North Washington well records: what buyers should check

How deep are wells around North Washington?

How much water do wells make near North Washington?

Why North Washington’s shallow median needs context

Among 6,228 records reporting depth, the median is 30 feet, and the middle half runs from 20 to 45 feet. That is a useful starting range for comparing shallow drilling bids, not a reliable target depth for a new household well. Monitoring wells dominate the local permit mix and should not be treated as interchangeable with domestic supplies.

Overall, 91% of reported depths are under 100 feet, but the deepest record reaches 1,751 feet. Permits name Alluvial and Quaternary Alluvium aquifers, while many leave the source unnamed or broadly classified. Ask the driller which water-bearing formation the proposed well would target and compare nearby construction logs before accepting a depth allowance.

Reported output is strong, but supply-well comparisons matter

Only 209 records report pump yield. Within that group, the median is 33.0 gpm, with a middle-half range of 13.0–101.0 gpm. Those results suggest productive wells exist locally, but the small reporting group and mixed uses make that range a poor stand-alone promise for a residential lot.

The reported share under 1 gpm is 0%, while 4% fall in the 1–5 gpm range. That does not guarantee a proposed well will avoid low output. For an existing home, request a current pumping test that documents drawdown and recovery. Also check the permit: a well’s physical pumping capacity does not establish how much water you may legally use or where you may use it.

Water is often shallow; the decade figures do not show decline

The 283 records with static water levels show a median depth to water of 11 feet below ground. The middle half is 7–23 feet. Static level means the resting water surface inside the well, not the well’s total depth or the level it will maintain while pumping.

Median measured levels were 37 feet below ground in the 1960s, 11 feet in the 2010s and 9 feet in the 2020s. These figures do not suggest a dropping water table; the reported water is shallower in the later groups. They also are not a continuous record from the same wells. For a purchase, compare measurements from the actual well rather than assuming this area-wide pattern applies to the property.

A monitoring-heavy permit history around North Washington

Permit activity rose from 548 records in the 1980s to 2,011 in the 1990s. The 2010s account for 2,868 permits, and the 2020s contain 1,053, with the newest permit dated 2025. These are permit counts, not counts of new household wells. The 67% monitoring share is essential context when judging how much residential drilling has occurred nearby.

The most active driller-field entry is Authorized (Pe, Pg), with 3,846 records. Named entries also include Layne, Christensen Co. (Tormoehlen, David A.), with 236, and Ground Exploration Llc (Bender, Joseph T.), with 111. Treat these as historical record labels, not a current availability or licensing check. Verify who is qualified and available for the proposed supply-well work.

Budgeting beyond a shallow drilled hole

The supplied cost model uses Denver Basin sedimentary bedrock at $50–$70 per foot. Applied to the 30-foot median depth, the drilled hole is about $1,500–$2,100. A finished well with pump, tank, trenching and electrical is modeled at about $7,500–$14,100.

Do not treat that finished range as a property-specific quote. The depth benchmark comes from a monitoring-heavy dataset, and the proposed household supply may need a different completion. Ask for an itemized bid covering the target formation, depth allowance, casing, grout, pump equipment and connection route. Have the contractor explain how the price changes if usable water requires deeper drilling. Access and the distance to the house also belong in the site review.

North Washington water quality deserves a property-level check

Within about 10 miles, the mapped inventory contains 689 PFAS sampling/contamination sites, 189 EPA Superfund/cleanup sites and 1 historic mine feature. These are screening flags, not proof that a particular well is contaminated. Sampling locations and cleanup sites do not all represent the same exposure, and a radius alone does not establish a groundwater connection.

Before buying, obtain well-specific laboratory results and review nearby environmental records to choose appropriate additional testing. Inspect the wellhead, casing and surface drainage. Shallow groundwater also warrants careful septic and foundation planning where those improvements are proposed. Confirm required separations and site suitability before fixing the building layout. A neighboring productive well cannot rule out low yield or unsuccessful drilling on the lot.

Before committing to a lot near Welby or Twin Lakes

Start with the parcel’s actual water arrangement: an existing permitted well, a proposed well or another available supply. Match any existing well to its DWR permit and construction record. Confirm that the authorized use fits the intended home and any outdoor demand; an exempt household-use permit is not blanket permission for irrigation.

Then compare completed supply wells near the parcel, including records toward Welby, Twin Lakes or Sherrelwood where relevant. Match aquifer and use, not just proximity. Make the purchase decision contingent on suitable water documentation, testing and a realistic construction plan. For a new build, settle the legal water supply before coordinating well placement, access, septic and the house footprint. Ask DWR whether the proposed use requires augmentation.

Well permits by decade near North Washington

What a new well costs in North Washington, CO

How this is built: the median permitted depth here times the per-foot range for this ground, plus the normal system costs. A lot at the 75th-percentile depth (45 ft) would run roughly $8,250–$15,150. See the full Colorado well cost guide.

Environmental sites mapped within about 10 miles

Counts come from EPA, USGS and state datasets layered on the Colorado Well Finder map. A count is not a verdict on any one well; it tells you what to test for.

Buying land near North Washington? Know what it costs to build before you buy the dirt.

A listing photo can't tell you whether a lot is a dream or a money pit. Two parcels near North Washington can carry the same asking price while one needs an $80,000 driveway and a $45,000 engineered septic the other doesn't. The well numbers on this page are the start of that answer. A Tri-Lakes Site Feasibility Report is the rest of it: a licensed general contractor, excavator and septic installer reads the parcel the way we would if we were about to build on it, and puts the real cost in writing before your money is committed.

Spend a little to know. Or gamble a lot to guess. Realtors sell the view and inspectors look at houses that already exist. We're the people who'd build it, so we catch what quietly turns a "great deal" into a budget disaster: bad access, buried rock, steep grade, soil that won't pass for a normal septic, water that's a fortune to reach. And if the lot is good, you've already got a builder ready to do the work, driveway to drywall.

• Instant Online Report, $99 — type the address and get a buildability read on the spot: parcel, terrain and slope, soil and septic outlook. Cheap enough to run on every lot you're shopping.
• Desktop Report, $500 — a contractor's from-the-desk feasibility read: Regulation 43 and county code, GIS parcel data, terrain, flood and drainage, soil and septic viability, setbacks and buildable envelope, nearby well depths from our 591,000-well database, the likely driveway route, and a preliminary site-development cost breakdown.
• On-Site Report, $2,000 — everything above, then boots and a drone on the actual ground: house pad and septic zone located, access and winter conditions checked, rock and soil observed in person, a 15 to 20 page written opinion you can hand a lender or seller. Credited toward your project if you build with us.

Under contract, comparing parcels, or a realtor with a rural listing whose buyers keep asking "what will it cost to build here?" This is the due-diligence step almost everyone skips, and the one that saves the most.

Common questions about wells in North Washington

Keep researching

More in Adams County

All wells in Adams County — county-wide depth, yield and cost figures.

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