Advice on locating old well

[spot]

Hi All,

My house was built in 1894 and the information I have is that until about 1965 (when the house got hooked up to the mains) the water came from a well in the back garden that was then covered over.
The pump and some pipework was removed which I have since found dumped in some bushes.
I would like to find the well
1) So that I don't fall down it if digging!
2) It could be 'useful' to have my own water supply.
I spoke to the previous owner (who'd been there since 1952) who told me the approximate location of the well (he's old and he didn't really remember) and I've dug around there with no success.
I then got some bloke in with a stick :lol: who identified another location not too far away from where i'd been digging and he told me it was capped 3 feet down.
I went down about 3.5 feet and found nothing.
So.... Does anyone have any top tips how I might find this well short of digging up every inch of the garden?
Even with the current dry spell there are no obvious patches on the ground that are well shaped.

Cheers!

 

[worms]

Instead of doing a lot of digging, could you use a long rod - to hammer in at intervals until you find something that resists? Or perhaps the location would be reasonably accurately mapped on a pre-1965 OS map?

 

[biffvernon]

If that fails or sounds like too much hard work you could pay for someone to do a geophysical survey of the type that archaeologists use.

To find a local outfit ask Solihull Archaeological Group .

 

[middi]

......and accept the possibility that it may have been backfilled with any old rubbish.

 

[Carol]

We found ours when the water I was using to scrub clean our paved area vanished very quickly down a crack and could then be heard splashing far below! It was right under our outdoor table and chairs where I had been drinking coffee, minutes earlier. Try using the flat of a spade to beat the ground and listen for a different more hollow sound or ask the local elders if there is a dowser locally. (Or was he your 'bloke with a stick'!?)

 

[Nigel S]

Have you tried Google Earth? The images on there are a few years old and it might just have been taken in a dry spell. Your local library may have pictures in their local history section.

 

[spot]

Unfortunately an enormous tree (which no longer exists) obliterates views of the relevant area on google earth.
Dowser was the bloke with the stick.
Tried rod and hammer but there is too much junk under the soil (old bricks, large stones, etc) so no matter where you try it you'll find resistance.
Old maps i've looked at are not accurate enough, they just show the well in the garden but it could be anywhere.
Old pictures of the house annoyingly miss the relevant area of the garden.
Thanks for the info about the geophysical survey, i'll let you know if I have any joy with that.

 

[skier-hughes]

Have a party and invite everyone to bring a spade and dig for the well....

First one to find it gets a prize :lol:

 

[NT]

I'd try a ground resistance survey. This means measuring the resistance between 2 widely spaced electrodes at lots of points on the ground. Plot a 2d diagram of the readings and a lot of buried features become visible. All you need to measure the resitance is a multimeter, 2 bits of metal rod and a frame to keep the rods a set distance apart. 2' spacing with 2' intervals between readings should give you something.


NT

 

[Lynn]

Depending on your soils and slopes you could use that idea of water as a way to find it. Run the hose until there are puddles and see where it dries out first. Then try the rod idea in that area. Now if you have very sandy soil/significant slope you won't get puddles accumulating.

Also I would expect a filled area to show subsidence...so go for the dips in the lawn as more probable sites.

 

[Nigel S]

Try windows live local - similar to google earth

http://local.live.com

 

[Penners]

Dowser was the bloke with the stick.

I was always extremely sceptical about the whole idea of dowsing. Then - a few weeks ago - I wandered into a neighbour's garden to see him bending some bits of wire. He told me he was going to try some dowsing. So we decided to set up a little experiment.

First of all, I went into the house, so I couldn't see what he was doing. He then walked across the lawn to try and detect where a land drain was - he knew it was under there somewhere. His rods (he told me) gave a strong reaction at one spot.

I then tried the same experiment. And to his/my astonishment, the rods reacted in exactly the same place. Bear in mind that I had no idea where this had happened for him.

He has subsequently dug down, and found the land drain precisely in the indicated place. Spooky, eh?!

Needless to say, I'm having to rethink my views on dowsing. Why don't you have a go at it yourself?

 

[Penners]

Have a party and invite everyone to bring a spade and dig for the well....

First one to find it gets a prize :lol:

The prize being that you toss down a rope and haul him out.

 

[NT]

Hehe, I reckon so

NT

 

[Lynn]

Here's what you'd need to try dowsing...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divining_rod

If you do try it report back please...