Pulling a Stuck Pipe from a Well

[Qweaver]

We're heading back to Texas City in the morning to spend a month repairing Ike damage.  The power came back on 2 days ago but we have major damage on the ground level and no water.  The wind tilted the pump house with it's 6" concrete slab enough to rupture the casing.  My daughter and friends have managed to remove the well house and slab and cut the 2" casing, but they can not pull the inner pipe and foot valve.  They called a well digger and he said that the foot valve is likely corroded and stuck and it's a 50/50 shot at getting it loose or breaking it.  A break means a new well.  We have a friend here in WV that's been doing wells for 50 years and he said much the same.
  I'm going to try cutting a section out of the casing and try hammering it down while turning on the advice of our friend.  I've never seen a 2" cased well before but this well is really old and has lots of water. Drilling a new well is a real problem because of power line location and septic system location requirements.
Does anyone here have some magic ideas? :D

[Warbird]

You've already been given the advice I knew of.  If by "hammering it down while turning", you mean hammering on the pipe, I recommend you have a good hold of it or have it tied off somehow.  If she breaks loose, you don't want to try fishing it back out.

Any idea how deep this well is?  Stuck well pipes are no fun.  Good luck.

[DanG]

Any chance you can dig around it deep enough to just use it like it is?  Might have to rent a backhoe, but if you can dig deep enough to get past the damaged part, you may be able to just splice onto it at that point.  That's a long shot I know, but might be worth considering.  Good luck with it!

[Tom]

Get a little gasoline driven pump and hook it to the well to see if the well is clear at the bottom.  These pumps (3-5 horse) are used to pump wells clear.  It could be the pipe and it could also be a caved in well.

put an A frame over the drop pipe and hook onto it with a chainfall and try to put tension on it that way.  you might get it out.

[SamB]

Don,t know if this will work ,but might be worth a try. Pour a gallon of clorox down the casing to act as a lubricant before you try to pull the pipe.

[jerry-m]

QWeaver,  Need to know few things about the well construction...

The foot valve in a 2 inch well casing is a tight fit at best...any corrosion will cause the foot valve to become stuck.

Since it is an old well it may have  a metal pipe instead of plastic connected to the foot valve... If metal pipe this could work to your atvanage, then maybe not, as I will try to explain directly... 

The wells I have worked on have whats called  a sand screen connected to the foot valve... Some times this screen is a
piece of  plastic perforated pipe of some what weak construction ( might break in too if enought pressure is applied), but other well screens are made out of sch 40 plastic pipe with small slits sawed all around the pipe, may be a bit stronger... The well screen can be as long as 20 feet, but may be less...

The idea I have depends on the height of the water in the well... where you are located here in Texas I would guess the water table to be quite high...

It will be best to try to pull the well pipe out with the foot valve if it can be broken loose... The gal of clorox might help loosen the stuck foot valve...

I would try to apply a back and forth pressure (like trying to loosen a rusty bolt) to see if the stuck pipe can be broken loose... I don't have much hope for this but give it a try...

If not you may be able to save the well by going ahead and breaking the pipe off at the foot valve, if you can get the well pipe out with most of the sand screen still attached...

You will have to measure the height of the water above the broken pipe, foot valve, to see if there is enought water to supply your needs... If there is, just install a new foot valve and sand screen and connect to your pump 8)

Just some ideas, hope it helps some,  Jerry   

 

[Qweaver]

Thanks for all of the suggestions everyone.  Some good ideas that I'll try.  The paperwork on the well says that it was dug 119' deep so if pulling fails, maybe I can just hammer the stuck foot valve down and let it fall.  I'm using a jet pump so I only need less than 40' of depth. 
We are all loaded and ready to start the 1315 mile drag, so we'll catch ya on the other side.
Quinton

[sharp edge]

Quinton
Yes you have a problem big time. You can look in histry and see how Jeff fix his, he had the same type of well.   

Looks like you are going about it the right way. Try to blow the water out of it with air. You can put cooking oil in it then blow on it. Hammer down pull up and hammer. The center pipe is probly 30 feet below the water table. There two cup lethers on the jet that lock the center pipe. Or do what DanG said thread the pipes and add on.

SE

[ARKANSAWYER]

   Pulled the pipe out of a windmill pump one time with a high lift jack.  Just wrapped a chain around the pile a few times then onto the foot of the high lift jack.  Then we jacked it up and while the pipe was being pulled we worked it some with a pipe wrench to get it loose.  IT was 3 ft at a time but then once we got it loose and some pipe out of the hole was could pull it by hand.    Poor people have poor ways.

[olyman]

there is a product you buy from plumbers--to pour down a well when it gets contaminated from the top--dont ask---this stuff not only decontaminates--but breaks all sorts of rust and crud free--should have seen the crud coming out the hydrant!!!! you just leave it in there for 24 hours---and dont cost much---

[Qweaver]

Hi everyone,
We finally got the well going today.  Hot showers tonight.  The well was tough to pull and was full of dirt and sand from a break in the pipe.  Overhead power lines forced us to cut the pipe into 10' sections as we pulled it with the loader.  I had to dig down 3' to reach the break in the casing, cut and re-thread and screw a new piece in.  I've worked on the well nearly every day since we got back to Texas.  I also had to replace the entire electric system from weather head and including a new service center and breakers. It's really a mess down here and insurance is covering very little on the ground level.  But that's the price we pay for living on the Gulf Coast. 
The storm surge was huge...the most ever recorded for our community.  Oh well, we'll just pick up the pieces and keep going.
Quinton

[isawlogs]

I am glad to hear that you where able to get your well going , that shower ,I ma sure , will be appreciated by all , the water coming from the tap will be welcomed too I guess  8) 8) 8)