This article discusses if rain can fill your well. Rainfall affects the local water table and can also affect your residential well if it is supplied by shallow aquifers. Furthermore, the drought season can make your well dry. Can rainwater be able to fill your well after the drought? Let us find out the answer below.
Does rain fill your well? While rain can affect the level of water in your well, it cannot fill it. Take note that more than 95% of rainfall goes into streams, rivers, and creeks. Some rainfall can become part of the reservoirs or surface water supply. These sources create and generate water-bearing aquifers that supply all wells.
If you rely on your well for your household water supply, there are important factors that you need to know. In times of drought, the level of water in your well can be affected which can result in a water shortage. Read the rest of this article to learn more about how rain can affect your well and how it can benefit from it.
How Does Rain Affect Well Water?
Rain can affect your well water and the effect can either be positive or negative. The two types of water that flow into your well are surface water and groundwater. Let us find out more about these types of water below.
Groundwater
This refers to the water that has passed through soil and rock and flows into the underground aquifers. Rock and soil filter contaminants like bacteria from the water as it passes through. However, the filtration process is not thorough and water can still pick up minerals that are present in the soil as it flows.
Surface Water
This is the water that is located on the surface of the earth like lakes, puddles, ponds, and streams. Surface water is exposed to anything that comes in direct contacts with it like the air and animals. Water treatment should be done first to make sure that surface water is safe for drinking. Due to heavy rainfall, surface water can overwhelm and overflow the casings of the well or can also flow into shallow well pits. As a result, the well water can be contaminated with pollutants or bacteria and making the water not safe for drinking. Aside from that, rainfall can also cause the soil around the well casing to soften and erode.
Negative Effects of Rain on Well Water
Rain can provide both positive and negative effects on your well. The positive of rain is that it can improve the water level on your well, especially after the drought. On the other hand, rain that flows through surface water can bring contaminants and bacteria that can make your well water unsafe to drink. Below are some issues that rain can bring to your well and how to solve them.
Missing or Damaged Well Cap
It is important that you regularly check your well for any missing or damaged well cap. Otherwise, rainwater can enter your well and contaminate it. Check the seals around pipes and wires, especially the place where the cap meets the casing if there are any cracks.
Cracked Well Casing
If the well has a cracked casing, contaminants can seep through. Any holes or cracks can let unfiltered water through the soil enter the well. This usually happens for wells that are made of clay tile, concrete, or brick.
Well Water Contamination
Older wells are usually not sealed with grout or the grouting has failed. Make sure that you inspect the grouting especially if there is a change in the color and smell of the water after severe rains. Moreover, see to it that rainfall drains away from the well and does not puddle against it. We have also shared this article titled, why is my well water brown all of a sudden? Read about the different factors that can affect the color of your well water.
Can You Run Out of Water in a Well?
Well water can run out and there are different reasons why it can happen. One of the common reasons is the drought. Some areas that experience drought and a low level of groundwater can result in a dry well. One sign that your well is drying is when the pump is turning on or remaining on more often than normal. Another sign would be dirty tap water and sputtering. Muddy or dirty tap water is the result when the well water runs low that sediments from the bottom are getting into the pipes. Sputtering happens when air enters the water lines.
What Happens if the Well Goes Dry?
A well that has run dry can still be able to produce water once again. This is because aquifers can be able to recharge with the help of precipitation and fewer pumps pulling water out of that aquifer. There are instances wherein wells can permanently run dry, but that is an uncommon occurrence. You can also check out this article that discusses if you can dump water into a well. We have shared an in-depth discussion about the topic.
Why Do Water Wells Run Dry?
The common reason why a well runs dry is because of humans. Seldom does it run dry because of natural phenomena? For instance, the same aquifer that is being pumped aggressively by many pumps can deplete the aquifer. This can cause certain pumps to temporarily run dry. Another common reason why a well run dry is because of water leaks in the pipe between the well pump and pressure tank.
✅ Video – Will My Well Ever Run Dry? What to Do If It Does?
Wendell Lee Well Services shared the video below on YouTube. In the video below, the different reasons why a well runs dry are discussed. The tips on what to do if your well runs dry are also talked about. Watch the video below for more information.
How Long to Refill Dry Well?
The amount of time that a dry well can refill will have to depend on several factors. The size of the well as well as the type of geology that the well is in will have to be taken into consideration. Aside from that, the condition of the well also affects its recovery rate.
Will a Well Refill Itself?
Most wells can be able to refill themselves with water. Wells that are deeply drilled can recharge and provide clean water even after suffering a drought for an extended amount of time. You can also check out this article that discusses at what depth a submersible pump should be installed. We have shared tips on submersible pump installation that you can refer to.
Factors that Affects Well Water Refill
Reduced water supply, over drilling, climate, and weather are some of the common factors that affect your well water refill. Over long periods, even the best well can start to dry and provide insufficient water than what the household requires. If you are experiencing a low water supply, there are some things that you can do to improve the water level of your well. Most of these problems can be solved by rehabbing the water well. Let us learn more about these factors below.
Older Wells
If you have an old well, you may notice a low water supply. This is because as the well ages, it suffers sediment and silt build-up, collapse, or corrosion. Take note that age-related problems can limit the recharge rate of the well. However, it is possible to rehab the well. The two common problems that old wells encounter are silt or sand build-up. Even if you install a well screen, it is not fine enough to prevent all the sediment and sand from entering the well. Sand that enters the well through the casing can settle to the bottom. As time goes by, the sand build-up can limit the amount of water that is available in the casing and can also overwhelm the pump.
Over Drilling
Another factor that can affect well water refill is over drilling. Residential developments have mushroomed all across urban and rural areas and each house has its well. Bear in mind that the density of wells into the aquifer can lead to the over-pumping of the aquifer. As a result, over-pumping will lower the overall depth of the water in the aquifer which causes less available water to each well. Over drilling can result in shortages and supply problems that can affect many households. To solve this issue, many countries have established water districts to control water well drilling. This will make sure that the water supply is sufficient.
Climate and Weather
Both climate and weather can also affect well water refill because most aquifers depend on rainfall to recharge the underground water table. During drought, there is a significant drop in the water table level. If this happens, homes that are dependent on water well should make plans for alternate water supplies. Drought is a natural weather phenomenon that can cause a problem especially if it lasts for a long time. Widespread droughts have become an issue for many areas and have left thousands of homes without a steady and adequate water supply.
Conclusion
You have reached the end of this article that discusses if rain can fill your well. We have found out that rain can affect the water level of your well but it cannot fill it. If you rely on your well for your household water, you need to be aware of the different factors that can affect water supply so that you can prepare and choose the best option in case a low water level is to be expected during the drought season. We hope that this article that we have shared has helped you learn more about how rain can affect your well water. Thank you for reading!