(828) 526-0173 | [email protected] | Copyright 2024 – All Rights Reserved.
Go with the Flow
Written By: Dinah Davis Broker - Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices - Meadows Mountain Realty | Issue: 2021/05 – May
Vexing questions about water need to be answered before buying Plateau property.
“Where is my water coming from and where is it going?”
This is the first question any potential buyer of property in our area should ask, especially when looking for land with a fabulous view.
The Plateau receives rainforest amounts of precipitation in most years, but finding a productive well can be a challenge. If the parcel you like doesn’t have the benefit of a neighborhood or municipal water system, you’ll have to have a well and pump installed. Most well drilling companies in our area are capable of drilling deep wells, which is important because view opportunities may require a depth of 800 feet or more.
This work can get expensive. It’s not unusual for a buyer to be quoted prices between $5,000 and $12,000 for the pump equipment and installation, depending on the size of the pump.
When water is found, but gallons per minute production is too low for a home, there is another possible solution. For low producing wells, or older wells experiencing cracks, fracking may improve performance.
Miller Well Drilling of Hayesville, North Carolina, discusses hydrofracking on their website:
“Today, most drilling companies bring in a fracker whenever they have exhausted the limits of their drilling equipment. Water well hydrofracking uses only potable water and usually produces a minimum of 50 percent yield improvement in the well, making a formerly unusable well sustainable for the client’s needs.”
When there’s no neighborhood or municipal sewer system, a land buyer may apply for a county septic permit. After processing the application, a county health department environmental engineer visits the site. In the best-case scenario, the engineer is able to design a traditional system, including tank and drain lines, which fit on the property appropriately away from any nearby well head and the home itself. A North Carolina licensed septic installer is retained to give an estimate and execute the project. So simple!
However, depending on the rock and soil depth, different types of soils, such as saprolite or clay, can present design issues for septic system engineers. Private soil engineers can work with you on development and installation of a specialized system, if needed.
In cases of delicate soils and slopes, systems may need to be hand dug. Be sure your installer is capable of such work and works closely with the county at each stage.
by Dinah Davis
Broker, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices
Meadows Mountain Realty
