Sand in Well Water

[Dimitrios Paskoudniakis]

I'm in Maryland where it's been hotter than 90 deg every day for almost two weeks.

I've been watering the lawn for 2-3 hours this morning, my wife watered the plants, two showers were taken and a load of laundry.

I'm noticing some sand in one toilet bowl, and when I turn on the water in the adjacent sink, there is some sand.

I presume this means the well water level has gotten too low? The pressure was fine.

Is there anything I should or should not do in the near term? I stopped watering the lawn.

[hallerb]

your well is likely collapsing, the sand will ruin your pump, sand is abrasive.

call a well service company ASAP

[willshak]

Dimitrios Paskoudniakis wrote the following:

Any well drilling or excavation going on in your neighborhood? Other than your well going dry, that is the next best bet.

[Hustlin' Hank]

You did a good thing by stopping the watering of your lawn. One cure that may work for you is to raise your pump up a little more from the bottom of the well (maybe 5-10ft, depending on static level). When you pull the pump, dump a few shovels of gravel in it to help stop the pump from sucking the sand off the bottom.

Hank

[Chief Two Eagles]

Nothing you can do but make sure the sand doesn't get back into the pump it will ruin it. In time the well should recharge. If you still find sand after a few days call a well service company. Still have a well here. Drilled back in 1968. The local gov installed central water and we switched over back in 1990. I left the two outside spigots on the well but don't water the lawn with it.

[Bob F]

My father had a large storage tank added to his system. The well pump keeps it full. Another pump supplies the house from it. I assume the well pump controller cycler the pump to prevent overpumping the well as it refills the tank.

[Evan]

It sounds like you need your well flow tested... It might not be able to produce enough water for you to be wasting fresh from the well water on your lawn anymore...

You could consider using a grey-water system to reuse water from hand washing sinks and showers in your house for your lawn after you have used it once inside the house... Such a system would need design specs for it made by someone with experience in such things...

~~ Evan