Well Plugging and Abandonment in Kerrville, TX
Kerrville Well Drilling plugs and seals abandoned wells across Kerrville and Kerr County, Texas, to state and groundwater district rules. An old well that no longer produces does not just sit there harmlessly. On the plateau it is an open shaft into fractured limestone, a direct path for contamination into an aquifer that feeds wells and springs across the Hill Country, a fall hazard on the surface, and a legal responsibility that belongs to whoever owns the land.
The Hill Country is full of old wells. A ranch gets a well, the well ages out, a new one is drilled, and the original is left open and forgotten. Then someone buys the land, builds on it, or drills again, and the abandoned hole becomes a problem. We are a licensed Texas water well contractor, and plugging these wells to code is work we do the right way, with the paperwork to prove it.
Why an Open Well Matters More Here
In fractured limestone, water and contamination move fast and far. An unused well is a direct pipe from the surface into that rock, and runoff or chemicals that would normally filter slowly instead pour straight down an open borehole into the aquifer your neighbors and the region's springs draw from. On the surface, an uncovered old well is a fall hazard for people and livestock. Neither risk fades on its own, and both trace back to a hole that was never sealed.
Plugged Correctly and Documented
Plugging a well is not capping the top. We fill the borehole with cement or bentonite grout from the bottom up, following the state and Headwaters district rules for the well's depth and construction, so the sealed hole can never again carry contamination through the rock. Then we file the plugging report, because a plugging that is not recorded is not finished. When we are done, the aquifer is protected, the surface hazard is gone, and there is a documented record that the well was sealed the right way.
Have an old, dry, or collapsed well on your Hill Country property? Call (830) 555-0173.
Do I have to plug an old well I no longer use?
In Texas, an open, unused well is the owner's responsibility, and the state rules require a deteriorated or abandoned well to be plugged by a licensed driller or pump installer. In Hill Country limestone this is not a small matter, because the fractured rock lets an open borehole carry surface contamination straight into the aquifer that feeds wells and springs for miles around. If you have a dead well on the property, plugging it correctly is the law and it protects the groundwater everyone shares.
What does plugging a deep Hill Country well involve?
It is not dropping a cap on top. A well is plugged by filling it with cement or bentonite grout from the bottom up, so the sealed borehole can no longer carry water or contamination between zones or down from the surface. On a deep plateau well that is a real volume of grout and a job for a licensed driller. The material and method follow the state and district rules for the well's depth and construction, and we file the plugging report when it is done.
I found an old well when I bought Hill Country land. What now?
This is common out here, where a first well was drilled, then replaced, and the original left open. Call before you build over it or forget it. We check whether it can be reused, and if not, we plug it to code and document it. In fractured limestone an open borehole is a direct path into the aquifer, so an unknown old well is a liability you do not want to inherit or pass on at resale.
Can you plug a dry well and drill a new one?
Yes, and that is often the right sequence. When a well is collapsed, dry beyond deepening, or too contaminated to fix, we plug the old one to seal the rock and drill a new well in a compliant spot on the same property. Plugging the dead well is part of doing the new one properly, because leaving an open hole in fractured limestone next to a fresh well undoes the protection the new casing provides.
Do you handle the paperwork with the district?
Yes. A plugging is only complete when it is recorded. We plug the well to the state and Headwaters Groundwater Conservation District rules and file the required plugging report, so there is a documented record that the well was sealed properly. That record matters at resale and it keeps the responsibility from following you after the work is done. Wells in neighboring counties are filed with the district that covers them.