coarse sand clearly creaks, and pebbles grind.
What to do if the filter mesh is clogged with clay or the pipe becomes clogged with sand when clogged
If the filter mesh of an Abyssinian well is clogged with clay, you can clean the filter mesh by pumping water under pressure into the pipe. It will wash away the clay. If flushing does not help, you will have to remove the entire column and clean it. Then a clean needle can be lowered into the finished hole without the risk of contaminating the filter.
It also often happens that if the filter mesh is chosen too large, or the pipe is used without a filter at all (some soils allow the use of Abyssinian without a filter mesh, if the aquifer is pebbles or very coarse sand). If the inside of the pipe is clogged with sand, it should be washed by lowering a narrow hose into the pipe, feeding water into it from outside the well and moving it so as to lift the turbidity from the sand in the pipe. This turbidity will come out of the pipe around the hose to the outside, washing away the sand.
How to prevent pipe clogging with sand and clay when plugging an Abyssinian well
There are a couple of ways to avoid filling the needle with sand and clay. The needle can be filled with salt or tightly stuffed with rope while hammering. The end of the rope must be constantly passed through all the pipes so that after driving to the desired depth it is easy to get it out. Naturally, these two methods are only suitable if there are several Abyssinian wells nearby and the depth to which the needle needs to be driven is known in advance.
How to pump a well with a needle?
Best suited for pumping hand pump-column. Such pumps are not afraid of sand in the water, and at first there will be a lot of sand inclusions in the water. Depending on how well the mesh used matches the sand fraction in the aquifer, the well build-up time can range from half an hour to several months. At the same time, we repeat once again, a mesh that is too fine will clog faster and reduce the flow rate.
In principle, when using a sufficiently fine galloon (twill) mesh, it is quite possible to use a self-priming surface pump for pumping. It is desirable that the impeller be metal, because... The plastic one will quickly wear off with sand.
The hand pump is also good because it can easily cope with the initial low flow rate of the well. An electric pump cannot work if the water supply is poor; the water column in the Abyssinian well breaks and the pump stops working. The situation can be partially corrected by placing a tap at the outlet of the pump and choking the water outlet.
For easy starting of the pump, a check valve is installed in front of it. Under no circumstances should you place a check valve at the bottom of the column; it will quickly become clogged, and it will be impossible to replace it without raising the well column. In this case, the “extra” check valve will create additional resistance to the movement of liquid and “conceal” the meter of the potential suction height of the pump.
What to do if the connections poison the air, i.e. there is no tightness of the column?
It is not so rare that after a column is clogged, it turns out that water is not pumped out, despite the fact that the water surface is not far away. If a working self-priming pump is used, this means that there is air leakage in the line, which does not allow creating a vacuum inside the pipe and raising water. In this case, it is recommended to raise the pipe string (the method is described below) and seal the connections. If this is not possible, you can use the “imperfect well” design. A pipe of smaller diameter is lowered inside the Abyssinian well and water is sucked out through it. The problem is that since no vacuum is created in the pipe when water is pumped out, the water flows into the filter by gravity rather than being sucked in. Because of this, the well's production rate drops sharply.
How to raise the pipes of an Abyssinian well from the ground
It happens that you need to lift the pipe column if you have penetrated the aquifer, or you need to completely remove the well. This can be difficult to do, because... the soil tightly grips the pipes. To fix the pipe, you can use a specially made vice, which consists of two strong steel plates, tightened with bolts. You can simply put a cradle or a suitable washer on the pipe sticking out of the ground, fix its upward movement with a coupling screwed onto the thread, and pull it evenly upward with two jacks installed on both sides of the well. IN clay soils You can use the following technique: strongly strain a column of pipes upward, even if it does not move, and leave it like that overnight: under tension, the clay gradually opens up and releases the pipes.
If it is possible to supply good water pressure into the well, this can also help, to the point that the water will erode the soil around the well pipe and flow to the surface outside the pipe.
This article will be developed and supplemented. Please write your ideas and suggestions in the comments.
What to do if the water main is too far from garden plot, and there is no way to extend pipes from it? You can solve the water problem with the help of a simple well (Abyssinian well).
What is an Abyssinian well?
Despite the fact that the first drill for water extraction was invented by an American, only the British found worthy use for it during the colonial war in Abyssinia (Ethiopia). It was then that they came up with the idea of extracting water in the hot desert using drills.Abyssinian well refers to several iron pipes up to 9 m long, connected by couplings, through which water from the well is raised to the surface using a pump. The last pipe has a pointed tip. Hence the second name of such a structure – needle well. At its very bottom a filter is installed - a pipe with drilled holes, wrapped in a special mesh that retains sand and small impurities up to 0.25 mm.
Artesian well
Unlike a conventional well, the arrangement of which requires volumetric earthworks, an Abyssinian well is drilled much faster and requires much less material costs and physical effort. Moreover, the water in it (especially in spring) is much cleaner - after all, top water and runoff do not get into it. After thorough cleaning and rinsing of such a well, the water in it will be similar to spring water.
Choosing a drilling method
There are two ways to drill a well for an artesian well:driving the pipe into the ground;
using a drill.
The first method is quite simple and guarantees a high immersion speed, but in this case there is a possibility of deformation of the head (upper part) of the pipe. A more reliable method is the bored method, when pipes are installed in a well that has already been prepared using a drill.
Choosing a drilling site
The well will function normally only if an aquifer is found no deeper than 8-9 m. From greater depths, a conventional piston pump is not able to lift water. If the formation is located below 9 m, it will be necessary to increase the diameter of the well and deepen the pump.Determining the presence of water on a site is not difficult: if the neighbors have at least some active sources of water (wells or similar wells), then the probability that there will be water in the neighborhood is almost 100%. It remains only to clarify at what depth it is located.
Aquifer location
Materials and tools
For work you will need:concrete, metal or plastic caisson (sealed container for pumping equipment):
Plastic caisson
Concrete caisson
A set of casing pipes made of plastic or metal with a diameter of 25-40 mm with threads for raising water to the surface; their total length must correspond to the depth of the water layer; the length of each of them is 1-2 meters;
Casing pipes for wells
Metal tip (“needle”);
Needles for artesian well
Connecting steel couplings;
Casing coupling
Rubber seals;
garden auger;
rods for drill extension;
metal pipes or wooden blocks for a tripod;
centrifugal pump for well flushing;
piston pump for raising water to the surface.
Drilling an Abyssinian well
1. A pit is prepared in the place where the well is planned to be installed 1 m diameter and a depth equal to the height of the caisson (about 2 m). In order to protect the well from freezing, it must be located at the freezing level of the soil.
Pit for caisson installation
2. Drill diameter It is better to take 5-10 mm more casing pipe. The larger its diameter, the more water can be raised to the surface at the same time.
Garden auger with replaceable blades
The simplest homemade drill
3. When water depth is up to 5 m, it is enough for drilling garden auger or ice ax, used by fishermen. You will also need rods to extend the drill.
4. Simplest installation for drilling is a device mounted on a tripod.
5. Tripod made from three 5-meter wooden beams or metal pipes. A lift (winch) with a cable is attached to it. Next, the drill is attached to the winch cable.
Drilling from a tripod
6. After each dive, the drill is pulled out and cleared from the ground, and then plunged into it again, but with an increased rod.
7. You can check whether the well has entered the aquifer by pouring water into it. If the water encounters resistance and rises to the top, you should drill further. If it goes deep, the aquifer has been found.
Well construction
1. After careful cleaning the well from the ground(up to dense soil) for additional water filtration Fine gravel or crushed stone is poured into a 30 cm layer at the bottom of the well.2. Igloo filter you can make it yourself. To do this, take a piece of pipe in which holes of 5-8 mm are drilled in a checkerboard pattern at a distance of 5 cm from each other. It is wrapped on top with stainless steel wire (small gaps are left between the turns for water to enter) or covered with a mesh of the same material or plastic . The mesh or wire is soldered. A spear-shaped tip is welded to the end of the pipe. To facilitate movement through the earth, its diameter is chosen to be a couple of millimeters larger than the diameter of the pipe itself.
DIY filter needle
Important! The mesh is soldered only with flux or tin. The use of toxic lead is not permitted.
Advice. To prevent electrochemical corrosion, it is better to select a needle from the same material from which the casing pipe is made.
3. The pipe is expanded using threaded connections as it is immersed in the well. For sealing, you can use either rubber seals, flax or silicone. The second pipe is screwed onto the first, then the third pipe is screwed on, etc.
Pipe extension
4. After the pipe is immersed, the ground around it is sprinkled with small crushed stone and compacted. The last pipe is filled in to prevent dirt and surface water from entering the well cement mortar.
6. Borehole pumping to clean water produced using centrifugal pump Enough power.
Important! The filter must be washed. Since when passing through the soil (and especially clayey soil) it becomes tightly clogged, the water will not flow upward, even if the tip of the pipe is already in the aquifer.
Well flushing
7. At the very top end of the pipe using flange or threaded connection the pump is attached.
8. If a closed caisson is not used, a small canopy is installed above the well to protect it from precipitation, ridges and dust.
Before you make an Abyssinian well with your own hands, you need to determine its location, prepare necessary equipment and materials, take care in advance of cutting threads on the parts to be connected, and choose the right pipes. It is advisable to hire specialists for reconnaissance. If you need to buy absolutely everything to build an Abyssinian well, it is easier to order an “Igloo” (another name for an Abyssinian well) on a turnkey basis.
Pay attention! The well's flow rate depends entirely on the saturation of the formation, and it, in turn, on the recharge. The flow rate of Igla can be considered unpredictable.
Determining the location of water intake
You can completely make an Abyssinian well with your own hands, but determining the location of the water intake should be entrusted to specialists if you do not want to turn your land into a colander but still not find water.
The presence of five wells and three boreholes on your neighbor’s property does not guarantee that at the first drilling you will definitely find water on your land. This video shows what happened without intelligence.
Folk signs, pecking vines, dogs sleeping “on the water” - all this is from the realm of speculation. No dog will show where the water is - in the sand or in the clay. The vine will not determine the depth aquifer, and it should not exceed 8 m.
Another factor in favor of exploration work is soil. If the upper layers (this cannot be determined visually by an incompetent person) consist of boulders, loose or, at the whim of nature, limestone, then drill traditional way(with a garden drill) is impossible.
Equipment for well construction
To build an Abyssinian well with your own hands you will need:
- garden auger (diameter no more than 150 mm);
- 10-meter pipe or several drills (for extension);
- tools: welding machine, grinder, gas wrenches (2 pcs.), drill, sledgehammer, hammer;
- pancakes for the barbell (up to 40 kg; they are used to drive the pipe into the sand);
- for casing pipe: a set of pipes (to the calculated depth) with threads cut on both sides;
- for the filter: a meter-long piece of stainless mesh (braided braided) 160 mm wide, a pipe 1000 mm long and 26.8 mm in diameter, 2 m of wire (diameter 2–3 mm)
- bolts, nuts, self-tapping screws, clamps (size - 32), couplings made of steel (according to the number of pipes) and cast iron (3–4 pcs.);
- pump or pumping station, check valve, HDPE pipes.
Pipe threads (if you don’t take ready set) they will cut it for you in any specialized workshop. The missing tools will have to be borrowed from neighbors or rented. Everything else is easy to buy in the markets.
Drill at work. Device without motor with manual drive
Pipes for Abyssinian well
There are 4 types of pipes used to construct an Abyssinian well:
- polypropylene or HDPE;
- steel (stainless);
- steel (galvanized);
- steel (black).
The choice depends on several factors, including the intensity of operation of the Abyssinian well and its productivity. In terms of price, black pipes are the cheapest, followed by galvanized pipes, and stainless steel pipes are the most expensive.
Polypropylene and HDPE pipes
Polypropylene and HDPE pipes are widely used in the device utility networks centralized water supply. They do not rust and have virtually no effect on water; however, they are not widely used as a material for “Igla”. The problem is that it is almost impossible to drive them into a drilled well without the participation of specialists. In addition, most Abyssinian wells are installed for irrigation purposes, and the quality of the water is not of decisive importance. The use of the material is regulated by SanPin.
Stainless steel pipes
If you still plan to use water for food, stainless steel pipes - best option for the Abyssinian well. Stainless steel cookware is proof of this. The only drawback of these pipes is their high cost. However, when it comes to health, the question does not even arise.
Galvanized pipes
Galvanized pipes as a material for an Abyssinian well have become widespread in the last couple of decades. Their use is regulated by SNiP 2.05.06-85 and SNiP 3.05.01-85 (in terms of connections; prohibits heating). When installing an underground pipeline (which is essentially what the Abyssinian well is), it is necessary to provide protection (anodic, cathodic) from corrosion.
Important! We must understand that corrosion is not only rust. Galvanization protects the iron, but without protection it itself corrodes. Iron - cathode - attracts hydrogen ions contained in water. They accept electrons and discharge. The separated ion flows facilitate the dissolution process of galvanizing. The full coating - cadmium, magnesium, arsenic, lead, antimony, zinc - will be mixed with water for years.
Galvanized pipes for an Abyssinian well should be chosen if you will use water only for technical purposes. By protecting the pipes themselves, it will not be possible to protect the filter: a sharp tip, holes, thread cutting - during manufacture, all this requires or creates heat. Even if you plan to never drink the extracted water, but water your garden with it, you will be saturated with the mixture harmful substances tomatoes, and tomatoes will feed you. The earth works as a natural filter, but for the time being (substances show a steady tendency to accumulate).
Black steel pipes
Regular steel pipes- the most common and most cheap option. It is ideal for wells with good productivity, where the pipes are constantly filled with water. When a pipe is full, there is no air inside and only the outside of the pipe is corroded. During long periods of downtime, corrosion becomes aggressive and progresses, eating away at the pipes from the inside.
Filter for Abyssinian well
A sharp tip must be welded to the end of an inch (33.5 mm) pipe. It can be even simpler - sharpen the pipe by flattening its end with a sledgehammer (this will be the “needle” that gave the well its common name). Next, you need to make holes in the pipe: use a grinder to cut slits (length 20–25 mm) at a distance of 15–20 mm from each other on both sides of the pipe or drill staggered 13 mm holes on all sides with a distance between them of 40– 50 mm. The holes should occupy 800 mm of the pipe length.
If the holes are made with a grinder, first wind the wire around the pipe, then apply a filter mesh and secure it with clamps every 80–100 mm. If you have experience, the mesh can be soldered (tin solder only! no lead) or welded (if the pipe is not galvanized).
If the holes are drilled, first apply a mesh and then wrap it with wire along its entire length. The ends of the wire are secured with self-tapping screws.
Ready-made filter and set of pipes with couplings. You can buy them, not make them
A filter is absolutely necessary, despite numerous videos and images of the “needle” tip without a filter (just peaks, without holes) published on the Internet. Without a filter, the well will clog very quickly.
Drilling an Abyssinian water well
A garden auger is used in the process. Its length is negligible, so the drill is extended either with pipes or with the same drills. You can increase it during the drilling process by stopping the equipment (or simply stopping turning the handle if the mechanism is manual).
That's the whole technology: just drill a vertical well to the sand.
This video clearly shows the drilling process: you can see how the clay came out, and then the sand.
Having reached the sand layer, drilling is stopped, since further deepening makes no sense: quicksand (sand + water) will fill the well.
Clogging of the casing
You need to attach a filter to the pipe: a coupling is used for this; the thread is wrapped with FUM tape to achieve tightness. A pipe with a filter (a column of several pipes) is lowered into the well and simply driven in using gravity and physical force. You need to drive the pipe half a meter into the sand. Then pour water into it.
If the water is gone, everything is in order - you can install pumping station, manual or gasoline pump (according to the instructions for the selected equipment). By the rate of water drainage, you can determine the productivity of a well: water comes in the same way as it leaves.
Ready Abyssinian well with installed pump
Upon completion of installation, the well must be pumped. At first nothing will flow, then almost clay will flow, but gradually the water will become clear.
If the aquifer lies low, a caisson is installed to deepen the pump. This is where the name “Abyssinian well” comes from.
Video: drilling an Abyssinian well in a house
Installing an Abyssinian well in a house is possible. A good example in the video
Exploration well pits are also clearly presented. Without exploration, a would-be driller risks digging into the foundation and not finding water.
Important! Before making an Abyssinian well in your home with your own hands, contact specialists: they will conduct a geological study to detect the presence of an aquifer. The pump creates a noticeable noise background - this also needs to be taken into account.
As you can see, making an Abyssinian well yourself is not so difficult (if you have the tools). The difficulty lies only in determining its location, but this difficulty is serious, since if there is an error, all actions and costs will be in vain.
The cheapest way and with the least labor costs you can get water for domestic needs, in quantities sufficient for water supply summer cottage or a small private house, if you build an Abyssinian well with your own hands. The design of such a hydraulic structure has its own, which should be taken into account when determining the admissibility of constructing a well and, if possible, then proceed directly to the work.
How to make an igloo hole
The most suitable type of soil for constructing such wells is sandy or sand-gravel soil, which is usually located below a clay layer, which can be of considerable thickness. If the soil in the place where the “needle” is to be driven contains large boulders, then the idea should be abandoned before starting work, which not only will not give the desired effect, but will also cause a loss of time, effort and money.
Layers of earth when drilling to the first aquifer sand
We begin excavation
If the structure of the lithosphere layers allows you to make a needle well with your own hands by impact, without using drilling, you will need to perform the following sequence of actions:
- Remove the loose layer of soil down to loam.
- If the well will be used all year, it will be necessary to make a caisson, which should be buried below the freezing point of the soil to avoid the possibility of ice forming in the pipes. If the “needle” will be used seasonally or placed in the basement of the house, this item can be skipped.
- Drilling should begin using a crowbar or a spiral drill, the diameter of which is 5-10 mm smaller than the prepared thick-walled gas pipes. This will make it possible to make a hole in the ground 1-1.5 m deep, thanks to which the first section will easily enter up to half its length and will be firmly fixed. Special attention attention should be paid to the verticality of the initial penetration, since it is this that will determine the direction of movement of the water pipeline and determine the quality of the Abyssinian well made by hand.
Design features of the “needle” and filter element
The first segment of the water supply pipe that is plugged is the very “needle” that gave the well its name.
Ready “needle”. From the blank with holes to the winding of the filter element. The following requirements apply to its device:
- the whip must have a steel tip made of solid material and attached by threading or welding;
- the base of the cone attached to the pipe must be larger than the external size of the pipe by the thickness of the filter + 10 mm to ensure that its integrity is maintained;
A perforation is made at a distance of 2 cm from the tip, which can be obtained in two ways:
- by drilling holes with a diameter of 8-12 mm in a checkerboard pattern, to a height of 2-3 cm in increments of about 50 mm;
- making through cuts in the body of the pipe to the same height in increments of 1 cm along the circumference.
To increase the degree of water purification from solid inclusions, the size of which is otherwise assumed to be equal to twice the cross-section of the perforation, it is necessary to make a filter element.
The filter can be a fixed stainless mesh with a 2 mm mesh (a smaller cross-section can quickly silt up) and/or a wound wire with an anti-corrosion coating or design, with an appropriate pitch of turns;
The filter element is fastened by twisting wire or soldering using tin solder, which does not contain lead, which can poison water.
A mesh or wire on the “needle” filter retains the sand and the already purified water enters the pipe. Let's go deeper
Next, the “needle” should be buried to the aquiferous sand layer, by building up the lash with new segments and driving the metal structure into the soil. Impact can be achieved using a sledgehammer or headstock.
“Grandmother” device for deepening an Abyssinian well In order to use the latter, you should do the following:
- Having passed the protruding end of the water conduit through the central hole, install the headstock on the ground. Which has the following requirements: weight must be at least 30 kg; the central hole exceeds the external size of the coupling by 5 - 10 mm; On the sides there are eyes or holes for eye bolts for fastening ropes, located on top and in the center of the ribs.
- expand the water pipeline with the next section using a threaded steel coupling. To which they are presented special requirements: the wall thickness should be no less than that of the connected lashes; the length of the cut part is three times the diameter of the pipe; At the ends, cylindrical grooves are made, which must be made to ensure that the section of the lashes without thread fits tightly to a depth of at least 5 mm, which means their caliber must match the outer size of the pipes.
- each section is screwed into a coupling with hemp sealing surfaces to a depth of at least 1.5 cross sections;
- At the top of the mounted lash, a knot is attached with two blocks for raising/lowering the headstock, through which ropes are passed, attached to the eyes or eye bolts percussion instrument. If the height is too large, then the block should be fastened before the sections are connected to each other;
- the “grandmother” rises all the way up and is fixed in this position;
- at a distance of 1 - 1.5 m from the ground surface, but not less than 0.2 m from the coupling, a “grand support” is attached, which is a massive cylindrical part with protrusions and a split metal liner, the hardness of which is greater than that of the pipe material.
When everything is ready, the “grandmother” is released and falls onto the “grandmother”, which is fixed even more firmly due to conical liners, and the water conduit is immersed in the ground.
After a certain number of lifts and drops of the impact tool, depending on the nature of the soil, the water pipeline becomes clogged to a level where it becomes inconvenient to work with the headstock. After that installed elements the shock pair should be removed and the operation repeated with the extension of the lash with new segments until the required mark is reached.
The depth of the first aquifer can be determined by periodically filling the water pipeline; if the water does not drain, then the clay layer has not been penetrated, and when it drains, the “needle” must be driven another 1 meter. After this, the pump can be installed and pumping can begin.
Plastic pipe instead of a water conduit
The emergence of new materials and components for the installation of water pipelines led to the desire of craftsmen to construct a well to lift water from depth, using plastic pipes that, unlike metal, are not subject to corrosion and are not a source of iron oxide, which increases rigidity. However, the properties of plastic do not allow it to be driven into the ground without losing its shape and tightness, which necessitates drilling for the construction of such Abyssinian wells.
Since the Abyssinian well is a well with a plugged bottom, due to which water does not enter as a result of inflow, but through a perforated wall, before driving plastic pipes into the hole obtained as a result of auger or spiral-screw drilling, penetration should be carried out to the full depth. After this, a column consisting of plastic pipes, starting from the end section, which has a perforated surface with a filter and a plugged bottom. It is preferable to make the plug conical to facilitate penetration.
The variety of plumbing communications on the market allows you to choose one of the following plastic pipe options as a material for making an Abyssinian well with your own hands:
- Metafloor, 1 inch or more in diameter, is lowered without breaking the section into a hole made by drilling with a spiral drill.
- PVC pipes, at least 1 inch in diameter, are lowered one section at a time and welded together until the desired length is obtained.
- A plastic sewer pipe with a diameter of 57 mm is lowered into the well and expanded using standard connections with rubber seals.
Needle well with casing pipe
If, during the process of drilling a hole for an Abyssinian well, it turns out that the soil is too loose and cannot maintain its shape without parallel reinforcement of the walls of the tunnel, do not be upset and instead of making an Abyssinian well with your own hands with a water conduit made of plastic pipes, use it as a casing . In this case, drilling should be done with an eccentric tool, for example, a drill spoon, which is specifically designed for sandy soil, and the walls are strengthened in parallel, as the rod is lowered from the gas pipes.
A tubular structure that transmits rotation from the collar to the drilling tool in in this case, will subsequently be used as a do-it-yourself Abyssinian well, so it is subject to requirements similar to those listed when describing the equipment of the column - “needles”.
After the hole has been drilled to its full depth and the walls have been strengthened, the rod is gradually removed from the hole and disassembled into separate sections. The drilling tool is replaced by an end section with a plugged end and a perforated wall equipped with a filter element.
Starting from the end link, sections are assembled, threaded coupling connections are sealed using tow, and gradually lowered into the pit until the bottom is reached. The cavities between the water conduit and the casing are completely or partially filled with fine stone chips for additional filtration.
The Abyssinian well is a sand well; water is drawn from the first sandy aquifer. Main feature– shallow depth, simple device and low cost.
They are fed from the upper groundwater - the so-called perched water. Groundwater are not separated from the surface by an impermeable layer, so they may contain dissolved organic matter from septic tanks and cesspools, pesticides, and heavy metal salts.
Artesian wells extract water from deep, pressurized sandy or limestone horizons. The water there contains a lot of dissolved mineral salts; there are artesian waters with a high content of dissolved divalent iron. For cleaning to quality drinking water requires a complex filtration system.
The water in the Abyssinian well is different high quality. Waterproof clay layers reliably protect the first sandy aquifer from the penetration of contaminants from upper layers soil, while the water does not contain excess mineral salts.
The waters of the first sandy horizon are free-flowing, so a pump is needed to pump out the water. For Abyssinian wells, surface manual or electric pumps are used, the operating principle of which is based on vacuum method pumping. This limits the maximum depth to the surface of the aquifer, not exceeding 8 m. In this case, the depth of the well can reach 14-15 m.
An electric pump or with a hydraulic accumulator is installed in a caisson directly next to the well or in a warm room at some distance. The permissible distance to the room, as well as the installation diagram of the pumping station, are shown in the figure.
A hand pump is installed directly above the well. For year-round use, it is placed in an insulated caisson or room. The well can be drilled inside the house, in the underground - in this case, insulation is not needed.
The service life of an Abyssinian well is limited by the life of the pipes and pump and averages 10-30 years with regular use. Galvanized, or even better, stainless steel pipes will not only last much longer, but will not degrade the quality of the water.
Pay attention! You can make an Abyssinian well in one day if you have the necessary components and tools for driving.
Preparing the necessary materials
The design of an Abyssinian well is extremely simple and consists of a set of metal pipes 1-2 m long, connected to each other using couplings, a filter pipe at the bottom for water intake and a pump on the ground surface.
Step 1. Pipes are preferably galvanized or stainless steel to protect against corrosion, pipe diameter is 1-1½ inches (approximately 2.5-3.8 cm). Copper pipes are not suitable due to the softness of the metal; moreover, copper is capable of releasing free ions to water, poisoning it. On pipes, except for the lowest one, external threads are cut on both sides.
Step 2. The lower pipe, which is a water intake with a filter, is perforated. The length of the perforated part is 700-1000 mm. Hole diameter - 8-10 mm, center distance between holes – 50 mm. The holes are arranged in a checkerboard pattern. Stainless wire is wound over the perforated part according to the diagram.
Instead of wire, you can use a fine mesh harpoon or plain mesh made of stainless steel. The mesh is tightly wrapped around the perforated part of the pipe and soldered at all joints.
Pay attention! Soldering is performed with food-grade solder, lead-free or with a minimum lead content. Suitable brands of solders: POSu 95-5, POM-1, POM-3.
A thread is cut at the upper end of the pipe to connect to the coupling.
Step 3. A spear-shaped tip made of hardened steel is welded to the lower end of the pipe, making it easier to plug the well. The diameter of the tip at the junction with the pipe should be 15-20 mm larger than the diameter of the pipe - this makes it easier to pass through the ground when driving.
Step 4. The number of pipes in the set depends on the expected depth of the well. They are connected using a threaded coupling; flax or fluoroplastic thread is wound onto the thread for strength. It is preferable to take thick-walled couplings, with a wall thickness of 5 mm - such products are stronger.
Step 5. To drive pipes into the ground, a carbide driving tip is made. The tip has internal thread and screwed onto the next section of pipe.
Step 6. The pipes are clogged using a sledgehammer or headstock. The headstock is a steel cylinder in which a hole is drilled slightly larger than the diameter of the pipe used. The striking surface inside the cylinder conforms to the cone shape of the striking tip in order to center the impact. A removable ring along the diameter of the pipe is attached to the bottom of the headstock to avoid distortions when driving. The headstock is equipped with handles for lifting on both sides.
Step 7 Sometimes the headstock is made with a through hole; in this case, instead of an impact tip, a headstock is used, which is attached to the pipe at a convenient height. In this case, the impact does not occur at the end of the pipe, which reduces the chances of bending it when passing through dense layers of soil.
To make lifting the headstock easier, a clamp with blocks is made. In this case, the headstock is lifted by two people from both sides through blocks, and it lowers under its own weight.
Step 8 For initial pumping of the well and clearing it of sand, it is recommended to use a hand pump. If in the future you plan to install a pumping station, you don’t have to buy a hand pump, but rent it.
Step 9 When placing pumping equipment in a caisson, after installing the well, it is necessary to dig a pit for its (caisson) installation. The depth of the uninsulated caisson must be greater than the freezing level of the soil.
Pay attention! You can make a caisson with your own hands from concrete rings.
Prices for filters for the Abyssinian well
Abyssinian well filter
Choosing a site for an Abyssinian well
The operation of the Abyssinian well is only possible if the distance to the aquifer is no more than 8 m. Otherwise, surface pumps will be ineffective, and for submersible pump a larger diameter pipe and different drilling technology will be required.
To prepare a set of pipes, you also need to know the approximate depth of the well. Excessive deepening of the suction pipe with a filter can lead to its penetration into dense layers of soil lying below the level of the vein.
How to choose suitable place for a well and determine its expected depth?
- The surest sign of the possibility of developing an Abyssinian well is the presence of the same wells in the nearest neighbors. You can ask them not only about the depth, but also about the flow rate of the well in order to determine the required performance of the pumping equipment. Measuring the flow rate of a well is quite simple: you need to time 1 minute and determine how much water the well is capable of producing during this time.
Table 1. Required pump performance depending on the well flow rate.
- If there are wells nearby, you can also find out the depth of the aquifer. Using a rope with a weight, measure the depth of the well to the bottom and to the water surface, and find out the approximate thickness of the aquifer.
- A sign of close occurrence of interstratal aquifers may be the emergence of springs and streams to the surface. If in your area there are springs with good, tasty water, then with a high degree of probability the same water will be in the drilled Abyssinian well, and the depth of the latter will be shallow.
- An indirect sign of the close passage of an aquifer is some plants with a deep root system: coltsfoot, burdock, horse sorrel, celandine and many others. Trees with tap roots also grow better in areas with nearby aquifers.
- Fog after sunrise, as well as swarming of midges over certain areas are also obvious signs, indicating the proximity of an aquifer.
- Well digging experts use metal frames to find the location. It is believed that this requires experience, but you can try to do everything yourself. Take two pieces of copper wire 35 cm long, bend the frames from them at an angle of 90 degrees with an aspect ratio of 10/25 cm. Take the frames in your hands by the short sides and place them parallel to each other, without squeezing too much. Walk slowly through the area. In the place where the aquifer passes, the free ends of the frames should meet.
Folk method on the site
Pay attention! Several signs indicating the proximity of water indicate a high probability of finding an aquifer with a high flow rate.
Abyssinian - step by step instructions
Equipment for driving an Abyssinian well can be rented from drilling companies, purchased, or made independently according to the ready-made drawings given above.
Step 1. Remove the turf on the well site to a depth of 20-30 cm. When driving a well in the underground, the turf does not need to be removed. The first 0.5-1.0 m is drilled with a regular garden drill to penetrate the fertile soil layers. Installing it in too dry or frozen soil will not affect it, but will make the drilling process easier.
Step 2. Install a pipe with a punching tip into the drilled well, level it strictly vertically and fix it in this position. This can be done using a tripod or a board with a hole, as shown in the picture.
Step 3. Place the lower ring on the pipe to secure the headstock. Screw a carbide tip onto the upper end of the pipe so as not to damage the thread when driving.
Step 4. Place the headstock on the tip and screw the fixing ring to it from below. Raise the headstock by the handles until it stops, then release it. The headstock hits the tip, under the influence of a weight of about 25 kg, the pipe goes into the ground to a certain depth. The speed of driving is highly dependent on the density of the soil. A meter-long pipe goes into the sand with 5-8 blows; in clay it moves much more slowly.
Step 5. After the pipe has gone to a sufficient depth, the headstock, tip and fixing ring are removed, and the coupling is screwed on with flax or Tangit UNI-LOCK thread. The connection must be as tight as possible, otherwise during operation air or water will be sucked through it from the overhead water.
Step 6. Install the next pipe and repeat steps 3, 4 and 5. Once the expected depth of the well is reached, water begins to be poured into the pipe every half meter. The sandy aquifer is free-flowing; it is capable of not only releasing, but also absorbing water. If the tip with the filter is located in an aquiferous zone, the water poured into the pipe will drain quickly, almost instantly. If there is no information about the depth of the aquifer, the test is performed starting from 3-4 m.
Step 7 After reaching the aquifer, the pipe is clogged another 0.5-0.7 m and a permanent or temporary pump is attached to it. They begin pumping the well. At first the water will be cloudy, with some sand mixed in.
Step 8 After pumping out several hundred liters, the water will become clean; a lens will form around the intake end with the filter - an area of clean water without foreign inclusions.
Step 9 A concrete blind area is made around the well: the soil is removed to a depth of 20-30 cm, backfilled with sand 5-10 cm thick, then laid reinforcing mesh and filled with concrete. From the center of the blind area to the edges, make a slope of 2-3 degrees to drain water. You can also perform drainage to drain water; in this case, the slope is made towards the drainage hole.
Step 10 Install a permanent pump or connect a pumping station according to the diagram.
Pay attention! The circuit must have a check valve, otherwise before turning on the pump you will have to fill the pumping station with water each time.
Caisson installation
A well is equipped with a caisson when its depth does not allow it to be removed. pumping equipment into an insulated room using a horizontally laid and insulated pipe. TO , You can read in our article.
Step 1. When installing a caisson, a pit is dug around the plugged well. To avoid damaging the pipe, it is better to do this manually. Before starting work, wrap the top of the pipe with a bag or thick cloth to prevent soil particles from entering. The depth of the pit is 20-30 cm below the soil freezing level, the diameter is 20-30 cm greater than the outer diameter of the rings. At the same time, they dig a trench for laying pipes. The bottom of the pit and trench is leveled and backfilled with sand (layer thickness - 10 cm).
Step 2. Install reinforced concrete rings in the prepared pit. A hole is made in the wall for the water pipe at the level of the trench. Reinforcement mesh is placed on the bottom, the bottom is filled with concrete with a layer of 10-15 cm. Leave to harden and gain minimum strength for 5-7 days.
Step 3. A cover with a hatch is mounted on the well. The hatch must be positioned so that the well pipe is exactly opposite it - in this case, if necessary, you will not have to disassemble the caisson to remove and replace the pipes. All seams are coated with cement mortar.
Step 4. A pump and a hydraulic accumulator are mounted in the caisson. Turn on water pipe through the hole in the ring, having previously wrapped it in foamed polyethylene to avoid damage. The hole is covered with cement mortar. Connect the pipe to the pump and check the functionality of the system.
Step 5. The pit is backfilled. A mixture of sand and cement is poured around the walls - gradually gaining moisture from the soil, the latter will set and securely fix the caisson. The lid is insulated with polystyrene from the outside and covered with a 0.3-0.5 m layer of sand. Reinforcement mesh is laid and filled with concrete. After it hardens, install the hatch cover.
Abyssinian well maintenance
An Abyssinian well will last longer if used regularly. At the same time, the lens around the filter retains its dimensions, the water in it remains clean, and the flow rate of the well does not change. If you plan to use the Abyssinian well seasonally, you need to preserve it: drain the water from the supply pipe so that it does not freeze, cover the pump with waterproof material to protect it from snow and melt water. In the spring, before the start of the season, it is necessary to pump the well, as before the first commissioning.
Video - DIY Abyssinian well
The Abyssinian well does not require a passport, but it can provide for your family clean water drinking quality. With regular use and maintenance of the well, the problem of water supply to the house will be solved for several decades to come. "TO , you can read in our article."
