Winston-Salem Real Estate - Abandoned Well

If unused wells are not properly filled and sealed, they can provide a direct route into the groundwater for storm water runoff carrying pollutants. These wells can also allow pollutants to move from one groundwater system to another. Wells should also be filled so that children and animals cannot fall into them.

You cannot always see unused wells. A depression in the ground may indicate an old well. Pipes sticking out of the ground around existing or past homes are the most obvious signs of an unused well. Other places to check for unused wells include in basements of houses, under front steps of houses, or near old cisterns.

A well that has been permanently closed by approved methods is considered an abandoned well.Unused wells must be properly abandoned.As a well owner, you can abandon your own well without a license but you must meet the minimum well code requirements for abandonment. Use of unacceptable materials and methods can lead to well settling, well collapse, and groundwater pollution.

North Carolina regulations include the following requirements for well abandonment:

If the well owner contracts someone else to abandon the well, it must be done by a certified well driller.
The pump, piping, and any other obstructions must be removed from the well. Casings and screens should be removed if doing so will not cause or contribute to groundwater pollution.
Any casing that is not properly grouted must either be removed or properly grouted.
The well must be chlorinated to disinfect it before it is sealed.
The entire depth of the well must be filled with cement, grout or clay. Specific requirements vary according to well type and local geological characteristics.