Fully understand your water requirements – this means quality, reliability of source, and particularly relevant at the moment, determining how long water supplies will last during prolonged periods of drought.

Look seriously at rainwater harvesting – With the present levels of rainfall in mind, this is certainly worth considering. Some rainwater harvesting manufacturers maintain that their systems can recover up to 40% of a farm’s water usage. Roofs are high yielding and can turn even minor rainfall into a useful supply of good quality water.

Invest in a long term solution – Installing a borehole can provide a private water supply for livestock and irrigation purposes, along with supplying farm houses and buildings. A new well takes approximately six months to commission, and the whole process should be overseen by a reputable water well drilling and engineering company. The process can be broken down into 5 steps:

• Hydrogeological investigation – Assessing the geology of your property and identifying any areas that could yield any water sustainably.
• Consent and test drilling – boreholes for agricultural use require consent from the Environment Agency to test drill, and if your water requirements exceed 20 cubic metres a day, a licence is also required from the Environment Agency. When abstracting below 20 cubic metres a day, a licence is not required.
• Construction – a water well drilling company will design and construct the borehole, ensuring water tight casing is installed in order to protect water supplies from any polluting substances.
• Test pumping – after construction, a borehole will be tested to establish the well properties and efficiency – this includes pumping tests and groundwater level monitoring.
• Water treatment – if the supply is intended to be used for livestock, water should be routinely checked for coliforms, pH, nitrate and nitrites, and total bacteria.

In summary, as long as the hydrogeology is suitable for a well with a sustainable and reliable yield, a medium sized dairy farmer, for example, can potentially save up to £10,000 a year by drilling a borehole and not purchasing water from a water company.

For further information on water well drilling, water treatment and water engineering, please do not hesitate to contact Wyatt Bros Ltd on 01948 662526 or visit www.wyattbros.com

Jonathan Wyatt media profile

Many Midland homes and businesses depend on private water supplies. There are great advantages to having your own private water supply, including cost and quality of drinking water. An increasing number of people, including farmers, rural institutions, schools, hotels and estate owners are taking advantage of a private water supply from Wyatts.

Extracting your own water, with the help of Wyatts, is a lot easier than you might think. Our hydrogeological team will look at the geology of your property and identify any areas that could yield any water sustainably.

We will also look at any sources of potential contamination, groundwater flow direction, investigate the flooding history in your area and check on your water quality.

Once we have this information we are then able to go ahead to design and construct the borehole that will produce your private water supply.

Private property owners may draw up to 20 cubic metres of water per day, without the need for an abstraction licence. A family of four uses approximately 1 cubic metre of water per day for the entire household’s needs, so it is usually a business, such as a farm that requires a licence for extracting water for private water supply.

Wyatts supports its clients from start to finish of the abstraction licence application process. Once the application has been submitted, the decision process usually takes 3-4 weeks.

Whilst we can work with customers in finding a private water supply anywhere throughout the UK, we have a large number of clients situated across the Midlands, including Shropshire, Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Cheshire and Mid Wales.

With over 100 years of experience, Wyatts has developed unique techniques of problem solving in all aspects of finding private water supply for its customers.

For further information on water well drilling, water treatment and water engineering, please do not hesitate to contact Wyatt Bros Ltd on 01948 662526 or visit www.wyattbros.com

“Whilst we may see reservoir and river levels raise temporarily, groundwater levels will not improve in the near future. It will take sustained and above average rainfall until the end of the year to bring levels back to normal.”

Wyatt, who is Managing Director of Wyatt Bros, said that at this time of year most of the rain is sucked up by vegetation, so is not making a massive difference to ground water levels. “On the plus side, we will see gardens flourish, but we need to remember the groundwater that feeds rivers and mains supplies usually relies on prolonged winter rainfall to fill up.”

Trevor Bishop, head of water resources at the Environment Agency, said: “A longer term drought, lasting until Christmas and perhaps beyond, now looks more likely.

“While we’ve had some welcome rain recently, the problem has not gone away, and we would urge everyone, right across the country, to use water wisely now, which will help prevent more serious impacts next year.”

But there is a solution as Wyatt explains: “Wells tapping groundwater resources can provide drinking water of the highest quality. Owning a private household well or borehole allows homeowners to control their own water supply.

“A properly constructed and maintained water well or borehole will provide you with many years of quality service. From our first visit, to turning the tap on to your own private water supply can take as little as 6 weeks.

A licence to extract water form the Environment Agency is only required if your water requirements exceed 20 cubic metres (4,400 gallons) a day – so this does not apply to residential properties.

Once your private water supply is in use, you can expect to start making lifelong savings after just three years.

Water is an essential part of life on earth and is something that people, plants and animals need to survive. It is important that the limited amount of freshwater that exists on earth stays safe to drink and is used for the many purposes we require in everyday life.

Wyatts, based in Whitchurch, Shropshire, has a team of three hydrogeologists who make sure that its clients – households, businesses and farms throughout the UK, have a sustainable and safe supply of water.

As qualified engineers, Wyatts’ hydrogeologists are able to establish where water is available, provide a drilling service to create a water well and install a borehole pump to draw the water up for use.

An important part of a hydrogeologist’s job is to ensure that the water collected through a borehole is safe for use – whether for human consumption, livestock or arable use, swimming pools or cooling towers to name but a few. The Shropshire based hydrogeologists offer a comprehensive sampling and testing service, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Hydrogeologists also oversee the cleanup of spills and contamination, working with specialists in geology, sewage, waste management and soils to help design new facilities that might prevent future contamination.

From time to time, Wyatts has Hydrogeologist positions become available – covering the whole of the UK, but particularly Shropshire, Herefordshire, Cheshire, Staffordshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Gloucestershire and Wales. Please refer to the job opportunities section under about us for details.

For further information on Hydrogeology, Hydrogeologists, water well drilling, water treatment and water engineering, please do not hesitate to contact Wyatt Bros Ltd on 01948 662526 or visit www.wyattbros.com

Using bespoke borehole cameras we are able to view all parts of the borehole and advise our customers with a money saving plan for any well rehabilitation required along with long-term maintenance.

Our borehole cameras not only provide a down hole and side-wall colour view but they also have forward and reverse direction controls. Our cameras use high intensity LED lighting, so all images are sharp and well lit.

Once an inspection is complete our private water customers receive a DVD of what the camera has filmed. A Wyatts hydrogeologist will then study the video and offer advice on the future use of the borehole.

Over a long period of time it is possible that a borehole might reach a stage when it has deteriorated beyond maintenance.

This could be through a number of different reasons such as inherited characteristics from the aquifer that supplies the water, water quality, environmental factors and if the well has been improperly abandoned.

Wyatts is able to decommission your water well by plugging and sealing in a safe manner. We can of course then drill you a new well, so that your private water supply can continue to provide your home, farm or business.

For further information on water well drilling, water treatment and water engineering, please do not hesitate to contact Wyatt Bros Ltd on 01948 662526

There are a great number of surface pumps available from Wyatts – these can be installed or just purchased direct from our trade counter at the head office in Whitchurch.

Our range of surface pumps includes:

• Booster sets – these are mainly used for extracting water for domestic use
• Vertical multi-stage pumps – are used in all sizes of water installations, whilst being ideal for agricultural use, such as for parlour wash downs
• Self priming pumps – ideal for supplying water to domestic, small-scale horticultural and agricultural customers
• Horizontal pumps – suitable for domestic, industrial, agricultural use and irrigation
• Fixed speed packaged booster sets – allowing the ability to incorporate single and multiple pumps with valves, fittings and electrical control gear. These sets are designed to meet individual customer requirements
• Variable speed controlled booster sets – giving stable output pressure over wide variations in winter demand. These are also designed taking into account individual requirements and manufactured to the same high standards as the fixed speed booster sets.
• Submersible drainer, waste water and sewage pumps – These are available in a range of materials, including plastic, stainless steel and cast iron
• Water feature pumps and accessories – perfect for your ponds, water features and swimming pools!
• Pressure Vessels – Wyatts can provide 10 and 16 bar pressure vessels available in vertical and horizontal formats, holding up to 500 litres in volume

For further information on surface pumps, water well drilling, water treatment and water engineering, please do not hesitate to contact Wyatt Bros Ltd on 01948 662526

A borehole is usually about 4 inches to 6 inches in width and is drilled to a depth of up to 100 metres. However, it may be considerably less as this is dependant on the depth of the water table at the site of the borehole.

The upper portion of the well is lined with a solid casing – this stops the collapse of the borehole walls and prevents surface pollutants from contaminating the well.

The water found at any one borehole is supplied by an ‘aquifer’ – a wet underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand or silt) from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well.

As the water has been filtered through many rocks, it will be uncontaminated by chemical pollutants, pesticides and industrial pollution. It may however need treatment to change the balance of minerals.

Wyatts can chemically analyse your water and provide the right solution for all your water quality problems. The facilities of water treatment systems usually include the ability to:

• Improve the physical characteristics of the water
• Remove radioactive contaminants and the concentration of toxic and non-toxic inorganic materials.
• Eliminate disease-producing organisms.
• Add chemicals at a controlled level, such as fluoride that can be beneficial for dental health and contribute to a healthy bone structure.

Wyatts can fit a large range of borehole pumps suitable for all borehole wells. These include models from the manufacturers: ITT Lowara, Grundfos, DAB, ABS, KSB, Mono, Ebara, Nocchi, ESPA, British Pleuger and Lotus.

As well as borehole pumps for sale, Wyatts can also supply surface pumps, valves, pipes, fittings and accessories and many other items such as an extensive range of agricultural products.

For further information on water well drilling, water treatment and water engineering, please do not hesitate to contact Wyatt Bros Ltd on 01948 662526

Wyatts, one of the UK’s leading water well drilling and water treatment companies, can provide its farming customers with a full water treatment service ensuring a clean supply of water for their livestock.

The water supply for cattle should be checked yearly for coliforms, pH, nitrate and nitrites, and total bacteria. These checks should always be carried out annually even if there are no water quality problems suspected.

Wyatts offers a comprehensive water sampling and testing service 24 hrs a day, 365 days a year. Once we have analysed water, we are then able to design a proper water treatment system based on the water chemistry and the size of the herd.

As a result of clean drinking water and improved hydrology, cattle should drink more water and milk production should go up.

As well as offering drinking water testing as part of our water treatment service, Wyatts can also provide a number of livestock related agricultural products such as drink bowls, water troughs, feeding troughs, tip over troughs and calf hutch rearing systems.

For further information on water well drilling, water treatment and water engineering, please do not hesitate to contact Wyatt Bros Ltd on 01948 662526.

Many Midland homes and businesses depend on private water supplies. There are great advantages to having your own private water supply, including cost and quality of drinking water. An increasing number of people, including farmers, rural institutions, schools, hotels and estate owners are taking advantage of a private water supply from Wyatts.

Extracting your own water, with the help of Wyatts, is a lot easier than you might think. Our hydrogeological team will look at the geology of your property and identify any areas that could yield any water sustainably.

We will also look at any sources of potential contamination, groundwater flow direction, investigate the flooding history in your area and check on your water quality.

Once we have this information we are then able to go ahead to design and construct the borehole that will produce your private water supply.

Private property owners may draw up to 20 cubic metres of water per day, without the need for an abstraction licence. A family of four uses approximately 1 cubic metre of water per day for the entire household’s needs, so it is usually a business, such as a farm that requires a licence for extracting water for private water supply.

Wyatts supports its clients from start to finish of the abstraction licence application process. Once the application has been submitted, the decision process usually takes 3-4 weeks.

Whilst we can work with customers in finding a private water supply anywhere throughout the UK, we have a large number of clients situated across the Midlands, including Shropshire, Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Cheshire and Mid Wales.

For further information on water well drilling, water treatment and water engineering, please do not hesitate to contact Wyatt Bros Ltd on 01948 662526