Aquify borehole drilling Cape Town

A borehole can vary in price anywhere from R35000 to R100 000. Depending on the following factors:

• The area in which Borehole is being drilled
• Conditions of the rock
• The depth of the aquifer
• Amount of casing and filter media required
• The specifications of the submersible pump
• Difficulty accessing the site/crane hire

Drilling out of season may lower the costs as the borehole contractors may be less busy than in summer. 

Once you have a better idea of the cost involved in drilling a borehole, one can make a more informed decision.

The most crucial question is, DOES YOUR LAND HAVE WATER THAT IS ACCESSIBLE. It’s critical to find out how to know if your property has water.

There are three ways in which you can find out if your property has water suitable for a borehole:

• Check with your neighbours.

If your neighbours have accessed their underground water, find out from them whether they have a well-point or a borehole. As a result, you will have a pretty good idea of water depths in your area.

• Contact a well-established borehole contractor

You can contact a well-established borehole contractor and ask them. They will usually have an excellent understanding of the areas where they work regularly. They will be able to tell you the depths and conditions of your underground water.

• Geotechnical charts and scientific studies

You can look up some Geotechnical tables or experimental studies of your area. The latter will be a more expensive option. However, it may shed some light on the depths of the aquifer and the composition of the ground.

The depth of a borehole for an average home depends on two things:

1. the depth of your water table
2. the composition of your ground

In some areas, the water table can be as low as 3 – 4m. In other areas, the water table can be 70 – 80m down. It depends very much on the natural composition of your area.

Usually, low-lying areas will have a higher water table. However, if you are on a mountain or hill, you would be looking at a much deeper water table.

The depth of your water table will determine whether you need to install a well-point or a borehole.

A well-point is installed in an area where the water table lies between 1 – 10m. A well-point has the pump above ground to pump water to the required area. The water is sucked up through a pipe in a filtration media. It is a far cheaper alternative.

In contrast, a borehole is drilled when the water table is found at a depth between 10m – 200m. A PVC or metal casing is then placed down the hole as well as a filtration media to filter out sand particles.

Installing a submersible (underwater) pump to pump the water to the surface is essential. Placed at the bottom of the well, and it pushes the water up to the surface. Drilling a borehole is a more expensive option.

A borehole is a hole that is drilled into the ground. The hole is usually about 250mm in diameter.

A 110mm heavy-duty casing is pushed down this hole. The casing is metal or an alternative durable plastic substance. It has fine slots cut into the pipe and is then pushed into the hole. If the slots are too wide the casing will fill up with sediment.

All around this casing, filtration media is placed around the pipe. Filtration media is river sand or silica, and it filters the water into the tube. At the bottom of the Borehole is the submersible pump which pushes water to the top of the Borehole.

Sometimes soft sand can be problematic in that the hole could be continually caving in while the drilling is taking place. However, there are various means of counteracting this.

As we know, Borehole water can be found at varying depths. Depending on the water table, the composition of your ground, what type of soil you have, and underground rock.

The rule of thumb usually is the deeper, the better. This will give you a more constant flow, but again, this is dependent on the water table and ground composition.

If you are drilling into rock, you will need to find fractures in the rock which will allow water to flow into the pipe. Usually, you have to go through various rock layers and clay and different types of medium until you reach the water table.