water well drilling parkersburg wv

2023-06-23

Long before mechanization came to farming practices and water sourcing in Parkersburg, West Virginia, the process of drilling for wells was straightforward and simple. A technician would dig a shallow hole in the ground, insert a pipe and attach a hand-operated pump. From these rudimentary wells, only a meager quantity of water was yielded.

With the need for water expanding, drilling procedures saw a technological upgrade. The first major leap was to rotary drilling machines, devices that could drive holes remarkably deep. Rotary drilling is a process conducted with an apparatus composed of a drill bit connected to a long pipe, which is then spun around via an engine. As the drill bit churns through the stone, the rotation action of the drill pipe pulls all rising fragments back to the top.

Although similar to its predecessor, modern rotary drilling rigs have evolved into larger and more potent contraptions. Many are powerful enough to reach depths of thousands of feet below the surface. To accommodate for such depths, drill bits themselves have become more complex, capable of conquering nearly any type of rock. This type of drilling is still commonly employed in present-day society.

In the year 2000, hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking”, was first applied to water well drilling. This technique had been discovered several decades prior in the 1940s. By pushing a high-pressure liquid into the underlying rock layer, it was possible to cause fractures in the solid material. Therefore allowing any existing water within that stone structure to thereby fill the resulting well.

Thanks to hydraulic fracturing, we are now able to mine for water in remote areas where the aquifer is nestled deep underneath the ground. Additionally, this technology has facilitated the tapping of aquifers that lay within the sedimentary rocks of shale meters down, previously deemed undrillable.

In the 1980s, the oil industry began to pioneer a revolutionary new technique for water well drilling – horizontal drilling. Instead of drilling straight down, this approach involves drilling at an angle, permitting a well to be completed in a much shorter distance than before. Moreover, with this technique, greater yields of water can be harvested from the formation.

In recent times, doing away with the regular vertical way of drilling for water wells has been the preferred option, as lateral drilling proves to be more cost-effective and faster.

In the city of Parkersburg, West Virginia, drilling new water wells and enlarging existing ones have become a vital part of ensuring the community’s water supply – something deemed even more essential as demand skyrockets in this area with a naturally limited resource.

Despite the complexity of it, drilling for water is an indispensable chore for Parkersburg’s ongoing development. A reliable source of H2O is a basis for the city’s survival, be it for residential or industrial purposes – consequently, investment into the city’s water system is non-negotiable.