Solar well pump recommendations for 325ft deep well in PNW

Hi Permies,

I have gotten a bid to drill a well on my property. Usual well depth is about 280 - 320 feet here (average for neighboring properties).  
Since I am off grid, I will be installing a solar well pump.
I am looking for recommendations for configurations of solar + pump that can be reliable in Washington state Olympic Peninsula.

Looking forward to hearing any suggestions you have.
Thanks!
K

Would be great to have a referral for a reliable professional who can help me assess and recommend a plan. Anyone have suggestions for a consultant?

Following, although my well is 800'.

Kara Ann,   I went to school for a spell at Evergreen State College but that was a while ago and can't help with the referrals to a solar well installer.  However, I did notice through some sleuthing at their campus website that there is now a community organization in Olympia called 'Olympia Community Solar' --  Since you may be located not far from Olympia, those within that organization may know of installers who would be able to advise you if nothing shows up here in this thread.  Beautiful area there on the Penninsula....Good luck!

Link for the website:   https://olysol.org/

I would get in touch with backwoods solar out of sandpoint, Idaho . They have been around for many years and design complete systems ,etc. you can check them out online also. Good luck.

I don't have specific pointers, but a couple additional considerations: for one, the water table or depth to standing water in your well may be much shallower, for purpose of your pump rating calculations. There is always some standing 'water column' in the bottom of the well that can fluctuate a bit seasonally or based on use, but may average 100' or more of total well depth. Your neighbors or the well driller may have local insight on estimating that. Second, the pump will need to be suited for a particular water system design and usage. There are different ways to set things up, like using a cistern/tank and gravity feed (how far above well head?) vs pressure tank that's more 'on demand'. What kind of water (volume) usage do you expect, and when (daytime & season)? What's the power supply going to be - standalone unit, or connected to house/other system? No need to elaborate here, but those are things you probably want to get clear on to discuss with a professional or installer.

Can I ask what does a 320 ft well cost?
Would rainfall collection be better value?

Hey All - thanks very much for chiming in! I appreciate the comments.  

John - Good question! I have attached the drilling company's estimate. The numbers/details for pump /pressure system that are part of their standard estimate will be different for my off-grid / solar pump situation.  And this is not instead of rainfall, this is in ADDITION to water catchment from hoophouse and greenhouse/barn, and dew catcher installation on the windward side of a berm on the property, and set up for pigs to gley a pond in a natural geographic depression on the property. Western Washington is softly soggy from October through May, and dry in June - September (Tucson, AZ gets more rain in summer time than my farm). So water collection can only get me so far in the goal to have sustainable water for peeps, flocks, herds, orchards and gardens year round.

Ben - thanks for laying out these points! Just knowing the questions to consider is a big step, especially for a newbie, first timer like me on getting a well put in.  All of these questions are getting on the table, and I appreciate your thoroughness - always lots to learn.  It makes the most sense to figure out the well pump details AFTER it is absolutely clear what the conditions of the well are! I have been talking to a solar designer this week, and currently looking at doing something like this


Joe and John - thanks for these suggestions. I will contact Backwoods Solar and also reach out the Oly Community Solar group at Evergreen. Great to have these contacts.

Lawren - OH MY - I was feeling like this was rough because of the potential for 325ft - but you REALLY have some depth there!!! Is that common where you are?  In the area around my property, some wells have come in at 145ft, many in the low 200s - neighbor to the south just drilled a well at 215ft, and several deeper than 300.

I will post here again once the rig is onsite and we are in the drilling process. It's going to be noisy for a few days, isn't it???
Thanks again!

Kara, so going backwards what volume of water would you need in a 12 month period of time?
I can work out how much storage you would need knowing your average rainfall.
Peopleare often surprised at what can be caught!

Thanks, John - that is a great question, and I would appreciate your input.

I have been working on estimating water storage inputs and goals with Claude.ai;  attached is a .pdf of the worksheet with the documentation so far.
(Yes, I know there seem to be a lot of strong opinions about using AI... and the research capacity it gives me has been really helpful in researching / comparing / identifying. It would honestly be very difficult for me to do what I'm doing as I fly solo here, without the information I get with Claude's assistance. And always important to reality check!)

It would surely be helpful to have a wise set of eyes to review and assess, so thanks for your offer.
The worksheet has multiple tabs (assumptions / plants / livestock / household / catchment etc) that has laid out the various inputs and outputs.
This is based on the farm plan over the next 5 years.

I can work out how much storage you would need knowing your average rainfall.

That really is the crucial point, isn't it? Since I live in a place with lots of water input during the long rainy months, the storage is the primary constraint, rather than the amount that can be collected.

Looking forward to your thoughts on this...

Kara, I will study that chart later, when I make time to think about it.
I see you appear to have used existing data, that is great.
The Israelis have become masters at water usage for growing things and the equipment they have developed is amazing.
Consider using that stuff.
Consumption by animals will be listed somewhere.
Other points to consider are steps to reduce losses;
- windbreaks to reduce evaporation
- loss from in ground storage, IE ponds, dams, channels
- time of watering
- method of watering
- at water troughs, make sure animals cannot damage water floats.
Historic rainfall records will help in determining;
- what length of time you will need to draw from tank storage.
- what volume of water you can expect from roof catchment.

Thanks John! Great points to consider - I appreciate your input!

Hi All,

Drillers were here this week, reached water yesterday at 224 depth. We have 15gpm with 33 ft static water. Hooray.  Working now with consultant on off grid pump / solar etc.  Running water on demand - such a gift!

When I get the final set up for the pump / solar / etc I will post here again.

Yay! such good news

Kara, some questions;
- you have not allowed for any catchment off roofs in the wet period
  what is your expected rainfall in that period?
- A couple of large, 5000 gallon tanks will be better value than IBC units. joined together.
  Just connecting them together will be expensive and prone to leaks.
- Dexter cattle may use more than 12 gallons a day it may be calculates 10 gal / day winter, 20 gal/ day summer for a start

John C Daley wrote:Kara, some questions;
- you have not allowed for any catchment off roofs in the wet period
  what is your expected rainfall in that period?
- A couple of large, 5000 gallon tanks will be better value than IBC units. joined together.
  Just connecting them together will be expensive and prone to leaks.
- Dexter cattle may use more than 12 gallons a day it may be calculates 10 gal / day winter, 20 gal/ day summer for a start

Hello, John - hey thank you so much for taking time to look at my water spreadsheet - it is really wonderful the way you share your passion for water management and your experience with all of us here on Permies!

You are absolutely right about the dry season documentation. We were sizing/estimating to get through the dry season because the wet season is... welllll... really wet here in the PNW, with frequent rain and easy expectation of full tanks and ponds, with attention going to ground work for  redirection of excess into swales.

Rain: Oct–May brings about 58.9", out of 65.2" a year.
Catchment: the 1,425 sq ft of greenhouse / tinyhome roof catches about 710 gal per inch of rain (1,425 × 0.623 × 0.8 efficiency). Over the wet season that’s about 41,800 gal.
Wet-season drinking water for animals roughly 18,700–30,400 gal over those 243 days, depending on whether you use the low or average rates.
What’s left to store: about 11,000–23,000 gal. Most of it arrives November through March. By May the roofs fall behind what the animals drink.

And thanks for the update on the Dexters - updating the documents now.

For the IBC tote series, I am using nozzle splitters / hoses at the spigots to connect them, rather than drilling holes/pipe connections in their lower sidewalls. Definitely less prone to leaks. A food grade, cleaned, used 275gal tote (which I buy from a cider pub) is $125. So these are practical, easy to move and connect, and in my budget for now. Longer term, I do expect to move to larger tanks and repurpose some of these for channel catfish tanks in the greenhouse.

The 5000 gal tank cost (over $6K) is an overly big step for me right now, and a lot of those tanks are too tall to support rainwater catchment from the structures I have onsite. A farmer buddy a little further south in the state  has a very large water tank on their property that they do not want, and it will be coming here soon. I don't know the exact capacity and dimensions of it, but will add it in to the planning once those are known.

I appreciate your help