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The rig arrived yesterday to drill three X 150m wells for our geo-thermal heating. It's one of those track-mounted things that comes on a low-loader. It came with a huge Atlas Copco compressor. They started it up this morning and the noise was unbelievable in this quiet rural location even from half a mile away and a big cloud of smoke went up into the air. After a few minutes they turned it off and since then all I've been able to hear is an almost-constant tone of a large diesel, which I'm guessing will be the rig motor.
We are in temporary accommodation about half a mile from the plot. Thanks mostly to the stress of retirement, Corona, selling our old house and being extremely bored I have been diagnosed by the GP with generalised anxiety disorder. So now I'm stressing about the noise and our future neighbour who has complained twice already about the build etc.
Mrs GTi is understandably frustrated by my anxiety but generally patient. I don't want to walk over to the plot again to check it out so my question is: what's the reason for the massive noisy compressor? Is it there just in case they hit water and need to pressurise the well? If that's the case they might never need to run it. How long does it generally take to drill 150 metres? The rock is softer than granite I think.
When you start a compressor it goes Max beans till the reservoirs are full*
It's probably on tick over now and letting the reservoir take the strain
* I was in California when I last did land rig work but was always noisy first thing then low ish engine back ground noise the rest of the day.
Of all the people to ask, the experts you are paying to do the job are very close to the top of the list. If they're a good firm then they should be able to answer all these questions for you, and give you some hearing protection whilst you're there.
I don't have the answers you want but the guys you're paying to drill for you do.
What I can tell you is....
It'll take as long as it takes and not a minute longer. That's expensive kit and they need to keep it working to make money.(unless you're paying them by the hour, which would be foolish indeed)
It'll be as loud as it needs to be. There isn't really a quiet way to drill through anything.
Your neighbour will get over the noise. It's only temporary.
My advice would be chill out, call the drilling company and ask them your questions, leave the guys to get on with it and make friends with your neighbour. It'll all be fine.
The rock is softer than granite I think.
.that statements like saying this wood is softer than concrete
Thanks. I'm sure you're all right. 99% of what I stress about never happens. That's anxiety for you.
Ah, the Glen will forgive you. There will be a good p*ss up at Christmas in the village hall and the grumpy neighbour will have forgotten it all.
and what the fishy-cat one said.
If they're using a compressor with the drill rig it would suggest they are using air reverse circulation. Basically compressed air is used to drive the debris from the bottom of the hole to the surface.
When it comes to jobs like this you can only get a rough estimate as to how long it will take. The terrain being drilled through can change metre by metre and that will affect the drilling speed.
One question though. Why go goethermal rather than ground-source?
sound like an air-flush system. blowing the drilled bits of rock away from the drill head. Lucky they are not using water flush, as you would also have a river of dirty water to worry about as well, or if they were using a percussive system, then it would be banging. As above, once its done, its done, let them get on with it. Worry if they want to start at 7am and not finish until after 8pm. Otherwise, fair game.
In a past life I worked with a couple of drilling companies, the drillers were all insentivised with a target for drilling Xm in the day and got a bonus for every m after that, as suggested above it is expensive plant with expensive crew, so they will be going as fast as they can. If they are anything like the one's I used to work with, if they have travelled far, they will do anything in their power to get the job complete before a Friday afternoon so they can move on to the next place the following week. Leave them to it and they will be gone before you know it.
Yes they come from quite a long distance away and we've waited a long time as they're so busy.
Ground source wouldn't have been easy to install as the unbuilt half of the plot is too hilly and has several streams. I believe you need a nice even area of flattish ground for the trenches.