DIY drilling rig: making a homemade drill for drilling wells

Drilling a well on a site is a large-scale task.Not every home owner can afford the services of a professional team, and hiring “handicraftsmen” is, in most cases, just throwing away money.

It’s easier to do all the work yourself: you work harder for yourself and have fewer expenses. In addition, if you make a drilling rig yourself, the costs will seem literally ridiculous compared to the real prices of drilling.

We will tell you how to make a machine for manually excavating a water intake on a site. The information we present is based on the practical experience of independent drillers. To complete the perception of a difficult topic, the proposed information is supplemented with useful diagrams, photo collections, and videos.

What and how is it better to drill a well?

A novice driller needs to be patient and prepare to perform not the easiest work.

You will also need available tools and inexpensive materials to make a rig and a drilling rig, as well as common sense and a couple of friends to help.

Drilling wells is a work akin to art, since the result is unpredictable and each structure is unique. The task is to make a long and narrow shaft in the ground to the aquifer and lower a casing pipe into it to strengthen the walls of the excavation.

In the process, you will have to extract a lot of soil, and this soil can be very different: from pieces of granite to sand mixed with water.

Much depends on the depth of the aquifer. Sometimes you need to walk less than 10 meters to get there, and sometimes aquifer well reaches several tens or even hundreds of meters. All this affects drilling methods and timing. To construct a well, there are two main methods: shock-rope and rotary, in the modern interpretation auger.

Homemade drilling rigs for manual drilling are built according to a single design. The drilling rig is made in the form of a tripod

In the first case drilling in progress using a narrow and heavy projectile called a bailer. It is suspended on a rope or cable, which is thrown over a block attached to a tripod. A winch with a motor is used to pull the drill out of the shaft, although this can also be done manually if desired.

The projectile is dropped several times to the bottom of the mine from a height of several meters. It loosens the soil, part of which falls into the cavity of the bailer. After going deep into the ground about 0.5 m, the drill is removed from the trunk. The shell is cleaned and thrown back into the mine. The process is repeated until they reach water.

The shock rope method is very old, it has been used for centuries, if not millennia. Making a bailer is relatively easy; you will need sheet steel 4-5 mm thick or a thick-walled pipe Ø 110-120 mm, as well as skills in working with a welding machine. And you can even work with a bailer alone, although with an assistant things will go much faster.

The advantages of percussion drilling are not only its availability. The bailer is reliable, it passes through almost any soil except rocky rocks. If it is necessary to overcome a layer of sandy loam or loam, the bailer is replaced with an appropriately sized glass - a narrow cylinder without a valve at the bottom.

The bailer is used to lift all types of non-cohesive soils: sand, crushed stone, gravel and pebble deposits. It is used to clear the bottom of the well and during the operation of the mine to remove silt deposits

The glass effectively destroys clay rocks, which, due to their own ability to compact and stick to the walls, are held in its cavity. In manual percussion-rope drilling, the bailer and glass are alternated as needed.

As soon as the passage through the bailer is significantly reduced, it means that it has encountered a roof of loam or sandy loam, which is why it is replaced with a glass. As soon as the soil destroyed in the well no longer lingers in the cavity of the glass, it is replaced with a bailer.

In one “session” you can deepen the shaft by a meter, although more often this figure is more modest, about 20-40 cm. This is the disadvantage of the shock-rope method - it takes a long time to work. On clayey, plastic soils, it is more effective to use an auger or otherwise a coil drill.

In manual drilling, it is most often necessary to combine percussion-rope methods with rotary ones, so it is better to stock up on the minimum set of projectiles shown in the diagram

The working tool of an auger installation is a column of rods with a drill at the lower end. The tool is literally screwed into the ground, which is partially held by its blades.

Periodically, the auger along with the loosened soil is removed to the surface, and the face with the collapsed dump is cleared with a bailer. Then again drill with an auger, penetrating deeper into the ground with each turn.

The rods are gradually increased as the shaft deepens. First, the length of the drill string is increased by attaching one rod. When its upper part is almost level with the wellhead, attach the second, then the third, etc.

The drill can be rotated manually or using an electric motor rotor.To hold the rod in the correct vertical position, industrial mobile drilling rigs use a vertical frame attached to the bed. Using this principle, you can make your own machine.

The diagram shows a version of a home-made drilling rig, as well as the result: a relatively compact device for drilling wells

Simultaneously with deepening, the wellbore is cased, i.e. a pipe is installed into the drilled opening, the diameter of which is 1-2 cm larger than the same size of the projectile. The casing links are connected into a single structure by screwing or welding.

If a large amount of water is supplied into a cased well under pressure, the bottom can be cleaned without the use of a bailer. This method has been successfully used by professional teams. Water erodes loosened soil and washes it to the surface.

The drilling fluid speeds up the work several times, but everything around will be flooded with water mixed with dirt. And you can’t get through rocky soils this way. All this must be taken into account before you start making your own drilling rig. In addition, you need to decide on your goals and objectives.

If you need a unit for the construction of only one or two wells, you don’t have to worry too much about the thoroughness of execution. But a solid and durable drilling rig can be a good reason to start your own well drilling business.

You will find detailed information on methods of drilling water intake wells in one of popular articles our site.

Manufacturing of percussion-rope drilling rig

A tripod with a bailer is a simple design, like everything ingenious.Its dimensions can be estimated “by eye”; particularly precise engineering calculations are not needed here. For example, the height of the tripod on which the bailer will be attached should be about a meter greater than this drill.

If drilling work are carried out in the basement of the house, the dimensions of the structure will be limited by the height of the ceiling.

Impact-rope drilling is performed using a heavy projectile - a bailer. It is thrown down from a height, the soil collapses and fills the cavity inside the bailer, after which the device is removed and cleaned

In an open space, the bailer can be hung higher to increase the impact force. But don't make it too high, it's not effective. The bailer itself should be quite heavy. To effectively loosen the soil, it is better to make notches on its sole or grind off a sharp edge.

The optimal length for drilling is considered to be between 1.8 and 2.2 meters, so that the driller can freely reach the top of the drill to attach or disconnect the cable. However, in manual drilling, the best bailer length is considered to be 1.0 - 1.2 m. This size allows you to reach the bottom of the projectile with your hand if it does not empty when loam sticks, for example.

In cable percussion drilling, a bailer with a length of about 1.2 - 2.0 meters is used. The projectile must be heavy enough to break up the soil and pull it to the surface in large quantities

A bailer is most often made from a piece of metal pipe; the desired metal thickness is 4 - 6 mm.

To make such a drilling device, the following operations should be performed:

1. Prepare a piece of pipe of suitable size.
2. Make a valve at the bottom of the projectile.
3. Weld a protective mesh on top.
4. Boil the handle or “ears” to secure the rope.
5. Sharpen the bottom of the projectile or weld several “teeth” from pieces of metal or pieces of thick wire.
6. Make a tripod from metal pipes.
7. Install a block, winch and engine to lift the projectile from the shaft.
8. Tie a rope to the bailer and assemble the structure.

The bailer valve deserves special attention. Small diameter projectiles use a ball valve. A metal ball with a diameter slightly larger than half the diameter of the bailer is suitable for its role.

If a suitable ball is not found, it can be made from scrap materials. For example, for these purposes a mixture of lead shot and epoxy resin is often used; the role of the casting mold is played by some kind of children's ball made of plastic or rubber.

The reed valve of a bailer consists of a round piece of metal that closes the gap at the bottom of the glass, as well as a spring that holds it closed.

A washer with a hole whose diameter is smaller than the size of the ball is welded at the bottom so that it does not fly out. For the same purposes, a stopper is placed at the top, at some distance from the protective grille - a piece of metal that limits the upward movement of the ball. A wire grid prevents large pieces of soil from falling out of the bailer.

The valve ball must not fall below the level of the pointed edge or metal teeth, otherwise it will absorb the force of the impact. On the other hand, the “teeth” should not be made too long, otherwise they will not allow part of the soil to get inside the bailer.

A window is cut out in the upper third of the bailer body. It will be needed when a full bailer needs to be cleared of soil that has accumulated inside.

To make a ball valve for a bailer, you need a metal ball with a diameter of about 60 mm.Such an element can be removed from a large bearing

Another valve option is a petal valve. It is made from a piece of metal. The reed valve looks like a round door attached to a spring at the bottom of the bailer. When the projectile moves downwards, the valve opens under soil pressure, and then the spring closes it and holds the soil inside. Sometimes such a valve is sealed with a piece of rubber, but this is not necessary.

If during drilling homemade bailer It turns out that it captures too little soil; perhaps the design just needs to be corrected a little. Sometimes you need to open up the clearance a little at the bottom of the device. If the projectile turns out to be too light, it should be weighted down.

To do this, the upper part of the bailer is sometimes filled with concrete. But you can simply attach an additional load on top on a movable joint.

A tripod for impact-rope drilling can be made from a metal pipe, but for short-term use, durable wood, for example 150-200 mm timber, is also suitable

On viscous soils, a type of bailer without a valve may be effective. Dense soil is packed inside the projectile and held there naturally. Such a device is cleaned through a narrow vertical hole on the side.

If possible and necessary, you should make two different bailers to use them on different soils. The bailer is also used to clean the finished well from sand and dirt. But in this situation there is no need to make such a large projectile; a device about 0.8 -1.0 meters long will do.

Construction of an auger drilling machine

The frame of such an installation can be made in the form of a tripod, but more often it is made of vertical guides mounted on a stand and connected at the top by a horizontal structure. The machine frame must securely hold the work column from drill bit and extendable rods when extracting them from their wells.

The diagram clearly shows the structure of a drilling rig on a metal frame with a swivel, a drill, an electric winch and a gear motor (+)

The drill is made as follows:

1. A couple of turns of a metal strip are welded to a section of a narrow metal pipe about 1.5 meters long to create something like a screw thread.
2. Knives are attached to the edges of the auger, the cutting edges of which should be at an angle to the horizontal.
3. Knives are sharpened.
4. A tee with internal thread is screwed or welded to the upper edge of the drill.
5. Sections of metal pipe of the same diameter are prepared. as well as the auger pipe, in order to further increase the length of the drill string. These are barbells.
6. Threads are cut on these pieces of pipe to connect them or a hole is drilled for fixation with a locking pin.

However, to increase the length of the drill rod, a coupling or locking connection is also quite successfully used. The drilling derrick can be made of metal pipes, channels or wood. The main thing is that it securely holds the drill string.

A block is installed in the upper part of the frame, which is connected to a winch to lift the pipe string with the drill bit. It is believed that a tower is necessary only when well drilling more than eight meters deep. A small structure can be drilled without it, but the work will still be difficult.

Increasing the length of the drill rod significantly makes the string heavier, so an electric motor with a winch is used to lift it. If you plan to perform “wet” drilling, the drill is also rotated using an electric motor.

Experts consider the best option for these purposes to be a standard device with a power of 2.2 kW at 60-70 rpm, which can be powered from a regular 220 V outlet. Models such as 3MP 31.5, 3MP 40 or 3MP 50 may be suitable.

A swivel is an element with the help of which the driving moment is transmitted from the electric motor to the drill rod. Through it, drilling fluid is also supplied into the mine. Drill rods are fixed to the moving part of this device. A special sealed pipe is designed for drilling fluid.

The diagram shows the design of a swivel for a small-sized drilling rig. Through the side pipe, flushing liquid is supplied into the shaft (+)

Since the swivel is constantly moving during drilling, if performed poorly, it can break very quickly. To prevent this from happening, two rules must be followed: use only high-strength steel for its manufacture and ensure a minimum gap between the static and moving elements of the device.

As already mentioned, there are no super-strict rules when constructing self-made drilling rigs for wells. Most often, a hybrid structure is constructed, which allows the simultaneous use of both the percussion-rope method and rotary drilling.

In this design, the same frame is arranged, allowing you to switch from one method to another without making any design changes.

This is a variant of a combined type drilling rig, it can be used for both cable-percussion and auger drilling

If you want to get involved professionally drilling wells, then it is better to purchase all the parts externally, rather than do it yourself, or rent it. You can order all these elements from an experienced turner. You will need to buy a reliable electric motor with a gearbox, and a motor pump, hose and hose if you plan to perform work using hydraulic pressure.

It is better to make the frame and drill after the swivel, electric motor and winch have been purchased. This will allow you to correctly and quickly fit all parts of the installation to each other. To be able to extend longer rods onto the drill, it is recommended to make a frame with a margin of about 3.3 m.

High-quality steel should be used to make the swivel and locks, since these parts of the structure bear the highest loads during the drilling process.

You can also make a swivel for a home-made drilling rig yourself, but it will be easier and more reliable to use an industrial model of such a device

Hardened steel is not very suitable for making homemade drilling rigs, since after processing it requires additional grinding, it is better to use ordinary steel. It is best to use trapezoidal rather than tapered threads on rods.

It has sufficient strength characteristics, and any turner can handle such threads. But to make a rod with a tapered thread, you will have to look for a specialist.

For drilling to a depth of more than 30 meters, it is recommended to make rods from pipes with a wall 5-6 mm thick.Ordinary pipes with a wall of 3.5 mm may not withstand such loads. To make a drill, it is better to take not alloy steel, but ordinary steel, so that there are no problems during the welding process.

For drilling hard soils, it makes sense to use a high-strength industrial drill bit. A good effect is achieved by using a projectile with three blades. During its operation, cyclic rotation is used, which allows loosening the soil as efficiently as possible.

Drilling tools for manual work come in different designs. There are spoon and coil models, as well as a drill bit. Spoon drills are effective on plastic soils: sandy loam, loam, clay. The cutter of such a drill is usually made in the form of a bucket. You can make such a drill yourself from a pipe of a suitable diameter.

On dense loams you can also use a coil drill. This device is designed like a corkscrew, and the cutting element is forked, the so-called swallow tail. An alternative to a snake auger is an ice auger, but it may not be as effective.

On hard rocks, a drill bit with a point angle of 110-130 degrees performs best. The chisel can have very different shapes, since they are designed to destroy rocks of varying degrees of hardness.

The drill bit is suitable for working on hard and soft soils. Such a drill can be made from scrap materials

To drill complex geological sections, it is sometimes better to use two stages of drilling with two different drills. First, drilling is done with a narrow drill, about 80 mm in diameter.After such exploratory drilling, work is performed with a larger diameter drill to obtain a well of the required size.

The lifting capacity of the winch must be at least one ton. In addition to the electric winch, some craftsmen immediately install another, mechanical one. It copes more effectively in some cases, for example, if the casing pipe is jammed. It is recommended to use two different control panels for the electric motor and winch.

Conclusions and useful video on the topic

Video #1. A visual overview of a self-made drilling rig:

Video #2. Option of a combined type drilling rig for percussion-rope and auger drilling:

Video #3. Using a bailer for cable percussion drilling:

A homemade rig for drilling wells is not a very complex unit, leaving room for engineering work. But it should be remembered that the components and mechanisms of such a device experience significant loads during the drilling process. Therefore, the materials must be durable, and the work must be done as best as possible.

Would you like to share your personal experience in assembling and using a drilling rig in practice? Do you have questions about the topic of the article or want to clarify unclear points? Please write comments in the block below.