How to insulate a drinking well. Insulating a well for the winter. Air polyurethane foam - cheap and warm

The problem of water supply will never lose its relevance, especially in rural areas. And in most cases, the only way out is, which should not only provide water, that is, fulfill its direct function, but also be as strong and durable as possible.

To protect the well from freezing, it is necessary to insulate it before frost sets in. Today there are quite a lot of materials that can be used for insulation. The main thing is to figure out how to insulate a well for the winter.

When to insulate a well

If the well structure is made of wood according to the traditions of our great-grandfathers, then it does not need to be insulated. Such structures themselves have good heat-saving properties. But there may be exceptions - in particular, the need to insulate the well cover. K, for this you need to make a wooden cover and install it inside the structure. The cover will protect the well from factors such as:

• temperature changes;
• ingress of leaves and other debris;
• snow penetration.

But today almost all well structures are made of concrete rings (sometimes found). Such wells have a lot of advantages - they are strong, durable, installation, as well as caring for them, is quite simple. At the same time, there is one “but”: the owners of plots on which reinforced concrete wells are built are forced to insulate them for the winter.

Pay attention! If the water level in the well is below the soil freezing line, then the well will not freeze, and if it is higher, then insulation will be required.

Well insulation

There are several ways to insulate a well:

• cover insulation;
• construction of a decorative house;
• insulation of the upper ring.

Warm cover

The essence of this method is that an additional cover is installed inside the structure at ground level. As you know, water from a well can flow automatically (if there is a pump) or be extracted in the old way - using buckets. We will consider a more modern method.

For work we will need:

• plywood sheet;
• wire;
• thermal insulating material with a thickness of at least 5 cm (foam is most suitable);
• polyurethane foam;
• plastic pipe (for ventilation);
• glue.

Stage 1. We take a sheet of plywood and cut out two circles from it with the same diameter as the well. In both circles we drill two holes - one for ventilation, the other for the hose.

Pay attention! If you do not take care of ventilation, then soon the water will acquire a not very pleasant smell, and its taste will change for the worse.

The holes made should be small (Ø5-6 cm) so that cold air does not penetrate through the cracks. You can drill them close to the edge - it will be more convenient. Then we take the bottom circle and make four more holes along the contour for the wire.

Stage 2. We cut out the same circle from foam plastic and make a couple of holes in it in the same way. We glue the foam onto the first plywood circle using wood glue, and glue the second one on top. We wait for the glue to dry, then insert the ventilation pipe into the corresponding hole. To seal the connection, we can use foam.

Stage 3. All that remains is to make a ring using wire. To do this, we wrap the upper ring with wire, fixing the circle. Then we screw four pieces of wire attached to the lower plywood circle to the ring. We pass a hose into the hole and lower the structure to ground level. The lid will be held on the wire, the well will be ventilated, and the water will not freeze.

Price for polyurethane foam

polyurethane foam

Wooden house

If in your area the temperature does not fall below a critical level, then a wooden frame can be made on top of the ring for protection. To work you will need:

• wire;
• wooden logs;
• plywood sheets;
• foam;
• moisture-repellent film;
• the required number of nails.

Stage 1. First, we cover the outer surface of the ring with a moisture-repellent film. Then we take the foam and cut out six blanks from it rectangular shape. The dimensions of the workpieces must be selected in such a way that after laying the top ring, the result is a hexagon. This way we will maximize the tightness of the fit.

To secure the foam, use simple wire– tighten it with three rings. It is best if the wire is aluminum, since it is soft and does not corrode, therefore, it will be easy to work with, and rust will not form on the surface of the thermal insulation.

Stage 2. Next, we build a small log house from logs. The height of the log house should be equal to the height of the upper ring, and it itself should be in the form of a hexagon. We place a multilayer cover on this house, which was described in the previous paragraph. If desired, we can paint the house - let the well have an element of aesthetics.

Video - Installing a well house

The top ring is “under a fur coat”. Expanded polystyrene

As we have already found out, in order to prevent the well from freezing, it is necessary to reduce the thermal conductivity of the upper ring in it. This insulation option can be of two types: insulation expanded polystyrene and polyurethane foam. Let's start with the first option, which will require the following materials:

• dye;
• polystyrene foam insulation with a tongue-and-groove fastening system;
• plaster;
• polyurethane foam.

Pay attention! In this case, the top ring will be completely insulated, and the second ring will be only partially insulated.

Stage 1. First we do the preparatory work. We dig a trench around the ring about 50 cm deep and at least 20 cm wide. We clean the surface of the ring from dirt, then install the first layer of fur coat, while maintaining maximum density. To seal seams we use polyurethane foam. When the first level is finished, assemble the second and glue it to the ring. We seal the gaps between the levels with the same polyurethane foam.

Stage 2. We plaster the surface of the rings - this way we will protect polystyrene foam from harmful effects sun rays(they are known to reduce the thermal insulation characteristics of the material). When the plaster has dried, we apply regular paint to it so that the finish does not get wet. We fall asleep and compact the trench.

The top ring is “under a fur coat”. Polyurethane foam

If polyurethane foam is used for insulation, then we dig a trench in the same way, and assemble it around the first ring wooden frame. To work you will need:

• dye;
• sprayer for polyurethane foam;
• plaster;
• pieces of wood;
• ordinary polyethylene film;
• detachable iron formwork;
• dowels

Stage 1. We dig a narrower trench than in the previous version (no more than 10 cm), and install bars around the upper ring at a distance of approximately 40 cm from each other. We line the edges of the pit with formwork (we make it from thin steel), which exactly follows the contours of the trench. We cover the formwork plastic film. The fact is that polyurethane foam has quite high adhesion, which makes it impossible to disassemble the formwork.

Stage 2. When the formwork is installed, a void will form between it and the top ring, which we fill with polyurethane foam. After pouring, the material will expand, so the trench will be filled as tightly as possible.

Pay attention! The top of the well is covered with the lid mentioned above.

How to prevent a well from freezing

To prevent the well structure from freezing in winter, care should be taken to insulate it even at the start of construction. If you plan to visit the site only occasionally (for example, in the summer or on weekends), then there is no particular need to insulate the well. Just before leaving, we clean and treat the well with some kind of disinfectant, for example, chloramine.

Then we completely pump out the water, after which we close the well with a lid. Cover the lid with plastic wrap and sprinkle dry leaves on top. After this, we can safely leave, since in the spring there will be fresh, clean water in the well.

If permanent use of the well is planned, then more serious measures must be taken. So, we lay the pipeline from the well to the house below the soil freezing line. Top ring we protect it with a house (which we described) or by any other means.

As a conclusion

After the work on insulating the well is carried out, the water in it will not freeze even in the most severe frosts. But do not forget about insulating the pipeline leading to the house - this is also important.

The question of how to insulate a well made of concrete rings worries mainly summer residents, owners of private houses and villagers. Most often, this issue is resolved before the construction of the well begins, taking into account climatic conditions. But this doesn't always happen. It happens that you didn’t think about insulation from the beginning. And when faced with a problem and freezing of water in a well in winter, its owner is fully aware of his mistake. Thus, the answer to the question of insulating a well can be divided into two specific guidelines. The first will tell you how to insulate a well made of concrete rings immediately during construction. The second is about what can be done after the fact.

Why hasn't anyone insulated wells before?

Usage modern materials greatly facilitates the construction process. This is speed, durability, and economic feasibility. But the “old-fashioned” methods, proven over centuries, have a right to exist. Previously, wells in Rus' were built mainly from special types of wood. The excellent characteristics of such a well made it possible to use it for many years, and the low thermal conductivity of the wood prevented the water from freezing even in the most severe frosts. But now such technologies are a thing of the past, and most often ready-made concrete circles are used for construction. Using the digging method, they are gradually immersed in the ground, reaching the desired depth. To prevent the water inside the well from becoming ice, its level should not reach the level of soil freezing in winter. If this condition is met, then problems arise extremely rarely. But no one is protected from force majeure and natural disasters. In any case, it doesn’t hurt to play it safe in advance, because it doesn’t require much additional effort, and the money spent on insulation is not so large as to risk it.

What happens if you don’t create a thermal insulation layer?

Ignoring insulation can cause not only inconvenience in the form of a lack of drinking water for some time. If the well is installed pumping station, and they go from it to the house, then freezing of the water will lead to the failure of all equipment. Repairing it is a very expensive procedure; in addition, the matter is complicated by the fact that the soil freezes thoroughly in winter, and if the water in the pipes also freezes, this can cause them to rupture. Restoration work will need to be done in difficult conditions or even postpone it until spring. Expansion of liquid during freezing is also the cause of destruction of concrete rings and joints between them. In spring, during floods, heavy runoff groundwater their pressure on the walls of the well increases significantly. And any holes will lead to inevitable leakage dirty water with various impurities into the well. To avoid such a problem, you need to immediately learn how to insulate a well from concrete rings and do all the work correctly.

At what depth should the insulation be laid?

When work is being done during construction, the insulation needs to be laid around the well gradually, as it is buried. The depth of insulation laying depends on the climate in the region. It happens that even very deep wells, the depth of which exceeds 15-20 meters, freeze. Most often, it will be enough to lay the insulation to a depth of no more than one and a half to two meters. The technology for this process is simple; the main thing is to follow the instructions on how to insulate a well. Methods for insulating a well largely depend on the type of winter in the region.

External insulation

If the frosts are not very severe and the ground does not freeze deeply and for a long time, then you can protect the well from above by installing a wooden frame with a tight-fitting lid. Such a house cannot simply be placed on the ground around the well. It is necessary to build a foundation for it. To avoid distortion and subsidence, the foundation must be built according to all the rules, to a sufficient depth (no less than the average freezing level of the ground) with a width of one meter. Before it gets flooded concrete mortar, at the bottom they create a cushion of layers of sand, crushed stone and soil, which will play the role of a drainage system. The pillow must be thoroughly compacted and then the solution must be poured. After installing the wooden frame, insulation should be placed in the gaps formed between it and the walls of the well. For this purpose, you can use mineral wool, foam sheets, expanded clay or penoizol. Residents of the southern regions respond well to this method, but those who live further north are dissatisfied with the results.

Well insulation technology

How to insulate a well made of concrete rings underground is a slightly more complex question. This work is carried out in several stages.

• Well rings need to be pre-treated by special means, preventing groundwater from penetrating inside. But when choosing, it is important to take into account environmental friendliness and the possibility of using the product specifically in working with wells.
• The next layer is the insulation layer itself. How to insulate a well made of concrete rings, let's look a little further.
• The insulation must be wrapped with a hydro- and vapor barrier layer. Most often, film is used for these purposes. This measure will help avoid contact of the insulation with the ground and condensation settling on it.
• To fix the entire structure, wooden formwork is installed around the rings; it holds all the layers together.
• Finally, the trench must be covered with earth. For this process, experts advise not to use soil from the trench itself. It would be correct to alternate layers of two materials with different calibers. It can be sand and gravel or clay with expanded clay. Layers with a fine fraction are usually laid up to 15 cm thick, and others - 20 cm. This measure will help create high-quality drainage system, this will reduce the risk of water contamination in the well and reduce the pressure on its walls.

This is a classic, time-tested method, and the reviews about it are the most positive.

What to do if the spring has already been built?

How to insulate a well made of concrete rings for the winter if it has already been built? The technology itself is the same as in the previous case, but you will have to dig a trench. This work must be done manually with a shovel. The use of specialized equipment can lead to displacement of the soil and rings, violating the integrity of the soil layers. The rest of the work is carried out according to the given technology. Separately, it is worth noting that it is very important to take care of good Heat loss due to its absence or poor fit to the edges will also cause water to freeze. When a wooden frame or other structure is installed above a well, its cover is made in the form of a multilayer panel, in the middle of which there is a layer of foam plastic or mineral wool. The well, which is not formalized on the outside, is closed with a concrete hatch and a plastic plug. Those who live in areas with warm winters, characterize this method as quite cheap and practical.

What types of insulation are usually used?

To find out how to properly insulate a well from concrete rings, you need to know how to do it. There are quite a lot of options. Among the newest ones is foam insulation. Applying such material to the walls of the well eliminates seams, penoizol completely covers the entire space, eliminating leaks of cold air or water. This technology involves the use special equipment, you can't do this manually. And the cost of the service is not cheap, so it is not yet very widespread in our country. In warm regions, mineral wool on foil insulation is sometimes used. Plus this option It is possible to wrap the insulation around the well as tightly as possible. But some experts warn that this material crumbles easily and over time can break down into individual fibers and end up in the well water.

Insulation with polystyrene foam

Insulating a well made of concrete rings with polystyrene foam is the most successful option, experts say. The properties of this material are truly unique. It is an excellent barrier to cold air, and is also very durable and inexpensive. For these purposes, sheet material is most often used, which is not always convenient, because it is problematic to get around the rounded shapes of the rings with sheets.

Manufacturers have found a way out of the situation and offer consumers ready-made insulation parts that have a semicircular shape. The sizes are produced standard, for the most common diameters. In addition, you can use bulk. In this case, to create a frame, you need to use wooden slats attach a layer of roofing material to the ground around the walls of the well and pour granules into the resulting opening. In this way, you can insulate a well not only but also with other bulk insulation materials.

This effective method, and the well owners who chose it confirm the reliability of such thermal insulation.

Well water is considered clean and healing.

The owners monitor its quality through constant repair work.

Today, a well made from a well has become a common type of installation of a water source. concrete rings.

One of the requirements for its use is insulation for the winter period.

To do such work yourself, you should study the recommendations and advice of experts, those who have already carried out similar actions on their site.

Why is well insulation required?

Ice not only prevents you from getting water from a well, it contributes to the formation cracks and chips in concrete. If the well is brought cable or pipe, their quality also deteriorates.

Cable rupture and pipe freezing will require repairs, which will be both complicated and expensive. It is especially dangerous if the log house is not insulated, freezes and thaws several times during the winter.

Rings are destroyed and grow old. The concrete structure itself won't last a person as much as he expected.

Measures against freezing

When installing a well on a site, experts advise to think in advance about the possibility of it freezing in winter period.

Already during the work of digging out a source of drinking water and its construction, a number of works are carried out for protection concrete structure

Even if it is used for a short period of time, a number of protective measures must be taken.

• processing of log walls disinfectants means;
• pumping out water and drying the log house;
• laying water pipes at the required level: below the soil freezing level;
• additional pipe installation and fastenings of pumping equipment;
• protection of concrete from impact natural phenomena , destroying its quality.

Insulation methods

The main requirement when carrying out construction work – conservation ecology of the internal environment and water composition.

All materials used for insulation must not violate quality water. In addition, materials are divided according to functional tasks.

What is used outside, not necessarily suitable for internal processing.

Cover insulation

The cover can be made from various materials:

• wood;
• reinforced concrete;
• plastic.

Tree - unique material, it does not require additional insulating layer.

A lid can be made from wood double: inside the concrete ring and outside

Internal will moderate temperature changes. External protects from dirt, snow and debris.

The second material (reinforced concrete) differs in durability operation, strength and reliability.

Plastic ceiling is installed inside concrete frame, approximately at the level of the top layer of soil.


Manufacturing method insulating structure closing:

1. Two shields are cut out, the material is plywood moisture resistant quality.
2. One is being processed waterproof mixture, wrapped in film, cellophane or other material to protect against moisture penetration.
3. 3attached inside the rings metal rods, on which the first shield is laid.
4. Spreads out insulation, any building material except mineral wool will do.
5. The second one is fixed shield, also treated with insulation.
6. All layers are fastened and wrapped waterproof cloth or cellophane.

The lid made in this way is supplemented with a pen, it is needed for ease of lowering and raising.

Insulation of well walls

Options There are quite a lot of insulating materials offered by trade organizations.

The choice remains with the developers. To insulate the walls, they dig outside trench. Its depth depends on level soil freezing.

There are few types of insulation that are popular:

There are many advantages of the material:

• not subject to rotting;
• does not deform under mechanical influence;
• withstands the statement coming from the soil;
• easy;
• easy to install;
• wear-resistant;
• difficult to burn.

The last stage of work, after selecting the material and insulating the concrete structure with it, is digging a trench

Now the well will not be afraid of severe winter cold.

For the safety of the manufactured log house, when getting water with buckets or through hoses, they try to prevent water from getting on wall surface. Ice will damage the concrete and reduce its service life.

External insulation

On the outside, various types of insulation are built houses. Their shape depends on the wishes of the developers.

Nadkolodezny the wooden frame will serve both as a design for the concrete structure and as insulation.

Tree retains heat and is easy to work with. Any design can be made from wood; it lends itself to painting and other design details.


Such houses become decorative decoration total personal plot. Concrete rings round in shape, wooden log houses have corners.

Therefore, air remains between the rings and the tree. space. Experts advise filling it out expanded clay, it will complement the insulating functions of the external log house.

Any heat insulator, properly used for insulation, will protect against frost and temperature changes. The instructions describing the stages of construction activities provide a list necessary tools.

You can get ready, experiment in small areas, then proceed to the main work. Insulation is considered completed after insulating the lid, walls and outer surfaces.

All work is simple in technology and is possible for independent execution. The water will be protected from severe frosts and will remain clean and healthy at any time of the year.

The coolness of the water will delight users and lovers clean water from the bowels of the earth.

Uninsulated the construction of a concrete frame will require urgent capital repairs. The cost of the work will correspond to the installation of a new one.

Pumping equipment is better stored and operates during insulation.

Waking up in the morning, one goes to the kitchen and makes coffee, the other goes to the bathroom to take a shower. For both of them, to use the water, you just need to open the tap. But in the village, you first have to run to the well with a bucket. And it’s good if it’s summer. What if it’s winter, minus twenty, and the well is frozen? This is a familiar situation, isn't it? To avoid having to melt the snow, you can insulate the well yourself or invite specialists.

Why does the water in the well freeze in winter?

Firstly, the material from which the well was built matters. If this is a tree, then you can calm down: the bucket in it will never hit the ice. If in doubt, remember what they were made from several centuries ago. But now they use reinforced concrete, which, if certain factors coincide, can leave its owners without life-giving moisture.

Wooden wells made it possible to collect water for the household at any time of the year, even in the harshest winters

• Secondly, the water level in the well. If the area is swampy and the water is only 1.5-2 meters away, then, of course, the risk of seeing an ice shell is very high. Well, if the well is deep and the water is 8-10 meters from ground level, then there is nothing to worry about.

• Thirdly, the depth of soil freezing. IN middle lane and in the southern regions, where the ground freezes to a meter and a half, a well will not freeze, even a reinforced concrete one. The water is usually below this mark. But if the soil can freeze two to four meters, you need to mandatory insulate the well. So the well, and the nerves, and the money will be intact.

I don’t go to the dacha in winter, or why should I insulate a reinforced concrete well?

For those who live in the village all year round, wells are usually insulated. At a minimum, the house or cover is installed, and that’s already something. “Summer” migrants rarely insulate their water sources, unaware that they are significantly shortening their lifespan. The fact is that when water freezes, it expands and can destroy any material, including reinforced concrete. If a plug forms at the joint, this leads to displacement of the rings. An uninsulated well will quickly require repairs, which in terms of material costs are comparable to the cost of a new one. Also, an ice plug, the thickness of which reaches fifty centimeters, can simply break due to changes in the water level. Then everything will suffer pumping equipment located in the well.

Basic methods of insulating a well

Warm decoration – decorative wooden frame

Wood retains heat well. And if the high cost of construction work does not allow making a well entirely from this material, then you can afford a house made of logs. This is also a decorative solution - wood fits perfectly into any style of suburban area.

A wooden log house with a house performs several functions: they protect the well from freezing, prevent debris from getting into the water and decorate the area

You can make a house and a log house yourself, or you can contact specialists who know how to insulate a well using this material. The area around the well needs to be prepared, for example, by making a blind area, filling in crushed stone, laying tiles or paving stones. Then an insulating wooden frame is mounted on top of the well. The space between it and the ring is filled with mineral wool or expanded clay. Installed on top of the frame decorative house With gable roof. Such a structure must be protected with Aquatex-type impregnation. The cost of this insulation option, depending on the shape and size of the log house itself and the house above it, ranges from 19,500 rubles to 26,000 rubles.

Suspended ceiling for a well

The easiest way to avoid ice jams is an insulated well cover. It accumulates the heat of water, the temperature of which in winter is 6-7 degrees. Installed at a depth exceeding the soil freezing level. In this case, the lid should not touch the water.

The insulating cover for the well reliably protects against freezing. The main thing is not to forget about ventilation so that the water quality does not deteriorate.

It is made as follows:

• according to the diameter of the ring moisture resistant plywood cut out two shields;
• one bottom of them is wrapped in film to prevent rotting, lowered as low as possible to ground level and secured on hangers;
• Insulation, for example, polystyrene foam or polyurethane foam, is laid on top of the shield. Why not mineral wool? This material crumbles, its particles can get into the water and make it unfit for drinking;
• the second plywood panel is also insulated and placed 80-110 centimeters above the insulation. Experts disagree: some recommend doing air cushion, others - lay the cover directly on the insulation. In any case, if the top cover is above ground level, then the outside of the well must be insulated.

When making an insulating cover, you need to remember about ventilation. To do this, you need to run a ventilation pipe through both panels. A two-meter piece is enough. The bottom of the pipe should not touch the water.

If your budget allows, you can install a reinforced concrete washer with a plastic hatch. It is more reliable and will last as long as the well itself. Such a cover is installed between the upper and first rings not only during construction, but also after several years. The seams between them are completely sealed or liquid glass, or cement mortar. Expanded clay is poured over the washer as additional insulation. The height of the layer is equal to the thickness of the plastic hatch, which is about 8-10 centimeters. Prices for a regular insulated cover start from 7,000 rubles, for a reinforced concrete cover – from 19,500 rubles.

Winter fur coat made of polystyrene foam

Before insulating a well for the winter with polystyrene, you need to carry out preparatory work. A trench is dug along the entire perimeter, the depth of which is at least 1.5 meters. Then the polystyrene foam shell is selected according to the diameter and size of the rings. It is fastened with tongue-and-groove connecting elements. After this, the trench is buried.

The polystyrene foam shell retains heat perfectly and protects the well from freezing in winter

The material has many advantages:

• is not subject to deformation under soil pressure;
• resistant to fungi and mold;
• easily dismantled for repairs or cleaning of the well;
• retains thermal insulation properties for twenty-five years.

The only significant disadvantage of polystyrene foam is that it is “afraid” ultraviolet rays. Coping with this problem is, in principle, quite simple: you need to paint the shell with oil paint or cover it with foil or roofing felt. The cost of this insulation method depends on the diameter and height of the well rings. It is best to make polystyrene shells to order; however, the size of the wells may vary.

Use of ready-made special insulation materials

Air polyurethane foam - cheap and warm

Each well requires its own approach. Somewhere it is enough to build wooden house, and somewhere you need to install an insulating cover and a polystyrene foam shell.

Polyurethane requires mandatory protection from UV radiation. It can be covered with foil or painted with oil paint. You cannot use substances containing acetone!

A budget option for insulating a well is to use polyurethane foam. It does not rot, does not emit harmful substances, does not absorb moisture and, very importantly, it will not be eaten by rats or mice. And there is no need to prepare the surface of the rings. The material fills all cracks and defects in the walls, thereby extending their service life.

Insulation of a well with polyurethane foam should be carried out at a temperature environment from 20 to 30 degrees Celsius. Otherwise, the heat-insulating mixture will not foam well, and the consumption of materials will increase significantly.

First, they dig a trench around the well to the freezing depth. Then all components of the mixture are brought to the desired temperature. Using a spray gun, polyurethane foam is applied to the walls of the well in an even layer. As a result, after hardening, a three-centimeter layer of thermal insulation is formed. It must be protected from ultraviolet radiation with foil or oil paint. A well is a source of water on the site. If you protect it, it will last for many decades. You can insulate a well with your own hands - proven! And if you treat it carelessly, you can be left without water at all on the site. Then no professional will be able to help you.

Freezing of a well is a very unpleasant event for residents country houses who use well water for their water supply all year round. It’s quite simple to avoid this - insulate the well yourself. And for a positive result, you need to know the specifics of performing thermal insulation and understand the materials. Do you agree?

We will tell you how to choose the right insulation for thermal insulation of a well shaft. Here you will learn everything about the methods and nuances of carrying out work. Taking into account our recommendations, you can ideally protect your water source from exposure low temperatures.

Will the well freeze in winter? This can be predicted with a high degree of probability.

Firstly, if the well was built using natural wood, then it will not freeze even with prolonged exposure subzero temperatures. Our ancestors took advantage of this property by constructing wells from wood.

Modern wells are built using reinforced concrete rings, and given that this material has high thermal conductivity, the well will freeze in the same way as the surrounding soil.

Secondly, you need to pay attention to the water level: if it does not exceed 1.1-2.2 m, then the risk of freezing is very high. If the well is deep and the water in it is below the freezing level of the soil, then the water does not freeze.

The third factor that must be taken into account is the depth of soil freezing in the region. In the southern regions, the freezing depth rarely exceeds 0.5 m, in temperate regions - 1-1.5 m, in the northern regions - below 1.5 m.

Thus, the question of how to properly insulate a well for the winter faces owners of reinforced concrete wells located in temperate and northern climates. For residents of the southern regions it is less relevant. There are enough minimal measures - the construction of an insulated cover, and the well itself does not need thermal insulation.

Freezing of a well made of reinforced concrete rings can be prevented by making high-quality insulation, allowing uninterrupted use of water from it all year round

Why is freezing of wells dangerous?

It is a mistake to think that well insulation is only necessary when it is used year-round. Many summer residents and seasonal residents of country houses sincerely do not understand why insulate a well that no one uses in winter anyway. Meanwhile, these also need effective thermal insulation!

Otherwise, a variety of problems may arise that make the operation of the well difficult or completely impossible:

• the formation of an ice plug in the water supply system;
• displacement of the rings resulting from the expansion of frozen water in the surrounding soils;
• failure of the ice plug and damage to pumping equipment;
• divergence of the joints of reinforced concrete rings when water gets between the seams.

Wells that are not protected from low temperatures much more often require repair work. And in terms of financial costs, repair measures are often more significant than carrying out one-time insulation work.

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Insulation #1 – polystyrene foam

Foam plastic is a synthetic polymer thermal insulation used for insulation of reinforced concrete wells, both under construction and already in operation.

The advantages of polystyrene foam include:

• high thermal conductivity;
• low degree of water absorption;
• resistance to deformation;
• ease of use;
• low cost in comparison with other insulation materials.

One of the main advantages of polystyrene foam is that it is produced in the form of round and semicircular elements ready for installation of an insulation system, the diameter of which exactly matches the dimensions of reinforced concrete well rings.

This greatly simplifies the insulation process, which is carried out using the following technology:

1. Preparing the walls of the well for attaching insulation. Preparation involves cleaning the surface from debris, soil and other contaminants.
2. Installation of thermal insulation (rings, half-rings or individual insulation boards) using glue applied to them for facade work.
3. Strengthening the fastening of foam rings with special dowel nails for concrete. Performed when necessary.
4. Installation of a vapor barrier layer. Any vapor barrier material is suitable here.
5. Filling the trench around the well with soil, compacting it and compacting it.

As you can see, there is nothing complicated in the technology of insulation work using polystyrene foam. However, it is worth noting that in addition to the advantages, the described thermal insulation also has some disadvantages.