Trenches, mud, rocks, pumps, conduit, culverts, hydrants, landscaping.
After pushing our luck for 5 years with low water pressure and an ancient dying well pump, we finally bit the bullet and decided to replace it. But it wasn’t that simple.
In order to replace the pump (just the pump mind you, the well itself is fine) we needed to trench 180 ft from the well to our parking area (the remaining 70 ft to the house had already been done 2 years ago and we laid conduit then for future use). The trench would need to be 4 ft deep. It would run through a crappy section of our front yard property populated with rocks, weeds, surface bedrock and a fairly deep open swampy muddy runoff culvert for the pond. The landscape was an ugly uneven surface. Digging a consistent depth trench was not going to be easy -- bedrock would require jackhammering, and the pond run off would require huge 18″ corrugated pipe running at least 40 feet.
Lastly, digging a deep long trench like this is disruptive. We knew it would destroy the front yard by the time they were done with all the heavy machinery. So it would be a good time to level the land, cut some dead trees, move rocks, bring in fill, and prep for April seeding.
Well, it was everything we expected and more. After 4 days the trench was dug -- half of it through solid bedrock. The massive jackhammer used to open the trench created many large flat pieces of bluestone -- an expensive by-product -- so we grabbed as many as possible for future stone walls and gardens. Then the rains came. It rained nearly everyday for 2 months. The trench turned into a pond. When a break in the weather. finally came we pumped out the water and began to fill the trench. Before this the new pump was installed, a new water line to the house was run through conduit to the house and the required electrical wires. We also added another four runs of 2″ conduit for future needs (upgraded electrical, cable, gas lines for generators, etc). We took down serval trees, cleared all the boulders and large rocks, ran the 40 ft of culvert (in addition to the 25 ft already in place), and moved dirt/fill from the front of the house to level the land.
Also, we added a lawn hydrant nest to the well which will allow us to access water near the cabin. Having a spigot nearly 250 ft away from the main house is a real luxury.
The result is fantastic (even if it looks so so right now). We ah added parking, removed an eye-sore, and gained a lawn, a a water access point and better water pressure. In April we will bring in a thin layer of top soil and seed to whole area. We’ll end up with a lawn and some garden areas. More photos in the spring once complete.