Well Drilling in Grainger County, TN

• Coverage includes Rutledge, Bean Station, Blaine, Washburn, Thorn Hill, Joppa and the Cherokee Lake shoreline.
• Crews work along US 11W, TN 92, TN 131 and TN 375 between the ridges and the lake.
• Wilson County is the other Tennessee county on this site.
• Before you call: have the Notice of Intent number if you filed it yourself, and know whether a well was filed on the property in the last five years, since that can waive the fee.

• New wells on valley farms and lake lots
• Replacement wells where a limestone well went muddy after heavy rain
• Pump and tank work
• Deepening a low-yield well
• Bacteria testing
• Closing old wells, which needs a closure report

• Local depth: at the USGS median of about 385 ft, the site calculator's formula gives $11,125–$29,525 for a complete well, and at the upper end of the sample (about 870 ft) $23,250–$61,050. The site calculator's method is depth × $25–$65 per foot, plus permit $200–$500, pump $900–$2,500 and tank $400–$1,500. It is an estimate, not a quote. The USGS sample is only six wells, so treat these as wide bounds.
• Notice fee: Rule 0400-45-09-.10 sets the Notice of Intent fee at $75 per property site, and it doesn't apply again if the same property paid within the past five years.
• Karst: limestone and dolomite valleys can hold caves and mud seams, so the driller may need more casing, which Tennessee requires to be seated at least five feet into solid rock.
• Property lines: Rule 0400-45-09-.10 says a well 10 to 25 feet from a property line needs at least 35 feet of grouted casing, which adds cost on small lake lots.

• Step 1, notice: under Rule 0400-45-09-.10 the property owner or licensed driller files a Notice of Intent with the Division of Water Resources before drilling. The fee is $75 and the notice expires after 180 days.
• Step 2, contractor: the Wells Act (T.C.A. § 69-10-101 et seq.) and the same rule require a licensed driller.
• Step 3, siting: Rule 0400-45-09-.10, Table A, sets 50 feet from septic tanks and drain fields and from sewer lines, 100 feet from animal pens and 10 feet from a property line.
• Step 4, construction: under Rule 0400-45-09-.10, casing runs at least 19 feet below ground and six inches above it, and the annulus from three to ten feet must be grouted.
• Step 5, report: Rule 0400-45-09-.10 says the driller files a completion report within 60 days.

• Valley and Ridge rock: USGS site records code Grainger County wells to the Valley and Ridge aquifers, folded limestone, dolomite and shale under the long northeast-trending ridges. Groundwater in the limestone bedrock moves along fractures and solution channels, and the shale and sandstone ridges to the north yield less water.
• Reading the log: the valley floors along the Holston River and Cherokee Lake sit on limestone and dolomite formations of the Knox Group, where water moves through solution openings and fractures; the ridges, such as Clinch Mountain to the north, are sandstone and shale. Wells in the limestone aquifer can hit high yield or a dry cavity, which is why depths in the small USGS sample spread so widely.
• USGS site records (n=6 with depth): 25th percentile about 310 ft, median about 385 ft, 75th percentile about 870 ft. The sample is tiny, so local driller logs matter more here.
• Flooding near Cherokee Lake: Rule 0400-45-09-.10 requires the casing to end at least two feet above the 100-year flood level on flood-prone lots.
• Census ACS counts about 11,835 housing units with a median year built of 1992.

Rutledge · Bean Station · Blaine · Washburn · Thorn Hill · Joppa · Cherokee Lake