Wisconsin Administrative Code
Department of Natural Resources
NR 800 - Environmental Protection - Water Supply
Chapter NR 812 - Well Construction And Pump Installation
Subchapter II - New Water Well and Heat Exchange Drillhole Construction and Reconstruction and Filling and Sealing of Wells and Drillholes
Section NR 812.12 - General drilled type well construction requirements

Universal Citation: WI Admin Code § NR 812.12

Current through August 26, 2024

(1) PLANNING. A well driller or well constructor shall plan and construct each well to comply with all of the following requirements:

(a) The well shall be adapted to the geologic and groundwater conditions of the proposed well site to ensure full utilization of every natural protection against contamination of the water bearing formation or formations and to exclude possible sources of contamination.

(b) The well shall provide an adequate and contaminant free water supply, where the natural geologic and groundwater conditions allow.

(d) The well shall allow reconstruction or rehabilitation.

(2) MATERIALS AND DESIGN. A well driller or well constructor shall construct each drilled well to comply with all of the following:

(a) The general and specific requirements outlined in ss. NR 812.13 to 812.16.

(b) The equipment and material requirements specified in s. NR 812.11.

(c) The requirements specified in s. NR 812.152 for potable high capacity, potable school, and wastewater treatment plant wells.

(d) The requirements of any approval issued by the department under s. NR 812.09.

(3) SPECIAL WELL CASING DEPTH AREAS. A well driller or well constructor shall provide for greater depth of well casing pipe in special well casing depth areas designated by the department where well histories show contamination extends to a greater depth. In some of these areas department approval shall be obtained for each well prior to construction.

(4) QUARRIES. A variance to the setback requirement specified in s. NR 812.08 is not required when the bottom of the quarry is or will be at an elevation higher than the elevation of the ground surface at the well site or if the quarry is no longer used and is permanently filled with water. A well driller or well constructor may construct a well within 500 feet of a quarry if the well is constructed in accordance with all of the following requirements:

(a) The well casing pipe and upper enlarged drillhole depth requirements shall be referenced from the permitted bottom of the quarry.

(b) An additional 20 feet of upper enlarged drillhole and well casing pipe shall be installed over the amount required for the bedrock formation that the well is completed in.

(5) DRIVING OR ADVANCING CASING. A well driller or well constructor may only drive or mechanically advance steel well casing. When a well driller or well constructor drives or advances casing, it shall be done in accordance with all of the following requirements:

(a) A drive shoe or casing shoe meeting the requirements specified in s. NR 812.11 (10) shall be welded or threaded to the bottom of the casing string.

(b) A drive shoe or casing shoe is not required for any thermoplastic or temporary outer casing.

(c) For a well constructed with thermoplastic casing, the casing may be held down mechanically within an upper-enlarged borehole during grouting to prevent the casing from floating.

(6) PLUMBNESS AND ALIGNMENT. Well plumbness and alignment shall conform to the requirements specified in s. NR 812.19.

(7) UPPER ENLARGED DRILLHOLES. A well driller or well constructor shall ensure that any upper enlarged drillhole constructed by the driller is maintained at full diameter during casing setting and grouting.

(8) STARTER DRILLHOLES. When a well driller or well constructor constructs a starter drillhole less than or equal to 10 feet deep, the starter drillhole does not need to meet the minimum requirements for upper enlarged drillholes.

(9) LINERS. The installation of liners shall meet the requirements specified in s. NR 812.21.

(10) GROUTING AND SEALING. A well driller or well constructor shall complete all grouting and sealing requirements using the materials and mixtures specified in s. NR 812.11 and the methods specified in s. NR 812.20.

(11) GEOLOGIC SAMPLES.

(a) Geologic samples shall be collected by a well driller or well constructor from all of the following:

1. All potable school wells.

2. High capacity potable and nonpotable wells when required by an approval issued by the department.

(b) Cuttings samples shall be collected at 5-foot depth intervals and at each change in geological formation and shall be submitted, along with a copy of the well construction report or a form specified by the department, to the Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey no later than 90 days following the completion of the well for the preparation of a geologic log of the well.

(12) FINAL CASING HEIGHT. The well driller or well constructor shall complete the well construction such that the well casing pipe extends at least 12 inches above the final ground grade, above a pumphouse or building floor or above any concrete or asphalt platform installed at or above the established ground surface. In addition, for wells in floodplains, the top of the well casing pipe shall terminate at least 2 feet above the regional flood elevation.

(13) FLOWING WELLS. A well driller or well constructor shall construct any flowing well in accordance with the requirements specified in s. NR 812.15.

(14) NONPOTABLE WELLS. The construction of nonpotable wells shall meet the requirements for low capacity potable wells. The drilling mud requirements and the sodium bentonite annular space sealing requirements during well drilling do not apply to nonpotable high capacity wells constructed with reverse rotary methods.

(15) WELL DEVELOPMENT. A well driller or well constructor shall develop a new well until the water is practicably clear and free of sand by any one of, or a combination or modification of, the following methods:

(a) Mechanical surging. A valved or solid plunger surge block may be used to create a surging action in the well. Accumulated material shall be removed periodically. A bailer may be used as the surge block.

(b) Air surging. An air compressor and piping may be used to create the surging and jetting action in the well. Water in the well shall be alternately brought to the surface by air lift pumping and allowed to drop back down the well to static condition by shutting the air off. This may be performed with an air-rotary drilling rig and drill stem.

(c) Overpumping. Continuous overpumping at a rate of at least 1 1/2 times the design capacity of the well or interrupted overpumping in conjunction with water line drain back to the well in 5-minute cycles may be used. Overpumping alone without a drain back provision or other surging method may not be used to develop screened wells.

(d) Hydraulic jetting. A nozzled jetting tool may be used to deliver water at high pressure and velocity to the zone being developed in conjunction with pumping the well.

(e) Air-jetting. A well driller or well constructor may use the same technique as hydraulic jetting described in par. (d), except with the use of air rather than water.

(16) WELL PUMP TEST. The well driller or well constructor shall conduct a pump test using the well driller's, the well constructor's, or the well owner's pump for each new or reconstructed well to determine the stable yield in gallons per minute, and the water level drawdown. A pump test may be conducted using air-rotary equipment. For flowing wells, the flow rate may be measured using an orifice plate with a manometer or equivalent.

Note: A stable pumping water level may not be possible in wells completed in crystalline bedrock.

(17) WELL DISINFECTION AND FLUSHING.

(a) Disinfection. A well driller or well constructor shall thoroughly disinfect wells following completion of construction or reconstruction using a chlorine solution such as a sodium or calcium hypochlorite solution. Chlorine compounds having special additives may not be used. A well driller or well constructor shall disinfect wells in accordance with the following requirements:

1. A chlorine solution with a minimum of 100 mg/L of chlorine shall be used to disinfect wells and well drilling equipment and the disinfectant shall be prepared according to Table D.

2. The disinfectant shall be dispersed throughout the entire water column in the well. The disinfectant shall also be brought into contact with the inside of the well casing pipe above the static water level.

3. The disinfectant shall remain in the well for at least 2 hours except for emergency situations, when water is needed without delay. A contact time of at least 30 minutes shall be provided for emergency situations.

(b) Flushing. A well driller or well constructor shall thoroughly flush wells to remove the chlorine solution after disinfection.

TABLE D Disinfection of Wells
Desired Chlorine Concentration (mg/L)	Quarts of Liquid Sodium Hypochlorite Household Bleach per 100 Gallons of Water (approximately 5% available chlorine 'regular strength')	Quarts of Liquid Sodium Hypochlorite Household Bleach per 100 Gallons of Water (approximately 8% available chlorine 'extra strength')	Pounds of Dry Calcium Hypochlorite Tablets per 100 Gallons of Water (Approximately 70% available chlorine)
100	0.7	0.4	0.14 (about 3 oz.)
200	1.4	1.0	0.30 (about 5 oz.)
300	2.2	1.5	0.40 (about 7 oz.)
400	2.9	2.0	0.50 (about 8 oz.)
500	3.6	2.4	0.60 (about 10 oz.)

mg/L = milligrams per liter (parts per million)

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Wisconsin may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.

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