Water Well Rehabilitation

Proper well rehabilitation depends on several things including the well casing material type, cause of diminished well performance, and original methods used to install the well casing and screen. We’ve also rehabilitated wells used to recover free-phase hydrocarbon (i.e. NAPL) product.

Well rehabilitation is nearly never as simple as hiring a driller to swab or brush a well screen. The driller may damage a very expensive well and the end product may be a well that does not work properly. To rehabilitate a well, we evaluate the overall performance of the well for its intended purpose. Next, we usually take a down-hole video to visually evaluate the condition of the well. Some wells are in poor shape and may not survive the rehabilitation process.

Based on what we observe and our experience, we design a program to treat the well that usually includes both chemicals and physical processes. Axis well rehabilitation program typically follows a three-step process:

Shock — We add chemicals specifically tailored to the well issues and overall goals of rehabilitation. Chemicals may include some combination of acid, buffer agents, and clay dispersants.

Disrupt — We agitate the well via mechanical means to remove blockages. We may use high pressure jetting, swabbing, surging, and pulse-pumping.

Disperse — We evacuate the well water to lined tanks and stabilize the water for disposal. During this step, we measure the sand production coming from each well interval to determine when we are finished. Too much sand coming into the well may indicate other problems that need to be addressed.