Fine dust on plastic pipe? (Newbie question)

[TheZo]

Hey guys, i'm new here so first of all hello 🙂
i recently purchased some land, that came with a pretty old water well system,
it used a simple plastic 1/4 inch hose as it's "pipe", to go down around 8-10 meters.
anyway, i changed it all up (now using a submergible pump),
My question is : once i removed the hose/pipe. there is a very very fine layer of sand/dust that's on it.
but i'm actually not sure if it's sand/dust/clay.. it's bright brown in color, very very fine ( i guess from being in the ground-water for years).
i guess i'm wondering, could it be something else? under "normal" land conditions.. could it be some sort of metal?
is it common to have fine sand stick to plastic ?
sorry for the very newbie question..
i'm mainly asking because even though i used gloves, the material kinda "itched" a little bit (although that could be due to it being so fine it penetrates everything).
Thanks in advance !
Zohar

 

[SimonG]

Is the ground iron rich? Sounds like a bit of iron oxide.

 

[Brambles]

Two points:

Even if you are not intending to use the water as a potable supply, you should still get it tested. It will certainly tell you what the dust is from the mineral analysis.

Generally with shallow wells, where the water is travelling through silts and clays, a submersible pump is not a good idea. They often disturb the silt on the bed of the well, but also draw out the fines embedded in the surrounding aquifiers. The latter can adversely impact the long term performance of the well. The fines improve the quality of the water, if they are sucked out over a wide area, there is a risk that the aquifer will alter and run to a lower level beneath the invert of your well.

A well pump is inefficient, with a long suction line - but it is by far the best way to extract quality water from an aquifer fed well.

 

[Danb]

More than likely sediment and minerals. if your hoses are left submersed.
When the pump kicks in it more than likely stirs it up and it just settles after use.

 

[TheZo]

Is the ground iron rich? Sounds like a bit of iron oxide.

Yes!!! that's exactly what it is.. thanks Simon, i knew it was too bright to be just dirt..
apparently the land and water is iron rich
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Two points:

Even if you are not intending to use the water as a potable supply, you should still get it tested. It will certainly tell you what the dust is from the mineral analysis.

Generally with shallow wells, where the water is travelling through silts and clays, a submersible pump is not a good idea. They often disturb the silt on the bed of the well, but also draw out the fines embedded in the surrounding aquifiers. The latter can adversely impact the long term performance of the well. The fines improve the quality of the water, if they are sucked out over a wide area, there is a risk that the aquifer will alter and run to a lower level beneath the invert of your well.

A well pump is inefficient, with a long suction line - but it is by far the best way to extract quality water from an aquifer fed well.

damn.. amazing info Brambles, ty.
i will definitely run a lab test (currently not drinking the water).
we had like three shallow well pumps before this one,
that just stopped working, and got air locked every 2 seconds...
i'm guessing it was mainly just not powerful enough for the job (1500 watt pumps)
but i'm taking what you're saying to mind..
the whole well system and area is kinda shabby..
so i think i need to do a complete overhaul
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More than likely sediment and minerals. if your hoses are left submersed.
When the pump kicks in it more than likely stirs it up and it just settles after use.

yup 🙂 iron oxide