Case Study: SureFlow Drives Measurable Time Savings on a Municipal Water Well Project

Summary

On technically complex municipal water well projects, efficiency is often dictated by what happens between drilling intervals. Rod changes, circulation cycles, and hole conditioning steps repeat throughout the day and can account for a significant portion of total project time.

On a recent project in East Texas, Jace Mitchell of A1 Water Wells implemented a fluid system built around SureFlow, an NSF-approved additive suitable for potable water well applications, to address one of the most consistent sources of lost time: cleaning the hole before every connection.

By improving suspension and eliminating that step in most cases, the crew estimates total time savings of 30 to 40 hours over the course of the well.

Contractor Background

Jace Mitchell is a second generation water well contractor and one of the owners of A1 Water Well. Based in Winnsboro, Texas, he is part of a newer generation of contractors taking on more technically complex work while refining how their operations perform in the field.

This project represents one of the most technically demanding wells his company has taken on, requiring tight control over hole conditions and consistent performance throughout multiple passes.

Due to A1’s proximity to DrilRite’s headquarters, both teams have worked closely to evaluate and optimize the drilling fluid program in real time.

Project Conditions

• Ground conditions were mixed and consisted of primarily sand and lignite

• Drilling was performed with a Kelly rig equipped with an 18 inch rotary

• The project utilized 20 foot drill rods

• The project required approximately 50 rods to reach depth

• Four passes were required to complete the well

The well was drilled using a Kelly rig, which requires stopping rotation and circulation during each connection. This increases the importance of maintaining cuttings suspension during these pauses.

Operational Challenge

Prior to implementing SureFlow, the crew followed a standard process at every connection.

When a rod was bottomed out, circulation would stop and cuttings would begin to settle. Before making the next connection, the crew had to circulate and clean the hole to avoid accumulation and maintain control.

This created a repeated cycle:

• Bottom out a rod

• Pause drilling

• Circulate to clean the hole

• Make the connection

• Resume drilling

Mr. Mitchell explained the behavior in practical terms. Without adequate suspension and structure, the system acts like a U-tube. The annulus outside the drill pipe becomes heavier due to accumulated cuttings, while the inside remains lighter. That imbalance causes material to fall and settle in the hole, while unstable formation begins to cave into the open bore.

Because of this, the crew had to ensure the hole was clean and stable before every connection.

Fluid System Adjustment

SureFlow was introduced into the drilling fluid system alongside bentonite to improve suspension, gel strength, and overall borehole stability. As an added consideration for municipal water well work, SureFlow is NSF approved for use in potable water applications, making it suitable for projects where fluid compatibility and regulatory compliance are critical.

The objective was not to change drilling technique, but to improve how the fluid behaves during normal operations, especially during pauses in circulation.

By increasing the fluid’s ability to hold solids in suspension and maintain structure in the annulus, the system was better able to support the borehole walls during connections. This helped prevent cuttings from settling out and, more importantly, reduced the risk of hole collapse in unconsolidated sandy conditions.

Results

According to Mr. Mitchell, the most immediate change was how the fluid held cuttings in suspension between rods.

Instead of settling out when circulation stopped, cuttings remained suspended in the hole. This allowed the crew to make connections without fully circulating and cleaning the hole in most cases.

This effectively removed an entire step from the process.

Time Savings

Field observations indicate:

• Estimated time savings of 10 to 12 minutes per rod

• With approximately 50 rods, this results in 8 to 10 hours saved per pass

• With four passes required, total savings are estimated at 30 to 40 hours

Mr. Mitchell summarized it directly:

“We’re saving about ten to twelve minutes a rod because we don’t have to flush the entire hole out every time. The cuttings stay suspended, so we can make connections and keep moving. On this well, that adds up to around forty hours.”

Fluid Efficiency

In addition to operational improvements, the fluid system required significantly less bentonite than would typically be expected for a project of this scale.

Mr. Mitchell noted:

“I would think we would have used at least 4 to 6 pallets of gel, around 240 to 360 bags, without SureFlow. On this hole we’ve mixed about 100 bags of gel and 10 bags of SureFlow.”

This reflects a substantial reduction in total bentonite usage while dramatically improving hole cleaning and suspension.

Operational Impact

In addition to time and material savings, the crew reported:

• Faster and more consistent rod changes

• Reduced need/elimination of circulation between connections

• More stable hole conditions during pauses

• A smoother overall drilling process

These improvements became more noticeable and the time savings compounded as the number of connections increased throughout the project.

Technical Interpretation

The performance improvement is directly tied to suspension behavior during static conditions.

In sand and lignite formations, cuttings tend to settle rapidly when fluid movement stops. Without sufficient gel structure, solids fall out of suspension and accumulate in the borehole.

By improving suspension characteristics, the fluid system:

• Maintains solids in suspension during pauses

• Reduces density imbalance between fluid inside and outside the drill pipe

• Limits settling driven by the U-tube effect

• Preserves hole condition between connections

This reduces the need for corrective circulation and allows drilling to continue without interruption.

Takeaway

On this project, the benefit of SureFlow came from removing a repeated, time consuming step rather than changing how the well was drilled.

By keeping cuttings suspended during rod changes, the crew was able to eliminate the need to clean the hole before every connection.

On a technically complex municipal well with multiple passes, that improvement compounds quickly. In this case, it resulted in an estimated 30 to 40 hours of total time savings, along with a meaningful reduction in bentonite usage.

That level of efficiency does not come from drilling faster. It comes from eliminating unnecessary work.