Flooding / cyclone advice
What to do BEFORE a Potential Flood Event
Your Bore
If the area surrounding your bore is prone to water accumulation during heavy rain, it's best to act now.
Inspect the top of the bore casing and make sure there is a good seal around the hole in the cap where the poly pipe(s) go into the bore casing. If there are large gaps (more than 3mm on each side), use a wet area sealant to fill in the gaps. If that is not available, do your best to stuff a rag into the gaps all the way around.
If you don't have a bore cap at all, it's best to get duct tape and go nuts sealing that PVC casing off!
Put a small hole in the duct tape so the changing water levels in the bore don't cause the tape to blow out (yes, we have seen it before). Afterwards, contact us to get a replacement bore cap and a free bore appraisal, so you are prepared for next time.
Your Pump
Look to see where your surface pump is; if it's likely to get covered (even partially) by flood waters, lift the pump up. The best way is to put a Besser block or bricks under the pump. All pumps directly above the bore casing will lift straight up; it may take two people to complete this task, but you could lose thousands if you don't act.
What to do DURING a Flood Event
If you can see or hear water leaking into your bore casing, or you can see the flood waters completely covering the bore, or there is no cap on the bore, or it has large gaps, and your pump is not underwater, the best thing is to turn the pump on and pump that dirty overland flood water out ASAP.
Obviously, if you are experiencing a cyclone, don't go outside.
If pumping water out of your bore will make the flooding situation worse for anyone, leave the pump and bore alone. Just remember, if your pump is/was underwater, don't turn it on!
Run the pump and discharge the water into a functioning drain for as long as the water is covering the bore casing.
If all the drains are backed up, don't run the pump; this will worsen the flood.
As soon as the flood waters drop below the level of the casing, run the pump and pump the flood waters out of the bore. We need to protect our precious aquifers as best we can.
What to do AFTER a Flood Event, Cleanup
Bore water should not be used for drinking or food preparation if you suspect flood water entered the bore casing.
If you suspect the bore was underwater, check out our bore cleanout page for more information about getting your bore cleaned.
If you choose not to use our bore cleaning services, it's best to disinfect the water in the bore, DRDMW recommends the following disinfection procedure:
- Add 15 grams of dry pool chlorine per 100 litres of bore water. A 4” bore casing has a volume of approx. 10L per metre; if your bore has 10m of water in it, add 15g of dry pool chlorine.
- Leave it in the bore for 4 hours, then turn the pump on but put the outlet hose back down into the casing, creating a loop.
- Pump the water back into the bore for 30 minutes. If the bore overflows, reduce the flow rate. If that still doesn't work, then skip to step 4.
- Take the outlet hose out and pump the bore water onto grass or down the drain for 2 hours.
If there is any sign that the pump or pressure switch/controller went underwater (or the control box if you have a submersible),DO NOT USE IT! Call us ASAP on 1800 193 194 to arrange for a free pump and bore inspection.
If you know the bore went underwater, but your pump (or control box) did not, then at the very least, run the pump for 3-4 hours once the flood water has subsided to clean out the introduced flood waters.
The bore water may be discoloured from flooding or just from the amount of rain entering the aquifer over the last few days.
Check out our water testing page for more information about our water quality testing services we offer (for FREE!) and other more comprehensive testing options available for a fee.
Advice for Insurance Claims
If your pump was flooded/submerged/inundated, we can inspect the pump and provide a document stating the pump was damaged in the flood, allowing you to claim this on your insurance.
If you have Motor Burnout inclusions on your policy, this can also help the claim progress successfully.
We can supply and install your new pump. Please call us on 1800 193 194 for a full quote on your replacement pump.