GroundUnder Bellville
The ground under Bellville.
Bellville sits where the Clear Fork outwash runs deepest. ODNR notes that the deeper outwash near Bellville may be Illinoian or even older, and maps the coarse, well-sorted sand and gravel between Clear Fork Reservoir and Bellville as capable of yields over 500 gallons per minute. Cedar Fork and the kame terraces west of town add more sand and gravel.
Climb out of the valley to the south and east and the drift gets thin. There, the water comes from sandstone: the Mississippian Logan and Black Hand formations, which drillers call the “Big Injun.” ODNR reports fractured, coarse zones of those sandstones yielding up to 100 gallons per minute in eastern and southern Richland County.
The water
Valley wells and ridge wells can have very different water on the same road. Iron and hardness turn up in both. Test before you treat.
Permits
Permits for Bellville and Jefferson Township wells come from Richland Public Health. B&E is registered with the Ohio Department of Health as a private water systems contractor (9999-PWSC-26-000029).
Geology: ODNR, Ground Water Pollution Potential of Richland County (Report 63).
Q&ABellville questions
Asked around Bellville.
Why does my neighbor’s Bellville well have different water than mine?
Because one of you may be in the Clear Fork sand and gravel and the other in sandstone on the ridge. Different aquifers carry different minerals. A lab test of your own well is the only way to know.
Can an old farm well in Bellville just be filled in?
Not by just dumping in dirt. In Ohio, an abandoned well has to be sealed with approved materials by a registered private water systems contractor, under a permit from the local health district. B&E is registered for sealing.
Do you work on farm wells as well as house wells?
Yes. The Franklin Electric pumps and Well-X-Trol tanks B&E installs are built for residential, agricultural and commercial systems.