FORUMHOUSE users know that a comfortable life outside the city is unthinkable without a reliable source of water supply. The first thing that comes to mind is to dig a well or drill an artesian well, but both of these methods have their drawbacks. Drilling is expensive and requires the use of special equipment, and not everyone can dig a well on their own. However, there is a third, more affordable option- Abyssinian well, or as it is also called, “needle”.
Abyssinian well: what kind of device is it?
An Abyssinian well is a water intake metal or plastic pipe with a diameter of 2.5–4 cm, installed in an aquifer up to 10-15 m deep. At the bottom of the pipe there is a filter and a well tip, the so-called “needle”. A hand pump or a pumping station powered by electricity is installed on top of the pipe.
Nedrabur member FORUMHOUSE
Abyssinka attracts country residents with the opportunity to solve the problem of water supply for their plot, bathhouse, and even country house permanent residence without the arrival of heavy equipment.
The productivity of the Abyssinian, depending on the “thickness” of the aquifer, can reach 3–5 m3 per hour.
Advantages of the Abyssinian well
Among the advantages of the Abyssinian well are:
How to make a filter for an Abyssinian well
The durability of the “needle” largely depends on chemical features aquifer and the efficiency of its filter.
Alextr61
I recommend making a good filter like this: buy a galvanized thick-walled pipe 1.5 m long. Cut threads on both sides. We screw a pointed “needle” tip onto the base of the pipe (it pushes the soil apart) with a diameter 20 mm larger than the diameter of the pipe (the junction of the tip with the pipe can be welded for strength).
You need to retreat 0.5 m from the base of the pipe. We leave this distance for the sump under the sand. Then, every 50 mm, we drill holes with a diameter of 10 mm in a checkerboard pattern. We wrap a section of pipe with holes stainless wire diameter 1.5 mm. After this, we additionally wind two layers of stainless steel mesh with small-diameter holes.
We do not boil the mesh on top, but secure it with stainless steel clamps. For better filtration, the pipe can be wrapped in geotextile and secured with steel clamps.
If the aquifer contains a large amount of impurities, and the filter of the Abyssinian well is made with technological violations, then it will become silted, which will lead to a decrease in water quality and rapid failure.
Disadvantages of the Abyssinian well
For all its advantages, this type of water supply has several disadvantages. Abyssinian well It can’t be arranged everywhere - there are areas where it’s better not to even mess with the “needle”.
- The Abyssinian well is installed “on sand”. If there are thick layers of clay, limestone and large stones on the site, constructing such a well is impossible or economically infeasible;
- To lift water from it, it is necessary to use a pumping station (not into the well). large diameter it is not possible to install a submersible pump). The distance from the top point of the well to the water surface in the pipe should not exceed 8 m, and the “needle” itself can be clogged to 10-15 meters. If the distance to the water surface is more than 8 meters, then you will have to install a pumping station lower, dig a pit in the underground or install a caisson on the street. If the aquifer is located lower (20 meters or more), then the pumping station simply will not be able to lift water from such a depth.
Abyssinian well: necessary conditions
Before you get to work constructing a “needle”, you need to understand whether it is suitable for your area. Therefore, first of all, we find out the depth of the aquifer (even in different areas in the vicinity of Moscow, the depth of the aquifer can vary up to 250 meters) and the type of soil.
When choosing a source of water supply, you should focus on existing water intake wells of a similar design located in close proximity to your site. And in their absence - on exploratory drilling and other reliable geophysical survey methods.
To search for water, different methods are used: from dowsing to geodetic maps, which display soils and aquifers.
Abyssinian wells and site features
Much depends on individual characteristics plot. So that your efforts and money are not wasted, and the Abyssian well does not remain a useless monument to your carelessness, until it independent device A number of points need to be clarified:
- The depth of the aquifer. To do this, you can ask your neighbors about the water level in their wells, and also measure the distance to the water surface. If the depth of the wells does not exceed 12-15 m, and the distance to the water surface is no more than 5-10 meters, then there is a high probability that the “needle” will be able to provide the house with water;
- Estimated water quality. The Abyssinian is a shallow well, and this aquifer may be susceptible to bacterial and chemical contamination. Therefore, it is necessary to find out in advance where septic tanks and sewage pits are located, and whether there are sources of chemical pollution nearby. Sometimes, already at this stage, it is necessary to abandon the construction of a well;
- Proposed location for the “needle” device. It can be installed right in the house, in technical room, then the pumping station and other equipment will be protected from adverse weather conditions, and the well itself from freezing in winter (if the house is a permanent residence). If the well is supposed to be installed on the site, then it is better to locate it close to the house. In this case, to bring water into the house, you will have to manually dig a trench under the main line, installing a caisson or an insulated shelter, which leads to additional expenses;
- Estimated needle debit. It largely depends on the saturation of the aquifer. An indirect sign can be the water level in neighboring wells. You should also find out whether they dry out in the summer.
A good water-bearing formation under the “igloo” is located in a vein with coarse (river) sand.
Nedrabur member FORUMHOUSE
The most advanced design of an Abyssinian well will not save you if the aquifer has poor water yield and low thickness.
If the water yield of the Abyssinian is low, you will have to purchase and install storage tank for water 500-1000 liters.
The water yield of an already installed well can be found out this way: we note the time of filling the measuring container and see how long it takes to fill a 10-liter bucket. Without stopping pumping, we repeat the procedure 2-3 more times in 10-15 minutes, and we get the average value - the specific flow rate of the well.
How to make an Abyssinian well yourself: manual methods
There are two main ways to construct an Abyssinian well:
- Plugging a well with a steel "woman".
- Drilling using a small-sized auger.
Auger drilling requires the presence of special and not always accessible equipment, so we will dwell in more detail on manual methods of drilling a well.
Abyssinian well: driving with a steel “woman”
When driving a well with a “woman,” a special metal pig weighing 40-50 kg is put on the pipe, with a hole in the center and two handles on the sides. A “headstock” is attached to the pipe - a special clamp tightened with bolts. The “grandmother”, being a stop for the “woman”, upon impact transfers all the energy to the pipe and the “needle”, which gradually enters the ground. As the pipe moves deeper into the rock, additional elbows are screwed onto the pipe, one after another, through couplings until the “needle” reaches the specified depth.
You can also screw a special nozzle onto the head of the pipe, which will be used to deliver blows. This method of constructing an Abyssinian well is demanding on the quality of the thread, because a lot of pressure falls on her.
Fludik member FORUMHOUSE
I assembled the “igloo” using steel couplings and tow (flax) with paste, because... Cast iron fittings may burst due to impacts. While driving, I constantly tightened the column clockwise with a wrench.
To control the immersion depth of the column and facilitate the passage of soil, water is poured into the pipe.
When the water reaches the aquifer, it leaves the pipe with a characteristic noise. After this, you can add another meter to the column (so that the entire filter is in the water layer) and try to pump the “needle”.
Yuri member of FORUMHOUSE
When water is poured into a pipe, it can go either into the space between the pipe and the clay/dry sand, or into the aquifer. Rocking the column manually piston pump. And only then we connect the electric one.
Alextr61 FORUMHOUSE member
After hammering the Abyssinian, at first I had muddy water with fine sand and suspension.
After pumping about 500 liters, the water came out clean. Somewhere after 1000 liters, the water began to be used for drinking.
Abyssinian well: driving with a rod
There is another way to drive a well - from inside the pipe, using a metal rod - a thick reinforcing bar.
BCCH member FORUMHOUSE
I think that it is better to plug the well not with a “woman”, but with rods.
In this case, the fittings hit the back side of the “needle” located in the head of the pipe of the first section in front of the filter. The tip must be well welded to the pipe.
Alextr61 FORUMHOUSE member
I drove the fittings like this: I dug a hole about half a meter deep and installed the first pipe with a tip in it.
Arranging an Abyssinian well with your own hands is a great way to provide water to a summer cottage or Vacation home. Many people who heard this exotic name for the first time may ask a logical question: “What is an Abyssinian well?” This term refers to a simplified version of an autonomous well, buried only to the upper aquifers. Other synonymous names for such a water-bearing source are Norton's well, needle well.
Features of the Abyssinian well
Developed similar system Wells were constructed by the British in the 19th century to provide water to their colonial armies operating in Africa and Asia.
Today, the construction of the Abyssinian well is becoming sufficient popular view water supply in our country.
Let's take a closer look at what an Abyssinian well is, its advantages and disadvantages. The Abyssinian needle well differs from other artificial water intake systems in a number of features:
- Its installation is possible only in soft ground– loose sandy, or sand-gravel.
- The depth of the Abyssinian well usually does not exceed several meters, rarely up to 10-15.
- Casing pipes are buried not by drilling, but by directly driving them into the ground.
The popularity of the Abyssinian well is explained by a number of advantages that distinguish it from other types of wells. First of all, it is the simplicity and low cost of the work. Pipes are buried in the ground without the use of drilling rigs or any other expensive technical means.
For these purposes, fairly simple devices are used in the form of a hand-held piledriver or even just a massive sledgehammer. Therefore, it is quite possible to make a needle well with your own hands. If desired, this can be done even by one person, maximum two.
Another advantage of this technique is minimum size work site. To install a piledriver with a tripod for driving pipes, you will need a platform of 2.5-4 m 3. This is an important factor when it is necessary to install a well on a personal plot with outbuildings, garden trees and bushes.
In such conditions, heavy drilling equipment simply will not be able to approach the desired point, or will cause irreparable damage to the landscape of the site. The water in the needle well is quite clean, since it is settled in sandy soils, which act as a natural filter.
Preparing the necessary materials
The set of working equipment, as well as the construction of the Abyssinian well, are very simple. To work you will need the following tools and components:
- Steel pipes with a diameter of 1-1.5 inches and a length of 1.5 - 2 m each. The lower pipe, which will be clogged first, must be perforated - water will flow through it into the well.
- A mesh filter placed over a perforated pipe.
- Threaded couplings for pipes of the appropriate diameter.
- Well needle. It is a cone-shaped metal tip and is designed to facilitate deepening of the pipe. The needle for an Abyssinian well should be slightly wider than the diameter of the pipes. This will reduce their friction against the ground when driving.
- Steel suspended hammer-headframe or massive steel “woman”. Inside such a percussion tool should have a hole slightly larger than the diameter of the pipe. This will allow the impact to be centered when lowering the piledriver.
- , placed on the top of the pipe. Made from hard types steel alloys and serves to prevent flattening of the upper part of the pipe when hit by a driving pile driver.
The driving equipment can be installed on a special tripod structure, on top of which blocks are fixed. A cable is thrown over the blocks, using which the pile driver is lifted to a height. It is also possible to use a manual method for hammering - an ordinary sledgehammer, or a metal woman with two hands. Threads are screwed onto the ends of the pipes to connect them using couplings. When working, on top part of the pipe being driven, the driving tip is screwed on.
Choosing a location for a well
Important for the proper functioning of the Abyssinian well is right choice its location.
First of all, the work makes sense if the soil at the location of the well is relatively soft. If, however, a layer of rock or compressed clay is found in the thickness of the ground being pierced, then the work will have to be abandoned and try your luck in another place.
It is also important to know the approximate distance from the surface to the upper aquifers. The most effective is an Abyssinian well with a depth of 5-8m. Great depth will make it difficult to pump water using hand pump or most pumping stations. The closest location of water to the surface of the site can be determined by the growing grasses and trees. Some plants like moist soil, others prefer drier soil.
You can determine the approximate distance to water in this way using the table below:If such grasses and trees grow on your site in a “wild” state, then the chances of success when constructing an Abyssinian well can be assessed as very high.
Another the old way searching for water - using a vine. Of course, in central Russia it is quite problematic to find a grapevine, but it can be successfully replaced by two copper wires 15-20 cm long, each bent at a right angle. Holding these wires parallel to each other in relaxed hands, walk around the area. Where the water comes closest to the surface, the wires will have to cross.
Arrangement
To supply water from an Abyssinian well upward, either a hand pump or electric pumping equipment is used. Hand pumps are mounted on top of the topmost pipe facing outside. Electric pumping stations should be placed in buried and insulated caissons. This is due to the fact that similar equipment can only function at positive temperatures. Freezing water inside surface pump will lead to its failure.
Caissons are concrete wells, at the bottom of which the well itself is located. It is recommended to make the depth of the caisson below the depth of winter soil freezing. For different regions countries, this indicator is different: for the southern Black Sea regions - about 0.5 m, for middle zone Russia – 0.8-1.2 m, for Siberia – 2-3 m.
The caisson should be equipped with a tightly closing hatch and insulated.
The Abyssinian well in the well is connected to pumping device using a hose lowered inside the pipes. The bottom of the caisson should be concreted so that the slope is from the well to the edges of the well. Sometimes, in order to avoid emergency flooding of the caisson with a pumping station, it is equipped with a drainage system.
In this case, the slope of the filler floor should be towards the drainage hole. When choosing pumping equipment, you need to be guided by the debit indicators of the well, that is, its productivity. If you install an overly powerful pump, it can quickly drain the well and eventually burn out.
DIY Abyssinian well
Let's consider step by step how to make an Abyssinian well with your own hands.
- Preparation of the workplace. The first step in preparing the site is to remove the turf. At the place of driving, using a simple garden drill, we make a hole 0.5-1 m deep.
- If a pile driver is used during the driving process, you should step by assembling a device for lifting it - a tripod made of beams or metal elements.
- Pipe preparation. We attach a cone-shaped tip to the first perforated pipe to be driven in and install it strictly vertically in the hole.
- At the upper end of the pipe we attach a drive-in tip.
- We begin to strike the driving tip with a piledriver or a hand hammer. In pliable sandy soil, the pipes go into the soil quite quickly. Using a hammer weighing a quarter of a quintal, you can bury a metal pipe with a diameter of 2.5 cm a meter in just 7-8 blows.
- When the first pipe is almost completely buried in the ground, we attach the next pipe to it using a threaded coupling and continue working according to the same scheme.
- Pipes should be plugged before penetrating into aquifers. One of the most common mistakes when plugging an Abyssinian well, the aquifer passes through. To avoid this, you should pour water into them when the pipes are deep enough. The upper aquifers are unconfined and highly porous. Water poured into the pipes will immediately leave through the perforations and mesh filters. If everything happens this way, it means that you have reached the aquifer and you should not continue to bury the pipes any further.
- A pump is connected to the well and pumping begins. Initially, the water will be cloudy, mixed with sand and suspended microparticles. But after pumping 100-200 liters, it will become noticeably cleaner.
Well maintenance
Abyssinian wells are quite durable. At proper care and maintenance, they can last at least 30, or even 50 years. To do this, you should use the well regularly, without stopping pumping water from it for a period longer than two months. In this case, the water lens around the perforated pipe will maintain its purity without becoming cloudy or silting.
If you use the Abyssinian well only during the summer season, the pumping equipment will need to be mothballed for the winter. In the spring, you will have to pump the well in a new way, as at the time of the first start-up.
Conclusion and video “Abyssinian Well”
Thus, the construction of the Abyssinian well is the most simple option providing a summer cottage or personal plot with water. It can be easily set up with my own hands, with a minimum expenditure of money, effort and time. In the video you can carefully familiarize yourself with all the nuances of arranging an Abyssinian well on your own site.
The Abyssinian well is not at all like conventional wells; drilling is extremely easy, even with your own hands. This solves all water problems at once, and is so effective that some people simply cannot believe it.
The time has come for your water supply suburban area. It is difficult for you to decide on the type of water supply. We advise you to build an Abyssinian well with your own hands. This will forever save you from unnecessary problems with water. An Abyssinian well lasts 15-30 years. The output of water from an Abyssinian well depends on the productivity of the aquifer. The more productive the aquifer, the more water the Abyssinian well may give out.
The absence of dissolved iron and heavy metals in water from the Abyssinian well is a big plus of this technology. In addition, the Abyssinian well is convenient for every season. In winter, we insulate the connection to the pumping station. The winter arrangement of the pit for the well pumping station - the caisson - will become more thorough.
To obtain water, you need to drive or press pipes into the ground with a sharp impact tip at the end, over which a perforated filter pipe is placed. I install a pump at the top of the pipe.
The speed of creating a well depends on the soil and the depth of the water layer. You can build a well within one day. The equipment we use to construct the well is small in size, so the well can be installed in a basement or garage.
The Abyssinian well consists of the following parts:
- tip
- filter
- steel coupling with thread
- coupling with clamp
- block with ropes
- pipe
The technology for installing an Abyssinian well is simple. Any man can master it.
Be sure to consider two main conditions.
First, the aquifer must be about nine meters below the soil surface. You can find out about this from your neighbors who have wells. Secondly, the soil must be sandy or have a composition of coarse sand and crushed stone. Otherwise, you will not be able to break through rocky soil without using special equipment.
Rubber seal.
Fine mesh filter.
Tip made of hardened steel.
Assemble the main line - a collection pipe that supplies water.
Coupling for jumpers of pipe sections.
Pump for manual pumping of the piston mechanism.
Water intake valve.
Then we make the frame for the Abyssinian well.
The supporting structure of the Abyssinian well is made using one or two inch pipe. This structure is then driven into the ground.
Important condition- the downhole pipe must be with larger diameter than well pipes. If this is not done, moving the pipes to depth will become impossible.
Sequence of work with pipes.
In the place chosen for the well, it is necessary to select soil in a hole with a diameter of one meter.
The first pipe, the main, is driven into the ground using a cast-iron head or blows from a rod. Subsequently, it is screwed into the ground using a frame drill. In this case, it is necessary to constantly extract the rock.
After installing the first section of pipe, it should be strengthened in the hole, the earth around it should be compacted, adding soil. The next section of pipe is screwed onto the lower section, the end of which has a thread. Then the next one is screwed on and so on. The total length of the pipes corresponds to the depth of the water layer. When the filter reaches the water vein, the water in the mine will rise by one meter.
For primary filtration of water on the pipe, it is necessary to drill 10 mm holes in a checkerboard pattern, with an indentation of half a meter. We can’t do it more often – we lose strength.
A cone-shaped sharp tip, 200-300 mm long with slits for water, is screwed onto the edge of the lower pipe.
Next, the perforated pipe should be wrapped with stainless wire, after which a mesh of of stainless steel or plastic - this is a filter that does not allow fine sand to pass through. Solder metal mesh it is necessary to use a special flux or tin solder that does not contain lead. Substances that poison water should not be used.
Sealed gaskets should be used at pipe connections, otherwise water will leak in, which will certainly affect the efficiency of the well.
To ensure sufficient strength at pipe joints, it is necessary to use flax hemp impregnated oil paint.
The final technological processes for creating an Abyssinian well:
Pressure wash the filter to remove clay.
At the upper end of the pipe we install a water pump, which helps to lift water from the depths of the earth and pump out upper layer until it is completely clarified.
We fix the pump using a flange on the casing pipe or using threaded connection.
During installation, you need to constantly monitor the water level.
When water rises, you should think about the tightness of the pipe connection, which may be compromised due to their depressurization or blockage of the well.
Steel couplings with high-quality threads should be installed.
To prevent wastewater from mixing with drinking water, it is necessary to build a well on concrete foundation, which will rise above the surface of the earth.
The service life of a well depends on the strength and durability of the materials from which the pipes are made. Not so long ago, high-strength polymer products began to be used.
This technology is very suitable for pipes because polymer pipes do not rot, do not rust, and can serve for decades without changing their technical and operational properties. The ideal choice of material for pipes is thick-walled polypropylene (from 5 mm) or polyethylene low pressure. It is absolutely hygienic. There is no proliferation of microorganisms.
It is easy to build an Abyssinian well from plastic pipes. For this:
- We find a two-layer pipe with a diameter of 40 cm.
- Find out the place (ask neighbors who use wells) with spring water in your area.
- Prepare a round hole 2 meters deep.
- Dig until water appears.
- When water appears, we install seamless plastic pipes.
- On another pipe at a height of 50 cm we drill many holes.
- We definitely use a double layer of geotextile to wrap the gaps - this is a filter.
- We attach the filter. It won't let sand through.
- Ready plastic pipe with a filter lowers into the shaft.
- We fill the pipe with sand. We insulate with polystyrene foam.
- Then we lower the submersible pump and begin pumping.
DIY Abyssinian well filter
For clean and quality water Use homemade filters. For the Abyssinian well, you can use the following filters:
- Bottom filter.
- Filter in the water intake system.
- Filter for a jug with membranes.
If you are not satisfied with the quality of water in your Abyssinian well, use a bottom filter. It is easy to make such a filter from natural materials, laid at the bottom of the well in a certain sequence.
It is up to you to decide whether your well needs a bottom filter or not. Carefully examine the bottom of the well. You can do this either when digging a well or during its scheduled cleaning.
We make the bottom filter ourselves, pouring successive layers:
- Coarse quartz sand.
- river pebbles.
- Gravel is a loose, porous sedimentary rock.
- Crushed stone.
- Shungite, or fossilized oil.
We make filters with our own hands using tools and materials:
A simple filter is a perforated filter. Represents an ordinary steel pipe with center punch markings. We carry it out 100 cm from the end, drilling is done every 2 cm in a checkerboard pattern at an angle of 30-50ᵒ from bottom to top. Drills are selected the same size 12 mm for example.
Slit filter. It is milled on special machines, and at home, slots are cut into steel pipe longitudinal slits up to 15 cm long. An interval is left to maintain rigidity. The slots are made with a gas cutter; if this is not possible, then electrodes are used.
The disadvantage of slotted and perforated filters is that the holes become jammed with formation fine-grained sand. Mesh destruction aggressive environment.
Strainer
Its design has a cell size of 0.11-3.0 mm², the cross-section is selected based on water analysis data and the size of solid particles in it. It is used in sand wells.
Wire filter
Here, a wire with a special profile is used, spirally wound on a frame. Bandwidth design is determined by the pitch and shape of the wire section. The wire filter is tack welded at all points of contact with the frame. The service life of this filter will be significantly longer than a mesh filter due to the thickness of the wire.
These filters are also used for different soils and substrates. Individual approach will help you select the right model for choosing a filter for a specific well.
If you use additional water purification from your Abyssinian well, then the presence of a ceramic membrane is mandatory. Get rid of unpleasant odor and turbidity will be helped by a multi-stage carbon cartridge.
In order for the filters to serve longer and better, it is necessary to clean the Abyssinian well from blockages and siltation.
How to clean an Abyssinian well with your own hands
The true owners of the Abyssinian well develop the habit of performing preventive cleaning of the well once a year, after winter. The water needs to be sanitized even if it looks clean on the outside.
For sanitation, ordinary potassium permanganate (potassium permanganate) is used. One tablespoon of manganese is dissolved in a bucket of water and the solution is poured directly into the mine. After 2-3 hours, completely pump out the water. Pour directly onto the garden. This also helps to disinfect the soil.
Major well cleaning includes cleaning the well shaft and clearing the silted bottom. This is labor-intensive work, but the result is excellent.
We clean the trunk of an Abyssinian well with our own hands using a tripod and a brush.
To do this, construct a tripod with a small block on top. A cable is attached, and a ruff is attached to the end of the cable. You can make it yourself from metal wire or chain-link mesh. With reciprocating movements, the ruff moves along vertical pipe to the very bottom, thereby clearing the trunk of the Abyssinian well from contamination.
Then, instead of a ruff, a bailer is attached to the same tripod structure. The bailer is a pipe about 3 meters long with a smaller diameter of the well trunk. There is a check valve at the lower end of the bailer.
It prevents sand and dirt from getting into the pipe when it is suddenly lowered down. These movements clear the bottom and restore productivity to the Abyssinian well. A lucky find was the sharp teeth on the bottom edge of the pipe. They will act as a leavening agent. It is the teeth that, when the pipe is sharply lowered, stir up the dirt at the bottom and lift it to the top.
Cleaning with a bailer
The process of cleaning with a bailer consists of sharply lowering the pipe and sharply raising it to the top by 80 cm. When water with dirt and silt gets into the pipe, it does not come back out (the check valve does not allow it). You need to do these movements about 4 times. Then we lift the bailer up with a cable and wash it. This procedure must be done several times until the well is completely clean.
There are special offers for those who do not want to use a bailer to pump their well. Here you can suggest washing with water, blowing with pressurized air or using a pump.
There are cases when more complex care is required. If bleeding cannot help, the pump must be raised to the surface, and then inspected and the filter. If necessary, rinse or repair.
There are several ways to drill a well. Try the DIY drilling option using a hand auger.
To work, you will need the simplest equipment and devices that you can make yourself or buy inexpensively in a store.
From the point of view of the applied forces, this method is considered difficult, but in terms of the necessary equipment, it is the simplest.
Drilling here takes place with a special drilling auger. The screw is a standard Archimedean spiral. When rotating, it bites into the soil and pulls it to the surface. The longer the auger, the deeper it can go into the rock in one go.
The screw consists of a rod and a metal strip welded onto it. A homemade auger is created from several half-disks that are welded onto a rod at a certain angle.
You can use reinforced plastic or galvanized metal pipes about 2 meters long for drilling. As they dive, they are increased by screwing on new sections. The connections are sealed with silicone or oil paint for tightness. Special couplings are placed on top of the connections.
Drilling is best done with a partner in the following sequence:
- We determine the location for the well.
- Then we carry out test drilling to a depth of about 1 meter. Here you will already feel a certain counterforce.
- We drill until we hit the aquifer.
- We install casing pipes and a filter.
- We pump the well.
The use of hand pumps has been and remains acceptable. But reality requires the use of modern pumping equipment for lifting water from Abyssinian wells. There are many options for lifting water from a depth of 8 meters.
- Hand pump for those areas where there is no electricity.
- The motor pump runs on a gasoline engine and is an excellent solution in conditions of lack of electricity.
- Self-priming electric pumps are convenient low cost and simplicity of design.
- Automatic pumping station. It consists of a centrifugal pump, a hydraulic accumulator tank and automation.
When choosing one of the options for lifting water from a well, do not forget about check valve.
More convenient and reliable to use parallel connection electric and hand pump.
If suddenly there is a power outage, manual method raising the water will help a lot. Your neighbors will become seriously jealous of you.
Having made an Abyssinian well with your own hands, it will be possible to extract water from the soil layer closest to the surface - sand. In most cases, the water passing through the porous structure is of sufficiently high quality (this parameter must be tested in a laboratory), so there is no need to drill deeper and, accordingly, pay more.
Before drilling, you can ask your neighbors about the quality of water, and after the well is installed, its suitability for drinking and cooking is determined in a laboratory. At the same time, the Abyssinian well (needle well) has structural differences and certain advantages when compared with a classic well, which, in accordance with its depth (to the sand layer), is called a sand well.
To determine which is best for you, an Abyssinian well or a sand well, pay attention to the following:
- One of the main differences should be considered well size. Diameter casing pipe the Abyssinian well is much smaller - most often 1 inch. Due to this, it is also called a needle hole.
- Is different water pumping principle– liquid enters the “needle” according to the principle of suction and is often under pressure. At the same time, water flows into a large-diameter well according to the principle of inflow.
Main technical characteristics of the Abyssinian well:
- well depth usually no more than 8-10 meters, although in certain cases it can reach 12-20 meters. But if the water level in it is lower 8-9 meters, there will be problems with water supply using a surface pump,
- performance– 0.5-3 m3/hour.
The needle well design is quite simple. For ease of immersion, the casing pipe consists of sections connected by couplings. The submersible end is equipped with a cone with a slot for water intake and a filter in its upper part.
Well components parameters:
- pipe diameter for the Abyssinian well – from 2.5 to 7.5 cm,
- the length of each segment is about 2 m,
- length of the cone-shaped tip – 20-30 cm,
- the cone diameter is selected 1-1.5 cm larger than the corresponding casing pipe parameter.
The pump for an Abyssinian well can be an external electric one, and in some cases (for periodic use, for example, only for watering a small garden), it is practiced to install a cheaper hand pump.
Advantages and disadvantages of needle well
Abyssinian wells have a number of advantages, which have led to their widespread use.
- With a smaller diameter, the Abyssinian well, made by hand, is not inferior to its larger counterparts.
- The source is equipped with surface pumps (more convenient for inspection and repair than submersible models).
- An Abyssinian well installed with your own hands, thanks to its features, can become practical and convenient option where the use of a conventional well is not practical or even impossible.
- With a small thickness of the sandy aquifer, it is easier to “catch” it with a thin casing pipe (in some cases, a do-it-yourself needle well is the only option).
- The construction of an Abyssinian well does not require much space, so it is often done right in the house, in the basement.
- The immersion of the casing pipe of an Abyssinian well with a large thickness of the aquifer is arbitrary, while a classic well must be drilled to the aquitard - the clay layer located after the sand. This eliminates the possibility of water being drawn from the lower part of the sand layer, which often contains a large amount of impurities, including dissolved iron. Thus, the mineral composition of water in an Abyssinian well, built according to all the rules, is usually better than in a large-diameter well.
- An igloo well, built and equipped with your own hands, silts up less, including due to the presence of pressure and intense water flow. In addition, it is easier to clean the “needle” casing.
For any owner of a house or cottage, the low cost of an Abyssinian well and the ability to drill and equip an “igloo” in one day are important.
You will learn more about what types there are by reading our separate article. The depth from which it can lift water also depends on the type of pump.
What an artesian well is and the features of its structure are described in the material.
The main disadvantage of the Abyssinian well should be considered the possibility of contaminants entering the water from the surface due to the shallow depth of the intake. Because of this, you should carefully choose the location for installing the needle well, ensuring maximum distance from landfills, latrines, cesspools and septic tanks, drainage ditches, showers, in which water goes directly into the soil under the booth, etc.).
Unfortunately, the Abyssinian well cannot be built on any soil, since hard rocky layers will be difficult to penetrate, and aquifers on a loam rather than a sandy layer will not provide water for such a design.
Ways to create an Abyssinian well yourself
The services of specialized companies performing water drilling and even renting special equipment are quite expensive. At the same time, there are several ways to make an Abyssinian well with your own hands.
Drilling
This method is often used to pass the soil to the quicksand, as a sandy layer saturated with water is called, which, due to its looseness, can crumble immediately after the drill moves through it. To avoid this, drilling a well is combined with immersing the casing.
Drills for the production of Abassinian needles can be welded in a home workshop. It is optimal to use two modifications:
- frame drill, which is a U-shaped structure, and is used to pass through a dense clay layer,
- a frame drill with a cylinder, which is installed inside the frame and serves to collect and subsequently evacuate soil from the canal.
The width of any type of drill must correspond to the diameter of the casing pipe.
The drilling technology is quite simple - the passage of soil layers is carried out sequentially, with a gradual increase in the working part using rods. At the stage of drilling with a drill with a cylinder, it is better to use a winch (purchased or assembled independently from a starter and cable, equipped with limit washers and installed on a stand). Such a device will make it easy to remove the drill, rods and soil accumulated in the cylinder from the channel, which together add up to considerable weight.
Hammering with a headstock and a headstock
The headstock is a cone-shaped element fixed to the rod using a thrust washer. The simple design allows for maximum efficiency.
The headstock sliding along the bar, falling after lifting, transfers energy to the headstock, due to which the bar enters the ground. In order to avoid destruction, the headstock cone must be made of a stronger material than the headstock. The thrust washer prevents the cone from flying off the rod even under very strong blows. On the contrary, at this time it “sits down” even more firmly.
Headstock driving with plug
To implement this method, they use an end headstock rather than a sliding one on the rod. To protect the threads of the rod, a plug is installed in the upper part. It is recommended to use headstocks of 30 kg or more.
Barbell hammering
Equipment for driving with rods are hexagonal rods, the diameter of which allows them to be placed in the column. Each of them is equipped with a thread for increasing the length (internal on one side and external on the other). For reliable fastening, the length of the threaded sections must be at least 2 cm. The process of driving a casing pipe immersed in a drilled well involves throwing a rod into the cavity of the rod.
Necessary equipment
For self-construction An Abyssinian well will require tools and materials, which in most cases are available to most home craftsmen. What you need is easy to acquire.
Electrical equipment for the Abyssinian well:
- welding machine,
- Bulgarian,
- drill.
Hand tools:
- gas keys,
- sledgehammer,
- hammer.
Materials:
- casing pipe in sections of 1-2 meters,
- steel couplings for connecting them,
- wire with a diameter of 0.2-0.3 mm and stainless steel galloon mesh for making a filter,
- FUM tape or other material for sealing threaded connections.
Well equipment:
- check valve,
- manual or electric pump.
May be useful:
- discs for rods up to 40 kg as an alternative to the driving headstock,
- car clamps,
- nuts and bolts,
- thrust washer (when using a headstock).
Making a tip with a filter
Making a filter for an Abyssinian well with your own hands is quite simple. A piece of pipe (approximately 80 cm) with a cone-shaped tip is perforated - thin cuts are made or drilled round holes. After this, wire is wound around the perforated area and a braided mesh made of stainless material is applied. The latter is fixed with clamps or soldered using special non-toxic tin solder.
Sequence of work
In general, the construction of an Abyssinian borehole type well is carried out in the following sequence:
- A hole is dug out.
- The well is clogged.
- The required sound depth is determined (in clay soils advancement occurs silently, a grinding sound is heard in coarse sand, and a rustling sound in fine sand).
- After the sound appears, a control check is carried out - water is poured into the pipe, if it leaves quickly, then the depth is optimal, if it is slow, then the pipe must be immersed another 0.5 meters.
- A manual or electric pump is installed in the well.
- The well is pumped until clean water(if the characteristics of the electric pump do not allow it to be used for dirty water, pumping is performed with a manual or drainage unit).
All work can easily be completed in part-time work, so, having started creating a well in the morning, by the evening you can enjoy clean and tasty water.
There is information on what it is, its types and materials of manufacture on our website.
You can talk about the technology of drilling another type of well, in sand. Necessary equipment and sequence of work.
Video
How to make an Abyssinian well with your own hands - a video that demonstrates the process of creating a needle well.
The Abyssinian well, whose other names are needle well and downhole, appeared in the 19th century. and today attracts with its performance and durability. Having a set of equipment, you can do it on the site yourself in 1 day and provide water to a country house.
Operating principles of the Abyssinian well
Water does not accumulate in the needle well; it enters the aquifer when a vacuum is created in it with a manual piston pump. The source is fed through the upper and lower layers of soil - from a depth of 3-12 m. The water in most cases is soft, clean, and does not contain ferrous iron.
The well's flow rate is 0.4-1.5 m³/h. If it is equipped correctly, it will last 10-30 years or more and will provide water as long as there is water in the formation. At first, its flow rate increases due to the aquifer lake, which is formed during the buildup.
The well will last longer with regular operation. If it is not planned to be used in winter, it is preserved: the water is drained and the pump is covered with waterproof material, and pumped in the spring.
Design specifics of the needle well
A special feature of the design is that the water pipe has a small diameter and is both casing and operational.
The bottom hole consists of:
- from the pump (located on the surface);
- from the trunk;
- from the filter;
- from the tip (located in the water).
You can make the parts for constructing a well yourself. or order their production. You will need:
- seamless steel pipes with thick walls, the thickness of the barrel does not affect the flow of water, but a large diameter structure is more difficult to hammer in;
- tip 10 cm long.
The tip is a metal needle from an Abyssinian well that pierces the soil. Its diameter at the widest part should be 2-3 cm larger than the outer diameter of the barrel and filter, this is necessary to reduce their friction with the ground. The tip can be shaped like a cone or a pyramid. It is turned from steel on a lathe. Welded structures are not used - they will not withstand the load.
The wellbore consists of metal pipes 1.2-1.5 m long and one piece 1 m long, which will completely go into the aquifer; there is a tip at its end. The best option– seamless steel water and gas products with an outer diameter of 25-40 mm. At their ends, 7 turns of thread are made; it must be of high quality in order to withstand the hammering of the barrel.
- hammering with a barbell - a small metal rod;
- sledgehammer or headstock;
When plugging pipes, it is better to use a headstock, because its surface allows you to center the blow and avoid distortions. The well trunk is made in the following sequence:
- They remove 20-30 cm of turf and drill a hole with a diameter of 15-20 cm to a depth of 1 m or dig a shaft of the same depth with a cross-section of 0.7x0.7 m.
- A tripod without flooring is installed above the well, because The length of the driven fragments is small, and a load weighing 25-30 kg (headstock) is attached above it.
- A pipe with a filter is placed in the center of the well, ensuring its stability, and driven in with the blows of a falling headstock.
- The barrel is extended by screwing the sections with a threaded coupling. To ensure the strength of the connection, plumbing tow is placed in the thread.
If the fragment is difficult to drive in, pour water into it and stop work for about 1 hour until it is absorbed into the ground. But, if the soil is too hard, they use preliminary drilling of a well and lower the trunk into it. The method reduces the risk of joint deformation.
You can make sure that the needle has reached the aquifer in the following ways:
- a small tube is lowered into the barrel; when it comes into contact with water, a pop will be heard;
- pour water into the barrel, it will go away quickly if the needle is in the liquid.
A pump is attached to the trunk and water is pumped out.
Improvement of the antediluvian filter
With high-quality filtering, there will be no clogging of the well in any type of soil, even in clay, it will last longer with high productivity. A good filter should be as porous as possible. You can make it yourself, using as a basis a galvanized pipe 60 cm long, 3 mm thick and with an internal diameter of 25 mm. Holes with a diameter of 1-1.5 cm are drilled on each side in increments of 3-4 cm. A total of 40-60 holes are needed.
To improve water quality, the device is improved:
- The area with the holes is wrapped with stainless wire with a diameter of 1.5 mm, making the distance between the turns 4 mm.
- The top is tightly covered with a layer of stainless galloon mesh, which does not allow small particles of sand and clay to pass through. They attach it with clamps or weld it with solder without adding lead.
Modernization increases the service life of the system by 2-3 times.
Conditions for the construction of an Abyssinian well
Setting up a well for clay soils and sands. Soils with shallow limestone and sandstone are not suitable for this. 2 people are enough for the work. But we must take into account that when constructing a well independently, drillers will not be able to crush hard rock with the tip. Therefore, if you find an obstacle, for example a large boulder, it is better to bypass it and start working in another place. The device is easily dismantled.
If you plan to lift water with a pump, you must take into account that it is impossible to do this with a submersible pump; only a surface station is suitable, but it is effective at a well depth of no more than 9 m.
My own hydrogeologist
The area is suitable for driving a well needle under the following conditions:
- it is in a lowland;
- moisture-loving plants grow on it, such as nettle, hops, burdock;
- within a radius of 500 m there are springs, springs or other sources of drinking water.
The presence of a river is not always a favorable sign, because... its channel may turn out to be transit. A good water-bearing formation is located in a vein with coarse sand. If there are no wells nearby, you need to find out the reason for this. When conducting research, it is necessary to take into account that the water surface rises in the spring and during the rainy period, and find out what the differences in water levels are and whether the sources dry up in the summer.
The best site for an Abyssinian well will be one where burdock, hops and nettles will grow.
If the depth of neighboring wells is no more than 15 m, and the distance to the water surface is up to 10 m, you can choose a place to drill a well. To do this, it is necessary to find out the location of septic tanks, cesspools and other polluting factors in neighboring areas and exclude places falling within their zone of influence.
To find points of close occurrence of water, you can study geodetic maps that show soils and aquifers, or make a frame apparatus:
- Bend 2 pieces of rigid aluminum wire, 40-45 cm long, at an angle of 90° at a distance of 8-12 cm from the edge, the bent ends will serve as handles.
- Hollow tubes or branches of shrubs (elderberry, willow, viburnum) with the core removed are placed on the handles.
- The ends of the wire are bent so that it moves freely in the handles.
The frames are held at chest level and slowly moved around the area. In places where a water vein is close, the ends of the frames converge. It should be taken into account that this device cannot determine the depth of water.
The most comfortable spot for a well - near a building where water is needed ( summer kitchen, baths, houses). It can be installed in a basement or garage, then there will be no need for insulation for the winter.
Conclusions and useful video on the topic
The main advantages of the Abyssinian well are its simple design, low cost and environmental friendliness. It does not require any permits, registrations or licenses. But before drinking water from a new well, you need to take samples for chemical and bacterial analysis and, if necessary, install a filter system.