Issues with hydrofracking water wells.

If you have a low-yielding well, you may have heard of the term hydrofracking a water well. Possibly you have been wondering what exactly hydrofracturing is, and what is it’s impact. Is hydrofracking worth the cost, does it increase well yield, or is there a better option? In this article we’ll discuss what the process of hydrofracturing involves, common issues with it, hydrofracking’s environmental impact, and if hydrofracking is the best solution for a low producing well.

What is hydrofracking for water wells?

Hydrofracking is a term most commonly heard in regards to gas development. The process of hydrofracking has not been adopted for groundwater resources until more recently. Put simply, hydrofracturing is the process of using high-pressure water to remove any blockages in the bedrock fractures in a low yield well. This process is done to enable the water to be able flow more freely to the well for better well production rates. Hydrofracking is a much more controllable process than older methods such as using dynamite or CO2 to remove those blockages.

For the well to be hydrofracked, the well pump and pipe must be removed and two inflatable “packers” are placed in the well below the casing to seal off an area to be hydraulically fractured. High water pressure is then blasted into that sealed-off area to remove any blockages in the cracks and water bearing fractures in the surrounding rock to allow more water flow through those cracks and fissures. After hydrofracking the well, the water has a high amount of sediment and debris floating around. Because of this, the pump contractor will wait until the next day to install the liner and the well pump. After a couple of weeks, well yield testing can then be taken to determine if the hydrofracking produced better flow results.

Issues with hydrofracking wells.

With well development by hydrofracturing, there are some issues and things to consider before deciding to have it done to your well. The first thing to consider is that hydrofracturing works only with bedrock wells. This method uses high pressure to remove any blockages in the fissures and cracks in the bedrock, so if the well was drilled into sand, clay, or gravel hydrofracturing would not be a possible option for the well. Another consideration is that some areas require permitting to have a well hydrofracked. This could take some time before the hydrofracturing process could begin. Also, depending on the amount of work needed to hydrofrack your well, it can be fairly expensive to do. This can turn into a possible expensive gamble. You won’t know if you are going to be able to get the amount of water that you need until you have spent the money to have it hydrofracked. Another thing to consider before hydrofracking is that large trucks and machinery will be needed to hydrofracture the well, and to bring in the water for the process. The last big issue with hydrofracking is its environmental impact.

Environmental impact.

You have may have heard about the environmental impact regarding hydrofracking. Normally, when it is reported on the news or in magazines it is discussing hydrofracking’s impact on oil wells. Does water well hydrofracking also have a negative impact on the environment? Absolutely! The whole idea of hydrofracking is to blast high-pressure water into the ground, and to try and open the fissures up to blow away any blockages. This is unnecessarily impacting the ground structure.

Water well fracking can also cause issues with neighboring wells. Depending on how close those neighboring wells are, the well owners may notice a reduction in yield and/or cloudy well water for some time. Since hydrofracking blasts the water and blockages out through those fissures, if those neighboring wells share the same fissures their well can be affected negatively by your well being hydrofracked.

Some hydrofracking companies tend to use some chemicals or solutions in the high-pressure water to help remove clay or any dissolvable minerals. If your well is used for drinking water you will want to have your well tested after hydrofracking to make sure the water is safe after these chemicals are used. Hydrofracking can also lead to contaminated well water. If any fractures in the bedrock are opened up that lead to arsenic or other water contaminants, then your well water could be unsafe to drink. After hydrofracking, you should have your well water tested to ensure that your water is safe to use for drinking.

A better solution.

Now that you know what is involved with hydrofracking a water well, what the common issue and considerations are, and its environmental impact is, you are probably wondering if there is a better solution out there for low producing wells. Let’s just say you came to the right place for a solution! Look no further than the Epp Well Solutions Well System. The Epp Well Solutions Well System is a smart well water harvesting and constant pressure system. It uses high-tech sensors and logic to maximize water harvesting while protecting your well from being overpumped, which is a common cause of premature well failure. This system draws water when it is available in your well throughout the day and night, and stores it up in one or multiple tanks. The water is then boosted to the house with the included booster pump for high pressure and 20 gallons per minute of output use throughout the day during those peak usage times. Our system is easy to install with a plug-in-play design and it is fully automatic. Our system uses patented technology to automatically run seasonal optimizations to get you the maximum amount of water depending on how much water is available in the well.

The system is high-tech and compact and comes loaded with many features including a touchscreen interface with real-time water storage amounts, pump status, weekly water usage, and much more!

An environmentally friendly option.

The Epp Well Solutions System uses technology to utilize your current well and make it work for your situation. Our system does not impact any of the ground structure or any part of the well. It uses sensors to control the well and run it only when there is water available. This is a much more environmentally friendly option as it does not change any part of the environment. It just needs to be plumbed into the house or business and it constantly works at controlling the well to harvest that water. To protect against over-pumping, our system will keep as much water in your well as possible while harvesting as much as possible for household or business use. This helps keep your well healthy, and gives it the best environment to avoid failing prematurely.

It’s not a gamble.

Unlike hydrofracking, our system is not a gamble. By calculating what your well output is, we can know how much water you can have harvest and what will be available to you to use throughout the day. With hydrofracking, you won’t know if the results will be enough for your needs, whereas with an Epp Well Solutions Well System you can. An Epp Well Solutions System is a much more environmentally friendly and cost-effective solution.

Another thing to consider, if you hydrofrack your well and do not also control it from being over pumped, your higher water amounts may be short-lived. Harvest the water that you need and protect your well from over pumping by calling us today to discuss how we can tailor a system to your needs!