New Construction


Building a new home, and planning for a new water Well system.

Important steps to consider

  1. Pull your Well permit
  2. Choose location of well on higher elevation than surrounding areas
  3. Don’t choose steep slopes or poorly drained areas
  4. Location should be clear of shrubs, trees, structures, landscaping etc.
  5. Take precautions to protect the well head from heavy equipment
  6. Well location should have easy access for cleaning, treatment, repair, etc.

Minimal distances should be maintained from wellhead

  • Cesspool (receiving raw sewage) – 200 Ft
  • Pit, privy, filter bed – 50 Ft
  • Septic tank, tile sewer, foundation drain – 50 Ft
  • Iron sewer with approved mechanical joints – 10 Ft
  • Pump house floor drain – 2 Ft
  • Property boundary – 5 Ft
  • Outer boundary of any road – 20 Ft
  • Landfill, garbage dump – 200 Ft

The Typical New Home Construction Process

  1. Plot out building / structures
  2. Obtain driveway or road access
  3. Clear all areas for large equipment mobility
  4. Obtain required permits with Local Health Department
  5. Finish Rough Carpentry and clear the location for the well
  6. Call Fleming Well Drilling to start the well process

Water Supply, what is enough?

The type of material beneath the ground surface in your area can tell you how successful you may be in obtaining a suitable water supply from a well. Fleming Well Drilling has experience in your area and should be able to tell you what to expect.

So, what is “Enough” water? Sufficient quantity to meet the following needs in everyday use as in drinking, cooking, toilets, bathtubs, showers, automatic washers, dishwashers, lawn and garden watering, car washing, and swimming pools. Today’s’ demands are high for water.

A day’s use may be concentrated into a period of one to two hours, often in different areas of the house at the same time (laundry, bathroom, and lawn). The water supply system must be able to meet this type of peak demand. A conservative estimate is that a home will need about 150-300 gallons per day for two to four people to meet all these needs.

When determining how much is enough:

Flow rate: continuous rate of yield for well

Size of the well: diameter and depth of well

Static level: level at which water stands in a well when no water is being pumped from the well

Additional Issues

If you are thinking about purchasing a property in an area where adequate water supply is in question, then an option on the property is better, with permission to have a well-constructed first. If problems arise, the cost to repair them is less if you construct the well first, because only the cost of the well is involved. Also, if a second well must be drilled, there is more likely sufficient space on the property if the house is not already there.

In addition to providing for regular household use, wells sometimes supply water for heating and cooling purposes. Some energy-conscious homeowners install ground water geothermal systems, which extract and concentrate heat energy from water and make it available for heating or cooling purposes. Ground water below 20 feet from the surface remains at a constant temperature. The temperature of well water is equal to the average air temperature of the area.

Other purposes for new well construction could be for livestock, agriculture, ponds, and outhouse buildings.