Vibration Noise in a Water Well

Groundwater and Geological Vibrations

• The Earth can cause vibration noises in water wells through groundwater or geological elements. Groundwater includes all the water that exists within the ground in a certain area. The movement of groundwater can cause vibrations, as can the impact between groundwater and the foundations of buildings in an area. Geological vibrations run a wide gamut and include any sort of natural movement within the Earth, or movement caused by the impact or stress of manmade elements such as bridges, dams, tunnels on rock formations, soil and more. The sudden appearance of or movement within a sinkhole can also cause vibrations that shake your water well, leading to vibration noises.

Construction Vibrations

• Construction and demolition projects cause all kinds of vibrations within the Earth. The act of cutting or digging in the Earth with large machines such as backhoes, excavators and drilling equipment can produce vibrations that travel as far as 500 feet in any direction from the point of impact. These vibrations affect any subsurface system in that area, including water wells and connected plumbing systems. Blasting operations, such as those used in mines and construction projects, also cause vibrations within the Earth, which can affect your water well.

Plumbing and Mechanical Vibrations

• Pluming and mechanical vibration noises arise from your well and plumbing system. Well pumps, for instance, frequently vibrate, causing vibration noises to resonate throughout the well and plumbing system. Water hammer, a common problem in piping systems, causes a loud knocking noise and arises from high-pressure water flow in pipes. Changes in pressure between the water within a well and plumbing system may also result in vibrations, as may oscillation of water as it moves through your plumbing system.

Indetifying and Fixing Vibration Noises

• If your vibrations happen regularly and on the same cue, such as the turning on of a certain faucet, they probably arise from plumbing or mechanical causes. Construction, geological and groundwater vibrations only happen in tandem with impacts on the Earth, and, in the case of the latter two, usually at irregular intervals. Hire a plumber or contact the company that installed your well to determine the exact cause of your vibration noises. You can usually fix vibrations arising from mechanical or plumbing issues by identifying and remedying the source of the noise. Vibration noises arise from other causes, on the other hand, usually constitute one of the accepted side effects of using a well, rather than water mains.