Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Renovating a Pond or Lake? Installing a Well to Maintain Water Level

A gentleman we are assisting is building his dream home and it has an existing 1 acre pond. The pond will be a wonderful focal point of this estate. GoogleEarth shows historical pictures of the pond back to 1999 and I really don’t see much variation in depth or aquatic vegetation covering the pond (granted you only get a picture every few years). The homeowner is REALLY wanting to install a well to supply water to the pond at times the pond may be low. He is wondering if the well can be triggered to run when the water drops and turn off when the pond reaches a desired level. Basically, running on a float. Does anyone have experience with this method? Let’s assume for now that the water from the well will be healthy happy water. I am just looking for some advice on the well and float, versus pros and cons of the well. He is building a multi million dollar house and he wants a well. Thanks for any advice.

I'm not sure about the automatic features of turning the well on or off but I am familiar with digging a well to keep the water level steady.

The total cost for us was to dig the well and install everything was roughly $6500. During the months that we need to run the well 24/7 the electricity cost is an additional $150 a month. It appears that money is not an issue here, but I thought I'd throw that out there for others that are interested.

We think we are getting 28 gallons a minute but that is a rough estimate of us using 5 gallon buckets and a stopwatch. Now, that being said, we don't get that directly into the pond because the well is closer to the house/electricity and runs down a ditch 125 yards away before emptying into the pond. We definitely lose some gallons per minute due to this long stretch but I think it helps the well water become oxygenated as it travels.

All that being said, the well has been a game changer for us. We are able to keep our pond in great shape year round. The ditch is our greatest asset when it rains too because it is tied into our natural watershed. When it does rain, our ditch is already full and saturated which creates even greater run off into the pond.

My vote would be against running an automatic float system.

Some variance in the water level of a pond is certainly more natural compared to a pond that stays at an exact level all of the time. As the water level goes down a bit, the shore plants progress down the slope a little bit, and then there is additional cover for all of the base of the pond food chain when the water level goes back up.

However, I think a failure in the float switch is a much greater concern. If the switch fails in the "on" position it could draw the well down and allow for silt intrusion into the wellbore, which can ruin the pump or even result in the loss of the well. The float switch is not going to be located in a clean water tank - it is going to be in a pond with floating leaves, algae, turtles, etc.

Personally, I would just put the well switch in a convenient place for the homeowner to access. If he drills a low-capacity water well, then maybe put a timer on the switch, so it will run for 8 hours (for example) to top off the pond. Further, if they are hosting an outdoor party, they could fill the pond an extra 6" to create an even "cleaner" look.

Of course, the guy paying the bills is "always right", so if he wants a float switch you should install the switch.

How much can the waterline drop/rise on a 1 acre pond due to high winds? (All I know is that Lake Erie can vary by several feet.)

I would add that the well drilling company we used insisted that the pump is better off and maintained more efficiently if it isn't cut on & off constantly.

After some trial and error, we figured out a low and high water mark that has worked well for us. We don't want the pond to get too low, but at the same time we don't want to waste run off out the spillway either if a big rain were to come

Thanks all! Very good information to share.

You may already know this, but just for reference—there are approximately 27,154 gallons of water in one inch of a one-acre pond.

From what you mentioned about the photos, it looks like the pond doesn’t fluctuate much. That’s a good sign. Still, it’s worth noting that in arid climates, evaporation can reach up to half an inch per day, which adds up quickly over time.

I envy you guys. My well, when dug, produced 1/10 gpm. It may have improved a little since that time. Of course, it does it 24/7 and pumps into a 2,500 gallon holding tank. Then, piped to the house.

If I diverted it to a pond, it couldn’t keep up with evaporation.

When getting a well, try to have a cable pounded well instead of a drilled well, a pounded well will always produce a better water result than a drilled well....takes longer though.

I might have some useful information....I live in Central Ohio and dug a 100' well to feed my pond in May 2025. The well and 100 feet of 1" line trenched to the pond cost me $8,300 - 4 quotes, all exactly the same. To run underground electric to the well head from my barn 100' away was $3,000. I get 12 gpm. The well pump is activated by a standard light switch inside my barn. I think a switch is the simplest way to manage it, and it's generally foolproof. We talked about a float, but there really was no reason for it. It's pretty simple to just flip a switch when more water is needed. My 1.15-acre pond was dug in April 2024, and it gets very little runoff because we had to have dams built around the entire circumference in order to get a reasonable depth because of shallow bedrock. When we discovered the bedrock, we knew lack of runoff would be an issue, and a well was probably going to be needed. When full, it will max out at around 6.5'-7', with shallower areas. I have run the well 24/7 since mid-June 2025. The July and August heat (80-90 degrees) has really slowed the filling rate. In addition to evaporation, I think the embankment walls are absorbing a lot of the new water, slowly sealing the clay walls as the level rises. Theoretically, it should be gaining 1 inch per two days, and was almost keeping up with that early on, but as the water reached new clay and absorbed into the walls and the summer heat intensified, the fill rate has really slowed. I've gained around 20 inches in 65 days. Electric should increase about $75/month for 1/2 hp well pump running 24/7. The well has been a great move for me. Any questions, I can answer.

My pond is in south Mississippi near ML10 and the costs were similar to what he stated as far as drilling the well and electricity cost. Mine gets about 20 gph, runs on 110V but I have learned to estimate the amount of leakage and evaporation. I am usually out there only on the weekends so I installed a timer to allow the pump to run for a certain number of hours per day based on what I think it needs. See the pictures attached for my set up. So far, it's been about a year and I have not had any problems.

I will add a few thoughts. My 1 and 1/4" inch poly line was trenched from the house to the pond about 150 feet before our lawn went in so it was fairly simple process. I have a valve system attached to an older sprinkler timer panel that allows me to set the time the valve opens and how many hours it is open on which certain days. It works well except since it is tied to my house plumbing, I found I can only run it in the overnights due to the amount of water it takes. When it is running we have only a trickle at the faucets in the house and can barely flush a toilet. I have 110 power in a pretty long run to the pond which can run the pond LED lights and some outlets down there. I'm not sure the line is sufficient size to run a 2nd well but ideally i should put a second well down by the pond that can run anytime it needs to.

Lake8, I had a timer like you have in your picture, mechanical timer requiring power. I had issues with the on/off trippers or the internals becoming unreliable. I changed over to a small inexpensive digital timer and found it much nicer because there are more options for how to program it and up to 8 different programs with control over off and on times and different options for which days or sets of days it runs. If your setup remains reliable then no reason to change.

Of course you would have to source a weather resistant model or put it in a weather resistant box. I'm sure if you had WIFI there it would be even easier because you could wire it to an water proof outlet enclosure and to a wifi enabled outlet and control the program on your phone.

I love this topic!

I have a 1 acre in middle Georgia that gets as low as 2-3’. 6’ max typically.

Had received a quote from a local well driller and was quoted $15k for 200+ feet and 5hp pump motor.
I went back and requested the specs again because it’s been a while but pretty certain they quoted 75/gpm.

It was just too expensive.

I do have a well for the “camp” that’s a traditional well for drinking water.
It runs on 240v and I actually have it running on solar power.

I thought about using it on occasion but just figured it may be inadequate nor would want to burn a pump up or whatever.
Seeing others replies to this topic… I see others do use their primary well pump. But it was only the overnight hours.

Maybe I should increase my solar battery power and shoot for running my primary on a scheduled basis.
It’s about 200’ from the pond however.

Thoughts? Would I wear it out?
Could it make a difference?

Tia

Cc

I don't know the longevity of a well motor but I do know it is better to run them for longer periods of time vs shorter spurts
With that being said, you can do the math 326,000 gallons to fill your 1 acre pond up 1 foot, assuming no seepage or evaporation
That is 27,200 gallons to fill it one inch. Your typical house well may pump 13-15 gallons a minute. That would be 30 + hours to fill it one inch.
I could see you doing something like this to maintain a certain level but nothing more

Jason is correct.

To report back, we have run our well non stop 24/7 for the past two months and we have not gained a single inch of water in our 2.5 acre body of water.

On the flip side, we are maintaining the water level despite little to no rain and some leakage.

Very interesting thread, and I'm looking forward to following it! The wife and I are having several trout ponds put in on our mountain land very soon (see thread on plants for coldwater ponds), and we have it in mind to have a well on a clear summit of one of our ridges with a solar panel that will pump some additional cold groundwater into the inlet area of our largest impoundment when the summer sun is beating down.

Have you considered the solar well option? It seems to make sense--a view that is shared by our designer and our contractor--that a well that pumps when it is hot and sunny is exactly what one needs for keeping the water cold and moving, as well as the level up.

Is this your residential well that’s primarily for your home?

No, this well is separate and is only designated for the pond's use. It has no tank which allows it to pump around 28 gallons per minute. There's an old thread that describes it if that helps any. I'll try to find it.

I did the math on what I would need to fight evaporation on a 6-acre reservoir and it was looking like 16-20 gpm 24/7 from mid-May to late-September. It was 36 gpm before factoring in rainfall. I am working to put in a solar pump, but I don't think I will be able to get better than 8 gpm, so I am just going to plan to loose about 18 inches every summer.

Use a Bob float valve. Its a old school mechanical valve also check into a cycle stop valve.

Circling around to this thread again, which I commented on in August 2025. To recap, I had a well dug exclusively to feed a 1.2-acre upground pond with no runoff in mid-June 2025. Central Ohio. I've been pumping 12gpm 24/7 since then. In about 130 days, I've gained about 35-ish inches with only a little rain to supplement, a long period of drought, and no runoff. I have about 8" to go before reaching full depth of around 6.5'. It is claylined on the bottom and walls (not sheepsfooted, only compacted with excavating equipment). This is the first winter with the well, so I'll flip off the switch when it reaches capacity and see what the winter snow and rain does and monitor my level. Opted for a light-switch type switch for the well pump in our nearby barn instead of a float because it was simpler. The pic is from a few days ago during seed and straw.

I hope your well(s) doesn't go dry, as many around here (Licking County), including ours, have during the recent drought.

If we didn't have subdivisions on all sides watering their lawns from their wells all Summer, it would help.

So far, so good in Delaware County, OH, Theo. Even during the late summer drought, the water output into the pond remained constant. The driller said with the modest amount I'm pumping, I'm not risking anybody else's well nearby. I wouldn't want to do that, so I did ask that question. Everybody contiguous to me (as well as myself) is on Delco water for their household use; only the houses in an older neighborhood beside me use wells for their homes.

Delco, which is working to take water from NE Licking county. (On top of all the water demands for about a million data centers.)

Sorry, nothing personal, just a sore spot around here.

Well, I'm not a huge fan of the tech boom in Licking County either. I live on the eastern edge of Delaware County, and the price I paid for my land two years ago had skyrocketed because of Intel, Google, Meta, etc. All of the land/house listings around here include distance from Intel. Amazon is building a $2B web services campus two miles from me.