Wells in Calgary?

[calgarychef]

So, I started some new grass in the back yard a couple weeks ago and it’s sure takin a lotta water! So it got me to thinking… what’s the water table depth in my part of Calgary…is it legal to have a well? I’m not considering it reall, just things that make you go hmmmm?

[freeride]

Funny I was thinking close to this today, but using a small holding tank and collecting rainwater from the downspouts.

[tbiddy]

Originally Posted by calgarychef

So, I started some new grass in the back yard a couple weeks ago and it’s sure takin a lotta water! So it got me to thinking… what’s the water table depth in my part of Calgary…is it legal to have a well? I’m not considering it reall, just things that make you go hmmmm?

I don’t know what the rules are now but about 20yrs ago my family moved to a house on the SK side of Lloydminster and there was a water well drilled on the property. It was drilled and split with the neighbours on the block. Our house had the well and all the equipment so it was on us to maintain it. It was a huge pain in the ass. Neighbours complaining that the pump wasn’t turned on early enough and turned off too soon. Plastic pipes were ran on top of the fences to the houses and dad was expected to be a plumber. Expected to fix piping, etc.. He also had to go bug everybody to cover the power bill costs. After a couple of years he finally just turned it off. And the water wasn’t very good, it was very high in iron. Eventually stained everything orange.

[goldscud]

Wells not allowed in Calgary.
Buddy bought a house in Bowness with a well. City said you are not allowed to use it

[bergman]

Most cities have a bylaw against water wells, look it up in the municipal plans or similar. BUT... one way to get around this, especially if it doesnt need to be potable water, is to drill a 'sump' well to deal with excess groundwater issues around your foundation.
Some municipalities allow for this, or at least don't outright prohibit them

[CaberTosser]

I've finally tied in an eavestrough to a 1000L tote and gathered about 250L of water during the last rainfall, having just hooked it up the night before the rain. I will gather more totes and tie in two other sections of my eavetroughs to drain into them as well, all of which on my elevated rack to provide for some pressure. I built the rack to accommodate 4 totes in total, with just under 6' in height of firewood storage underneath. I have another option for filling them though but it will also be precipitation dependant. The weeping tile around my foundation all ties back to a rather deep (7' below my basement) 50 gallon sump with a pump in it, I just have to connect the discharge from that to the totes, and then provide the totes with an overflow arrangement for when they get full. During the ongoing rain I will hear that pump discharging into the front lawn numerous times, probably pumping about 30 gallons per cycle. My front lawn has excellent grade away from the house so that works well, but the idea of storing that water is appealing.

[thumper]

We have a very high water table in our area of Canmore - lots of underground creeks and springs popping up. Our neighbour has a spring that comes up in his basement about 8 months of the year - made a nice little spa around it!