OH Well Driller cheat sheet

Ohio issues water well driller licenses through the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water Resources; a license is required before constructing, deepening, or abandoning a well for another person.

Core license classes are water well drilling contractor (a business entity) and the individual drilling employee; work must be performed under a properly licensed contractor.

Eligibility generally turns on age (18+), a completed application with fee, and evidence of experience or training in well drilling accepted by the Division.

Examination covers Ohio well construction rules, grouting and sealing, disinfection, abandonment, and reporting; a passing score is required before licensure.

Licenses are renewed on a fixed cycle with continuing education hours; lapsed licenses may require reinstatement rather than simple renewal.

Contractor licenses attach to the business entity and are not transferable; a change of business name or ownership requires notifying the Division.

Unlicensed drilling is subject to enforcement, including stop-work orders, civil penalties, and denial or revocation of licensure.

Well logs and records of completed wells must be filed by the driller of record; failure to file is a licensing violation independent of well quality.

Cable tool drilling advances by repeatedly lifting and dropping a heavy bit, producing a slurry that is bailed out; it suits unconsolidated and fractured formations and gives clean samples.

Rotary air drilling uses compressed air as the circulating fluid and is common in hard bedrock; foam or water may be added to control dust and stabilize the hole.

Mud rotary drilling circulates a bentonite- or polymer-based slurry that cools the bit, lifts cuttings, and builds a filter cake on the borehole wall.

Driven and jetted wells are limited to shallow, unconsolidated settings; jetted wells are not acceptable where contamination can enter through the washed annulus.

The borehole must be sized to allow the required annular space for grout and casing; a minimum annular clearance is specified by rule rather than left to driller preference.

Wells must be sited away from contamination sources such as septic systems, animal lots, and fuel storage, using the required setback distances.

The well must be completed to a depth and into a formation that yields adequate quantity and quality; the driller records formation changes, water strikes, and static level.

Temporary casing or a conductor may be required through unconsolidated overburden to keep the hole open until permanent casing is set.

Casing must extend from above finished grade down to the required depth, be watertight, and be capped with a sanitary well seal at the surface.

Casing must project above the ground or floor a minimum height and be surrounded by a concrete or grout pad sloped away from the well to shed surface water.

The annular space between borehole wall and casing must be sealed with neat cement, sand-cement, or bentonite grout placed from the bottom up, not dumped from the top.

Positive displacement grouting (tremie or pump) is required so the seal is continuous and free of voids and bridging; gravity pouring is not an acceptable seal.

Grout must extend from the bottom of the casing to the surface, or to the required depth where an outer casing or pitless adapter is used.

A pitless adapter must be installed below the frost line and be watertight where it penetrates the casing; a well pit is generally prohibited or tightly restricted.

Casing material must be new, sound, and of a type and wall thickness approved for potable water use; used or damaged casing may not be installed.

Where multiple aquifers are penetrated, grout or casing must isolate contaminated or undesirable water zones from the producing zone.

Development removes drilling mud, cuttings, and fines from the formation and filter pack, using surging, bailing, jetting, or air-lifting until the water clears.

Development continues until the discharge is free of sediment and the well reaches stable specific capacity; overdevelopment can cause formation collapse or sand pumping.

A yield test (pump or bail test) establishes the safe yield and drawdown; the pumping rate and duration must be recorded on the well log.

Static water level is measured before pumping; pumping water level is measured during the test, and drawdown is the difference between them.

Specific capacity equals pumping rate divided by drawdown, expressed in gallons per minute per foot of drawdown.

Disinfection uses a chlorine solution at a concentration sufficient to leave a residual in the well; the solution contacts the casing, screen, and pump for a specified holding period.

After disinfection the well is pumped to waste until the chlorine residual is gone before the water is used or sampled.

A bacteriological sample is collected after disinfection and flushing, in a sterile container, and submitted to a certified laboratory.

A well that is no longer used or is incapable of producing potable water must be properly abandoned and sealed; leaving it open is a violation.

Abandonment requires removing or perforating obstructions so that sealant can be placed throughout the full length of the borehole.

The borehole is filled from the bottom up with approved grout or sealing material, typically neat cement or bentonite, using a tremie or pump.

Casing may be removed as sealing proceeds, or left in place and sealed; the seal must prevent movement of water between aquifers.

Where the well penetrates multiple aquifers, the seal must be continuous and must not allow cross-connection between water-bearing zones.

The top of the abandoned well is cut off below grade and capped, and the location is recorded so future excavation does not disturb the seal.

An abandonment report describing the method, materials, and quantities is filed with the Division of Water Resources.

Flowing or artesian wells require special sealing to control the flow before and during plugging.

Ohio water well construction, alteration, and abandonment are governed by statute and by rules adopted by the Division of Water Resources.

A well log must be filed for each well, recording location, depth, formations, casing, grout, screen, yield, and static water level.

Logs are submitted within the time required by rule after completion; late or missing logs are a reportable violation.

The driller must provide the well owner a copy of the well log and any water quality information obtained at completion.

Water withdrawal from high-capacity wells may trigger permitting and reporting thresholds under Ohio water resources law.

The Division may inspect wells and require correction of defects in casing, grout, or sealing; failure to comply can lead to license action.

Records must be retained and made available to the Division on request, and changes of address or business status must be reported.

Local health districts may impose additional siting and permitting requirements that apply alongside state well rules.