Serving the mid-Island
Water well drilling for rural property around Nanaimo
Groundwater on rural property
Nanaimo Well Drilling drills, rehabilitates and equips water wells across Cedar, Nanoose Bay, Gabriola Island and Errington. Every drilled well is constructed by a registered well driller, tagged with a provincial well identification plate, and reported to the Province within 90 days. About half of Regional District of Nanaimo residents rely on groundwater.
Cedar, Nanoose Bay, Gabriola Island, Errington and Coombs — bedrock wells, sand-and-gravel wells, and the pumps that make them work.
Registered, not just experienced
Under the Groundwater Protection Regulation a drilled well must be constructed by a registered well driller, or under one's supervision.
Tagged and reported
Every new well carries a provincial well identification plate, and the well construction report is filed within 90 days. The record is public, in the Province's GWELLS database.
The ground sets the depth
Aquifer 162 under Cedar and Yellow Point runs a median 50 m deep for about 2 gallons a minute. The sand and gravel at Cassidy next door: 13 m for roughly twenty.
Setbacks come first
30 m separates a sewerage system from a domestic water well, and 15 m separates one water supply well from the next.
The work
Drilling, pumps, and what comes after
Four service lines, from an empty lot to a well that has been running for thirty years.
New Well Drilling
Site assessment, drilling, surface seal, wellhead and the construction report filed with the Province.
Pump Systems
Pump sizing, installation and backflow protection, matched to what the well will actually give.
Well Rehabilitation
Deepening, redevelopment and repair for wells that have lost yield or taken on sediment.
Testing & Surveys
Downhole camera surveys, pump testing and yield measurement, for buyers, lenders and rezoning.
How it runs
From site walk to well report
Site walk and well records
the property checked against existing GWELLS records for the aquifer, and the setbacks measured on the ground.
Drilling
cased through the overburden, then into bedrock or screened in sand and gravel, depending on what is under the site.
Surface seal and wellhead
a surface seal at least 5 m long, casing standing at least 0.3 m above ground, a secure cap, and the well disinfected.
Report and plate
the well identification plate attached on completion, and the construction report filed with the Province within 90 days.
Where to next
- New Well DrillingNew water wells drilled, sealed and reported — from site assessment and setbacks to the well identification plate and construction report.
- Pump SystemsPump sizing, installation and backflow protection, matched to what a well actually yields rather than to the size of the house.
- Well RehabilitationDeepening, redevelopment and repair for wells that have lost yield, taken on sediment, or stopped keeping up with the household.
- Testing & SurveysDownhole camera surveys, pump testing and yield measurement — the evidence a buyer, a lender or a rezoning application asks for.
- All well drilling servicesDrilling, pumps, rehabilitation and testing.
- Areas we serveCommunities across the mid-Island.
- Well Drilling cost guideWhat sets the number, and what comes back.
- Common questions answeredBedrock, gravel, yields, artesian flow and records.
Free, no-obligation quote
Request a drilling quote
Send the property address, the lot size, and what is happening now — a new build with no water, a well that has lost its yield, or a pump that has stopped. Quotes come back after the ground has been looked at, not before.
Electoral Areas A, B, E and F
Where the rig travels
Two properties a few kilometres apart can need completely different wells. The bedrock aquifer under Cedar and Yellow Point has a median well depth around 50 m for a median yield near 2 gallons a minute. The sand and gravel at Cassidy sits at a median 13 m and gives roughly twenty. On Gabriola Island the median is about 105 feet into fractured Nanaimo Group rock, and at Errington around 60 m into Haslam Formation shale for about 3 gallons a minute. Depth is a consequence of the ground, not a target.
- Nanaimo
- Cedar
- Nanoose Bay
- Gabriola Island
- Errington & Coombs
Common questions
Questions from well owners
- Is there water under every property?
- Not guaranteed, and not in equal amounts. Aquifer 220 at Errington is rated low productivity, with a median yield of 3 US gallons a minute and a lower quartile of 1. Well records in the same aquifer include dry holes. The published medians narrow the expectation; they do not remove the risk.
- Can a well go anywhere on a lot?
- No. A sewerage system must sit 30 m from a domestic water well, and a new water supply well must sit 15 m from an existing one. The wellhead also needs safe access and protection from flooding and physical damage. On a small rural lot those requirements can leave one workable position.
- What happens if a hole comes up dry?
- It is a real outcome in fractured bedrock, where water arrives through discrete fractures rather than evenly through the rock. Drilling is priced by the foot, so a dry hole still costs what it cost to drill, and it is decommissioned rather than left open.
- Does a new well need anything done before it is used?
- Yes. Disinfection after drilling is required under the Groundwater Protection Regulation. Beyond that, HealthLink BC recommends bacteriological testing at least once a year, and the Regional District of Nanaimo rebates half of lab analysis costs up to $350, once per well every five years.
- Who owns the water in a private well?
- Domestic use — household, fire prevention, garden and domestic animals — is exempt from licensing and from provincial water fees. Non-domestic use, such as irrigation, commercial or industrial supply, requires a water licence, and the registration window for existing non-domestic users closed on 1 March 2022.
- What should a buyer ask for when a property has a well?
- Four things: the well record from GWELLS, the well identification plate on the wellhead, a measured yield rather than a description, and a recent lab panel. Each of the four is obtainable before subjects come off.