Current through all regulations passed and filed through December 16, 2024
Applicability. This rule applies to nonpotable wells, public
water system wells and radial collector wells, all of which are defined in rule
3745-9-01 of the Administrative
Code. Paragraph (A) of this rule applies to both public water system and
nonpotable wells, and excludes monitoring wells described in rule
3745-9-03 of the Administrative
Code. A nonpotable well shall be constructed in accordance with this rule.
Paragraph (B) of this rule only applies to public water system wells. Paragraph
(C) of this rule applies only to radial collector wells.
[Comment: "Lead free" is defined in section
6109.10 of the Revised
Code.]
(A) Public water system wells
and nonpotable wells. Material used in the drilling process or well
construction shall meet the following:
(1)
Be free of
contaminants.
(2)
All well components, adapters, and fittings shall be of
similar material or constructed in such a way to minimize the potential for
galvanic corrosion.
(3) All drilling mud,
additives and lubricants used in construction have either standard ANSI/NSF 60
or 61 certification
and not contain guar gum, or other
such biodegradable organic material.
(4)
Potable water, not surface water, which is treated for
drilling purposes in accordance with the drilling mud manufacturer
recommendations shall be used for drilling purposes.
(5)
Well casing, other than in a point well or radial collector well,
meet the following:
(a) Nominal pipe size of permanent casing
is a
minimum of five inches and sized to allow the well to produce water that is
adequate for the intended use, and to allow for the installation and
maintenance of the well and related pumping equipment.
(b) Steel pipe or tubing used as permanent
well casing or liners conforms to the following:
(i) Be new pipe or tubing that has a minimum
wall thickness in accordance with the following table:
Steel Well Casing
Nominal Pipe Size (inch) |
Minimum Wall Thickness (inch) |
< 8 |
0.280 |
8 |
0.322 |
10 |
0.365 |
12 |
0.375 |
14 |
0.375 |
16 |
0.375 |
18 |
0.375 |
20 |
0.375 |
> 20 |
0.500 |
(ii)
Be manufactured in compliance with one of the following standards or
specifications:
(a) ASTM
A53, "Standard Specification for Pipe, Steel, Black
and Hot-Dipped, Zinc-Coated, Welded and Seamless."
(b) ASTM A589,
"Standard Specification for Seamless and Welded Carbon Steel Water-Well Pipe."
(c) ASTM A106,
"Standard Specification for Seamless Carbon Steel Pipe for High-Temperature
Service." excluding pipe marked with
"NH," which is pipe with neither a hydrostatic test nor a nondestructive
electric test.
(d) API 5L,
"Specification for Line Pipe, forty-second edition, Product Number G05L42,
Document Number API SPEC 5L."
(e)
ASTM A500, "Standard Specification for Cold-Formed Welded
and Seamless Carbon Steel Structural Tubing in Rounds and Shapes,"
, except this tubing shall not be
used in a public water system well.
(iii) Have standard ANSI/NSF 61 certification
for use in a public water system well.
(iv) Be greater than minimum wall thickness
and weight when required either to withstand the stresses of installation,
grouting and operation, or corrosion.
(v) Be equipped with a drive shoe when
driven.
(vi) Be legibly marked on
each length, by the manufacturer, with all of the following information:
(a) Name of the manufacturer.
(b) Kind of pipe (continuous welded, electric
resistance welded or seamless).
(d) Nominal or
outside diameter.
(e) Specification
number.
(g) A certification mark
that verifies compliance with standard ANSI/NSF 61 certification.
(vii) Be structurally sound,
watertight throughout its length, and have threaded and coupled or welded joints that meet the following:
(a) Well couplings with a
design, taper, and type of thread that is consistent with the thread of the
pipe
will have
no
more than three threads exposed on
fourteen thread pipe and no more than two threads exposed on eight thread pipe. Threaded
pipe and couplings meet one of these
standards: ASTM A53, ASTM
A589,
or "API RP 5B1, Gauging and Inspection of Casing, Tubing, and Line Pipe
Threads," fifth edition,
Product Number G05B15, Document Number API RP 5B1.
(b) Welded joints form a structurally sound and watertight
joint. Welded joints may include butt-welds, band rings, flared joints or
welding collars. Butt-welds be made
using a guide. Steel pipe that is equal to or less than eight inches in
diameter have a minimum of two weld
passes. Steel pipe that is greater than eight inches in diameter
have a minimum of three weld passes.
Acceptable welding procedures are as follows:
(i) Plain end well casing pipe that is eight
inches nominal pipe size or less, and with wall thickness up to 0.5 inch
be in accordance with specifications
in the "American Welding Society" manual, "AWS D 10.12 M, Guide
for Welding Mild Steel Pipe."
(ii)
Be in accordance with specifications in standard "AWWA
C206,
Field Welding of Steel Water Pipe," catalog number 43206.
(c) Thermoplastic pipe that is used as
permanent well casing, liners, well screen risers, blanks or tail pipes shall
meet the following:
(i) Be new pipe that is
manufactured in compliance with the standards of ASTM
F480,
"Standard Specification for Thermoplastic Well Casing Pipe and Couplings Made
in Standard Dimension Ratios (SDR), SCH 40 and SCH 80,"
and ANSI/NSF 14, "Plastics Piping
System Components and Related Materials," document number NSF/ANSI 14. (See the
appendix to this rule for the diameter and wall thickness of thermoplastic well
casing for standard ASTM F480.)
(ii) Be standard dimension ratio (SDR) 21 or
thicker pipe wall, for casings with diameters of five to eight
inches.
(iii) Be SDR 17 or thicker
pipe wall, for casings that are either larger than eight inches in diameter or
installed at two hundred feet or greater below ground surface.
(iv) Be SDR 13.5 or thicker pipe wall, for
casings that are installed at five hundred feet or greater below ground
surface.
(v) Have greater than
minimum wall thickness and weight when required either to withstand stresses of
installation, or grouting, or operation, or because of collapse
considerations.
(vi) Be legibly
marked, by the manufacturer, with the following information:
(b) Standard dimension ratio or
schedule.
(e) Impact classification
(IC).
(f) Specification
number.
(g) Manufacturer's name or
trademark.
(h) Lot number and date
of manufacture.
(i) A certification
mark that verifies compliance with standard.
(vii) Be structurally sound and watertight
throughout its length with casing joints or couplings meeting the following:
(a) Thermoplastic casing joints and couplings
meet standards ASTM
F480
and ANSI/NSF 14.
(b) Thermoplastic
spline lock joints may be installed and need not meet standards ASTM
F480
or ANSI/NSF 14. For purpose of this rule, a spline lock joint is a nonmetallic,
watertight coupling designed for thermoplastic pipe which incorporates the use
of a bell or coupling with machined grooves on the interior of the bell or
coupling, and is joined by inserting thermoplastic pipe with an elastomeric
sealing gasket which seats into the machined grooves, and is locked in place by
insertion of a high-strength flexible thermoplastic spline to provide full
three hundred sixty degree restraint with evenly distributed loading on the
joint.
(c) Thermoplastic couplings
be legibly marked as applicable with
the nominal well casing pipe coupling size, type of plastic, designation of
compliance with standards ASTM F480 and ANSI/NSF 14, and the manufacturer's name or
trademark.
(viii) Not be
installed where potential or known contaminants may degrade or permeate
plastic.
(6) Defective, visibly
damaged or reject pipe shall not be used as casing or liner pipe for
wells.
(7) Casing
extends continuously, at a minimum, either to the top
of the aquifer or to the top of the non-water bearing consolidated formations
above an aquifer.
(8) Casing and borehole
shall be sufficiently straight and vertical to allow for normal installation
and operation of the pump and uniform placement of grout.
(9) A
pitless adapter or pitless unit may be installed when piping from the casing is
below ground surface. The pitless adapter or pitless unit and installation
procedures in above and below ground surface installations shall adequately
prevent the entrance of surface water, dirt, animals, insects or other foreign
matter.
(10) A pitless adapter
or pitless unit connection to a well casing that is made either below ground
surface or less than twelve inches above ground surface shall be installed
through the following methods:
(a) The pitless
adapter or pitless unit shall be connected by welding or threading as required
by the type of unit and the manufacturer. A pitless adapter may be attached by
clamping. Any hole penetrating the side of the casing for access by the pitless
adapter or pitless unit shall be of the size and dimension as required by the
manufacturer, and shall be made using a hole saw or other tool capable of
making a clean and uniform hole to allow proper sealing. A cutting torch shall
not be used to install a pitless adapter except for a non-circular hole in the
casing where the manufacturer's recommended guide is used and all edges and the
exterior casing surface are ground or filed to a smooth and uniform
surface.
(b) The inside diameter of
the pitless unit shall not be smaller than the inside diameter of the casing.
No part of a pitless adapter or pitless unit shall extend into the inside
diameter of a well casing so that setting or removal of the pump, pump piping
or drop pipe, or the use of tools for well rehabilitation or disinfection is
impeded.
(c) Upon installation of
the pitless adapter or pitless unit below ground surface, the annular space
that is required in accordance to paragraph (A)(17) of this rule surrounding
the casing and pitless adapter or pitless unit shall be filled with either
re-compacted clean cohesive native soil or grout.
(d) A pitless unit may be attached using a
structural or mechanical joint that shall do the following:
(i) Provide for the well casing to extend at
least 2.5 inches into the throat of the pitless unit.
(ii) Be composed of a cast steel unit with
the collar held in place with a minimum of four corrosion-resistant bolts, nuts
and washers spaced uniformly around the circumference of the
coupling.
(iii) Have a collar with
the same or better strength and rigidity as the well casing.
(iv) Use a ramped compression gasket seal
that fits between the upper and lower portions of the coupling to ensure a
watertight seal.
(v) Ensure that
the coupling is centered over the joint.
(vi) Conform to ANSI/AWWA
C219,
"Bolted, Sleeve-Type Couplings for Straight-End Pipe,"
catalog number
43219.
(e) Pitless
adapter or pitless unit connections to thermoplastic pipe shall meet the
following:
(i) Where a pitless adapter is
installed by clamping on thermoplastic casing, a backing plate, wide steel
strap or casting be installed to
protect the integrity of the thermoplastic casing at the point of the pitless
adapter connection.
(ii) Steel well
casing pipe extension, pitless unit and pitless adapter shall not be welded
after they are attached to thermoplastic well casing. Thermoplastic coupling
be threaded onto the pitless unit
before it is solvent cemented to the top of the casing.
(iii) Threaded connections shall only be
installed on a pitless unit or pitless adapters after attachment to the well
casing pipe.
(f) When
steel well casing pipe is not terminated at the desired depth for the
installation of a pitless unit, the well casing pipe shall be cut off at the
desired height, and the pitless unit may be welded or threaded and coupled to
the top of the well casing pipe by one of the following methods:
(i) Cutting of the well casing pipe squarely,
providing a bevel for the top of the well casing pipe and welding the beveled
end of the unit to the beveled end of the well casing pipe.
(ii) Welding a pipe nipple, having threads at
one end and beveled on the other end, to the cut off top beveled end of the
well casing pipe and threading a full length standard recessed coupling
watertight to the threaded end of the unit and to the nipple. The top of the
well casing pipe and the bottom of the pipe nipple to be welded shall both have
beveled ends. If the pitless unit has female threads, the unit may be threaded
watertight to the threaded end of the pipe nipple.
(iii) Reaming out the threads of a full
standard recessed coupling at least one-third the length of the coupling, and
welding the coupling to the top of the cut off well casing pipe.
(11) A connection to a
well casing that is made above ground shall be installed through the following
methods:
(c) Bolted flanges with rubber gaskets at
twelve inches or greater above ground surface.
(d) Extension of the casing at least 0.5 inch
into the base of a pump mounted on and sealed to a concrete pedestal.
(12) Well casing
height above finished grade shall be at least twelve inches, and at least
twelve inches above the well house floor or concrete apron surface, per the
following:
(a) Where a well house is
constructed, the floor surface shall be at least six inches above the finished
grade.
(b) The finished grade
be sloped for surface water runoff
away from the well.
(13) A well shall have
a well cap or seal .
(a)
The top of the
casing at its finished height shall be cut so that the surface will fit flush
with the well cap and provide a tight seal to prevent the entrance of water,
dirt, animals, insects or other foreign matter.
(b)
The well cap or
seal shall fit securely to the top of the well casing and be, secured with
screws or other appropriate connections, and vent to the
atmosphere.
(c)
A point well that is not a public water system well may
have a watertight well cap that does not vent to the
atmosphere.
(d)
Electrical conduit connections on the well cap or seal
shall be threaded and sealed to prevent the entrance of insects and water. Any
portion of electrical wiring to a well that is not buried by the ground shall
be fully enclosed in conduit to prevent the entrance of insects and water, and
to protect from potential electrical hazard.
(14)
A room housing pumping equipment, well house or pumphouse, shall conform to the
following:
(a) Allow access for maintenance,
alteration, removal and repair of the public water system components.
(b) Be constructed above ground
surface.
(15) Pump
construction, installation, design and maintenance shall comply with the
following:
(a) A pump shall be constructed so
that there are no unprotected openings into the interior of the pump or well
casing.
(b) If an above ground pump
or line shaft pump are used, it shall be attached to the casing, or suction or
discharge line by a watertight connection, or shall have a base plate that
conforms to paragraph (A)(10) of this rule.
(c) A submersible pump motor shall not have a
mercury seal.
(d) Below ground
water service pipe shall be maintained under
positive
pressure at all times. A check valve or backflow
prevention assembly, shall not be installed between a pitless adapter or
pitless unit and the pressure tank.
(e) To prevent contaminants from entering the
well, a temporary watertight well cap or seal shall be provided until the
pumping equipment is installed.
(16)
Well vent
construction, installation, and maintenance shall
conform to the following:
(a)
A well vent shall be provided on all well caps and
seals except for those used on deep well single pipe packer jet installations,
or flowing wells where the flow rate is greater than the pumping rate of the
permanent pump.
(b)
A well vent shall be self-draining, screened with a
noncorroding mesh screen of fifteen to thirty mesh, pointed downward at or
above the top of the casing or pitless unit.
(c)
A vent shall
terminate not less than twelve inches above ground surface, and at least twelve
inches above the well house floor or concrete apron surface.
(d)
The well vent
shall extend a minimum of three feet above the one hundred year floodplain
elevation, or highest known flood elevation, whichever is
higher.
(e)
A vent shall be maintained in a sanitary condition to
prevent the entrance of surface water, dirt, animals, insects, or other foreign
matter.
(17) Maintenance,
modification and alteration of a well shall comply with the following:
(a) Casing and top of well shall be protected
against contamination or inadvertent damage.
(b) A well shall be altered, modified or
repaired in accordance with this chapter, or a well shall be sealed in
accordance with rule
3745-9-10 of the Administrative
Code, if one or more of the following situations exist:
(i) The pump or any part of a well
malfunctions or is defective.
(ii)
The top of the casing is buried below ground surface.
(iii) Potential or actual risk of
contamination of ground water exists due to casing deterioration or the
condition of the
well, including the potential for standing water
against the well casing.
(18) If the casing is
not driven and the drilling method requires the drilling of an oversized
borehole, the annular space shall be a minimum of 1.5 inches for a well less
than or equal to fourteen inches in diameter, and a minimum of two inches for a
well greater than fourteen inches in diameter.
(19) A casing may be
extended to meet the requirements in paragraph (A)(11) of this rule using a
structural or mechanical joint that shall do all of the following:
(a) Provide for the well casing to extend at
least 2.5 inches into the throat of the coupling.
(b) Be composed of a cast steel unit with the
collar held in place with a minimum of four corrosion-resistant bolts, nuts and
washers spaced uniformly around the circumference of the coupling.
(c) Have a collar with the same or better
strength and rigidity as the well casing.
(d) Ensure that the coupling is centered over
the joint.
(e) Conform to ANSI/AWWA
C219,
"Bolted, Sleeve-Type Couplings for Plain-End Pipe," catalog number 43219.
(20)
Be
constructed in accordance with the requirements in rule
3745-9-06 of the Administrative
Code.
(B) Public water
system wells. In addition to the requirements of paragraph (A) of this rule,
the material used in the drilling process or the construction of a public water
system well shall meet the following:
(1)
Unless otherwise noted in this chapter, all chemicals, substances, and
materials added to or brought in contact with water in a public water system
well shall have either standard ANSI/NSF 60 or 61 certification in accordance
with rule
3745-83-01 of the Administrative
Code.
(2) Tubing per ASTM
A500
shall not be used in a public water system well.
(3) Well casings shall extend at least
twenty-five feet below ground surface. If nonpotable water is encountered, one
of the following must be completed:
(a) Above
an aquifer containing potable water, the casing shall extend to the bottom of
the aquifer containing the nonpotable water and shall be grouted as deep as
necessary to prevent the nonpotable water from entering the aquifer containing
potable water.
(b) Below an aquifer
containing potable water, the lower portion of the well shall be filled with
cement grout or bentonite grout, to a height sufficient to prevent entrance of
nonpotable water into the aquifer containing potable water.
(4) For a public water system well
with vertical turbine or line shaft pumps, the well shall be tested for
plumbness and alignment in accordance with appendix D of standard "AWWA
A100,
Water Wells," catalog
number 41100, or alternative procedures acceptable to the director.
(5) The maximum allowable horizontal
deviation from vertical shall not exceed two thirds of the smallest inside
diameter of that part of the well being tested per one hundred feet of
depth.
(6) Well screens shall be
installed in a public water system well in unconsolidated or incompetent
geologic formations per the following:
(a)
Screen shall be constructed of steel, stainless steel, thermoplastic or lead
free brass. A lead free brass screen shall have a dielectric connection to the
casing to reduce corrosion.
(b)
Thermoplastic screens shall have standard ANSI/NSF 61 certification.
(c) Lead free brass screens shall meet a
director approved standard, including but not limited to ANSI/NSF 61
certification.
(d) For a well with
a design pumping rate greater than three hundred fifty gallons per minute, the
screen shall have size of openings determined upon sieve analysis of the
aquifer formation or filter pack in accordance with standard AWWA
A100,
"Water Wells," and the screen shall have uniform openings and a maximum
entrance velocity of 0.1 feet per second.
(e) The screen shall provide sufficient
column and collapse strength to withstand installation and borehole
pressures.
(f) Screen joints
between screen sections and blank casing shall be welded, or threaded and
coupled.
(g) Screen installation
using telescoping methods shall be attached either directly to the bottom of
the casing or to a packer.
(h)
Screens shall be installed that minimize corrosion caused by contact with
dissimilar steel casing. Thermoplastic screen may be attached to steel casing
with the use of an appropriate coupler.
(i) Screen shall be provided with a bottom
plate or washdown bottom fitting of the same material as the screen. Neither
lead shot nor lead wool shall be installed to seal the screen bottom.
(j) Where filter pack or formation stabilizer
is installed, the screen shall have centralizers outside the top and bottom of
the screen to ensure an even filter pack.
(7) Filter pack or formation stabilizer for a
public water system well shall consist of well-rounded particles that conform
to the following:
(a) Ninety-five per cent
siliceous in composition.
(b)
Smooth, uniform and free of foreign matter.
(c) Properly sized, washed and disinfected
prior to installation in the well.
(8) Filter pack shall be installed in a well
where the formation is nonhomogeneous, the uniformity coefficient of the
aquifer formation is less than 3.0, and the effective grain size is less than
0.01 inches. Filter pack or formation stabilizer installed in unconsolidated or
incompetent formations shall be placed in accordance with the following
specifications:
(a) Filter pack or formation
stabilizer shall extend a minimum of two feet above the screen for a well less
than or equal to six inches in diameter, or a minimum of four feet above the
screen for a well greater than six inches in diameter. Filter pack or formation
stabilizer shall be at least twenty-five feet below ground surface.
(b) Filter pack or formation stabilizer shall
be no less than three inches thick and no more than eight inches thick, to
facilitate proper well development.
(c) Filter pack effective grain size shall be
determined by a sieve analysis of the aquifer formation. The seventy per cent
retained size of the filter pack shall be four to six times greater than
seventy per cent retained size of the aquifer formation. The uniformity
coefficient of the filter pack shall not exceed 2.5.
(d) If installed, filter pack refill pipes
shall be standard weight steel or plastic pipe incorporated within the pump
foundation and terminate with screwed or welded caps at least twelve inches
above the pumphouse floor or concrete apron. Filter pack refill pipes shall
pass through the grouted annular space where they shall be surrounded by a
minimum of 1.5 inches of grout.
(9) Packers and shale traps shall be
constructed of materials that have standard ANSI/ NSF 61 certification. Lead
packers shall not be used.
(10) The
pitless adapter or pitless unit shall meet the following:
(b) Conform with "Water System Council
Pitless Adapter Standard PAS-97, Performance Standards and Recommended
Installation Procedures for Sanitary Water Well Pitless Adapters, Pitless
Units, and Well Caps," or with an
alternative standard acceptable to the director.
(c) If welded, have connections to steel well
casing made watertight in accordance with welding procedures in the "American
Welding Society Structural Welding Code, AWS D 1.1.".
(11) The well cap shall conform
with "Water System Council Pitless Adapter Standard PAS-97" or with an
alternative standard acceptable to the director. In
circumstances where an alternative well cap is required based on the well
construction or geologic setting, the alternative well cap must be approved by
the director prior to installation.
(12) A well located in a floodplain shall
comply with the following:
(a) The casing,
well cap, well vent and pumphouse floor shall extend a minimum of three feet
above the one hundred year floodplain elevation or highest known flood
elevation, whichever is higher. With prior acceptance of the director, in lieu
of extending the casing a minimum of three feet above the one hundred year
floodplain, a noncommunity public water system well may have both a watertight
well cap and a well vent extending a minimum of three feet above the one
hundred year floodplain elevation or highest known flood elevation, whichever
is higher.
(b) The one hundred year
flood elevation shall be determined by reference to the FEMA flood map for the
well location. The director may require the wellhead and floodplain elevations
to be determined by a professional surveyor or professional engineer. For
purposes of this rule, professional surveyor and professional engineer shall
have the same meanings as defined in section
4733.01 of the Revised
Code.
(C)
Radial collector wells. A radial collector well shall comply with the
following:
(1) The caisson shall be
constructed of watertight reinforced portland cement concrete with watertight
joints.
(2) The caisson wall shall
be reinforced to withstand the forces to which it will be subjected.
(3) Lateral collectors shall be in areas and
at depths accepted by the director. The area around the laterals shall be under
the control of the public water system for a distance of three hundred feet
beyond the laterals.
(4) Provisions
shall be made to assure that lateral collectors
are essentially horizontal.
(5) The
top of the caisson shall be covered with a watertight floor.
(6) All openings in the floor shall be curbed
and protected from entrance of foreign material.
(7) The pump discharge piping shall not be
placed through caisson walls.
[Comment: For dates of non-regulatory
government publications, publications of recognized organizations and
associations, test methods, federal rules, and federal statutory provisions
referenced in this rule, see paragraph (AA) of rule
3745-9-01 of the Administrative
Code titled "Incorporation by reference."]
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Appendix