# Water wells during earthquake?



## Elinor0987 (May 28, 2010)

With all of the craziness that's been going on lately with the fault lines and the earthquakes, it made me curious about water wells. From what I've read about them shallow wells are easier to dig than deep wells. It would be easier to dig another well if the walls of it got damaged from an earthquake, but does anyone know about deep wells? I'm sure that rock beds and being near a fault line would increase the damage, but I'm wondering how or if a manual pump well would still function after the tremors stopped.


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## MrSfstk8d (Jan 20, 2011)

I believe that, as long as the draft tube/supply lines are not crushed, broken, leaking or otherwise damaged, the pumping mechanisms themselves should still work. This is assuming the ground composition, soil drainage, water table, etc. is not so drastically changed due to seizmic activity that there's still water to be had. I would think, in most cases, even if there were a large change in ground water conditions, it could take some time for water from an existing soil section to leech off appreciably, so there would still be water available for some time at least, even in the worst of circumstances. May be interesting to see if water tables in affected areas of Japan will change. It may be worth looking for information on water tables before and after the Big One at the turn of the century that had the Mississippi River running backwards as an analogy.

Now, that said, the water quality should certainly be assessed afterward, especially if you suspect damage to the well. If the wheels are still on, so to speak, getting a sample to your County Extension for testing would be in order. There are some home kits available as well which run some of these test too. Plus, post processing could come in handy. A system such as the Berkey water filtration, or some other type of media filter would be useful. Distillation is still a viable option. And, if just for pathogens, boiling works.

The health and wellbeing of the well should be considered too. If you already have a well, you should be familiar with the type of periodic inspection that is necessary. Some localities require well inspection on a periodic basis. Checking the well for cracks, liners in newer construction methods, and grouting of the stone liner in older types. You don't want surface water to percolate into the supply water, as this will be more prone to contamination with micro-organisms as well as any run off from industrial/agricultural chemical treatments. Only the lower areas should allow water into the well. There are a number of factors relating to your local soil and water table conditions that define just how deep the well must be and what sections of the well are designed to keep out surface water and what amount of the well casing is designed to let in the lower water table water.


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## Dexter (Dec 21, 2010)

Not sure about deep wells,But if you can go shollow say 20 ft.there is another way to go. Do some research on a well point.drive your own well.


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