Why not install your own well?

[Fishboy]

My wife and I spent our New Years Eve (until around 8:30 anyway) with neighbors who moved here (Seattle) from Maui. They had also invited some folks who are visiting family, but who are just completing their home in HPP. I told them about this forum, and hope they join the conversation. Anywhooo, they mentioned that they're installing a well instead of relying on a catchment system. This is the first I'd heard of the notion of installing your own well anywhere on the island, and naturally that raises several questions:

Is the expense so prohibitive that others don't consider this?

Does the well water have to be treated to meet any local codes?

Related to that last one: They said the water table is down about 70 feet. With all your neighbors on cesspools, I'd think you'd want to get your water from something like 150 feet.


Mahalo nui loa,
Brian and Mary
Lynnwood, WA\Discovery Harbour

[Carey]

There are more people adding wells, esp. on the Kona side and in coastal areas, but it is more $ to install than many catchments, and can have brackish infusion (most of the fresh water on island is sitting in a lens shaped pool floating on top of sea water...the closer to the edge on the 'lens' the thinner the layer of fresh & the more likely to draw a brackish mix. This is also a reason not to keep drilling, esp in a coastal area, as you may go into the salt water base.) The deepest private water well on earth is on this island, at Pu'u Wa'awa'a, at around 4,000'.
There is a well driller on the forum that can give you much more information.

[Tolleys]

Many new homes and some older existing homes in HPP have put in water wells within the last few years. To my knowledge, Diamond Drilling does most of well drilling. Near the coast they are shallow at 30'-40' and Mr. Diamond who lives on 32nd has a 400' deep well.

We were granted a well permit by the state. It took 6 months, so start early if you are interested. We will be drilling our well within the next three months sometime. It is true that the closer to the coast you drill the more likely you will get some salt. [xx(] However, a reverse osmosis system reduces the salt for drinking.

When we researched the cost of food grade plastic enclosed catchment tanks vs well cost, the well was cheaper and included the pump and UV system.


Susan

[Rob Tucker]

You ask: Why not install your own well?

The ground here is extremely pourous. If you are considering placing a well in HPP down stream from 8,000+ lots with cesspools and septic systems it seems like risky business to me. The density of build out in HPP will only increase. The water quality, it would also seem to me, would only decrease in time.

Another alternative I have seen in use is people install their water tanks and pumps and don't even hook up to the roof. Catchment without catching. They simply buy water from the upslope wells. Price is about the same (they say) as metered water from the county and they don't worry about leaves, debris and bird droppings contaminating their supply.

It is up to you of course but I would think three times about a well.

[Daniel]

Aloha fishboy, Happy New Year!!! My Name is Daniel, my Father and I drill wells here on the island. Most of our work is right here in HPP. If you would like some info on the cost of wells or any other questions about wells or the aquafer you can drop me an email or give us a call (966-4129). Cesspools are a common concern, but not nearly the problem one might imagen them to be. Salt intrusion is also a common concern but again not something to worry about. More and more people are finding out about water wells or are getting tired of their catchments and looking for other options. As news of our now lower prices gets out we get more and more calls. Thanks for bringing this subject up. It helps people learn about the wonderful resource beneath their feet!

Daniel R Diamond

[Hotzcatz]

We generally have enough rainfall to keep a catchment tank filled so why pay to dig?

If it were my water tank, though, I'd either put it underground or under a lanai or screened or something since they generally aren't very pretty to look at. Even though we are on County water, I'm thinking of putting in a small catchment system to water the garden with so I don't have to use chlorinated water on the plants.

[Fishboy]

Thanks to all of you who responded. I really appreciate the information that the freshwater lens is thinner near the ocean. Given that HPP is close to the ocean, relative to the geographic center of the island, it's a good bet that the aquifer in that area isn't that deep.

Subjects like this make my thoughts and imagination as a biologist take off. My thought is that microbes in the island underground ecosystem easily handle the infusion of wastes from the terrestrial ecosystem. That ecosystem has adopted over the eons to handle a relatively uniform distribution of wastes. Human populations tend to concentrate themselves, as in the case of subdivisions. By concentrating the source of wastes and depositing them in cesspools (no treatment), we tend to soil our subterranean nest.

I may be completely off base with this scenario, but I agree with Rob that as people move into the HPP subdivision and install cesspools the quality of the water table is likely to suffer. Our property in Discovery Harbour has county water; if it didn't, I'd most likely go with catchment.

Mahalo nui loa,
Brian and Mary
Lynnwood, WA\Discovery Harbour

[Kelena]

Cesspools are not permitted in HPP below 5th Street, makai side. I really don't think cesspools should be permitted anywhere in Puna.

[Kapohocat]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Rob Tucker

You ask: Why not install your own well?

The ground here is extremely pourous. If you are considering placing a well in HPP down stream from 8,000+ lots with cesspools and septic systems it seems like risky business to me. The density of build out in HPP will only increase. The water quality, it would also seem to me, would only decrease in time.

Another alternative I have seen in use is people install their water tanks and pumps and don't even hook up to the roof. Catchment without catching. They simply buy water from the upslope wells. Price is about the same (they say) as metered water from the county and they don't worry about leaves, debris and bird droppings contaminating their supply.

It is up to you of course but I would think three times about a well.

---

This opinion was seconded by Ron Nickles, one of the civil engineers on the East side who also asks clients to really think about a well with the current systems of wastewater here rarely including legitimate sewer systems.

There is a reason why county wells require any wastewater system being put in within 1000 ft uphill to meet certain standards - and it is much more than septic/cesspool standards to the cost of more than $11K. Some of the lots in Black Sands Beach have that issue with the county well beign less than 1000 ft away.

Now my thought is that if the county only requires to 1000 ft - usually they are closing the door after the horse is out of the barn.

But again, just an opinion, do the due diligence.

[Daniel]

gtill,

Thanks for the questions. I'll do my best to answer them. The deepest well we have drilled outside of HPP is in Keaau at Shipman Business park. It is 400' deep. So if I understand you correctly, you want to drill holes in the bottom of your leach field so as to improve drainage and use less land area?

As for the ground water being contaminated with agricultural chemicals, we haven't had any show up in any of the areas we have drilled. Not even in Ookala next to the old sugar mill, we drilled right through the area that they pushed all the material that they washed off the the sugarcane and even that water tested good. As for ground water contamination by cesspools, we haven't had any problems. The thing I don't like about cesspools is that a person can fall inside, like the guy that fell in a cesspool over in Laie and died.
The water found at most lower elevations, with or without populations, has bacteria that can cause humans to get sick, if the numbers are high enough. However that really isn't a problem considering how easy it is to treat. If you think about it, many people treat and drink their catchment water, which is a lot dirtier than well water. Catchments are usually in direct sunlight, which bacteria just love, and are constantly being contaminated with debris form your roof and gutters. Well water on the other hand is constantly being replenished and filtered and is at a lower temperature underground. We have many happy customers who are very glad to have their wells. If you have any more questions feel free to ask. If you would like more info regarding drilling for you please call me at 966-4129 or email.

Daniel R Diamond