Sand bailing lifts sand and sediment that has settled in the bottom of a well, using a bailer run on a cable from a pump or drilling rig. It helps when fill has built up toward the pump in an otherwise sound well. It won’t stop sand coming in through a failed screen, corroded casing or a pump set too low, so the cause should be found first.
Before you hire
- Ask what is causing the sand (fill-in, a failed screen or casing, the pump setting or pumping rate) and how they’ll confirm it. A downhole camera is often worth it.
- Expect the pump to be pulled. Ask where it will be reset and whether you need a flow sleeve or a downhole separator.
- In sandy glacial aquifers the fix for a failed screen is a new screen, not a liner. Screens, liners and deepening need an Ecology-licensed well driller and a notice of intent.
- Ask for disinfection afterwards and a bacteria test once the chlorine has flushed out.
- Cleaning is maintenance under Ecology’s rules; pump work needs L&I pump credentials. Check both on the listing.
Northwest (Puget Sound & islands)
AAA Pump & Well Drilling
Family-owned Monroe well driller and pump company, serving Snohomish and King counties since 1960, with drilling, decommissioning, well rehab, pump and storage systems, water treatment and inspections.
Alcorn Pump & Water Filtration
Family-owned Enumclaw well pump and filtration company doing pump installation and repair, pressure and storage systems, well rehabilitation by brushing and bailing, well shock, inspections, flow tests and well water filtration, with 24-hour out-of-water service.
Gresham Pump & Drilling
Family-owned Poulsbo well driller and pump company, established in 1977, drilling, cleaning and decommissioning wells and installing pumps, storage and treatment in Kitsap, Jefferson, Pierce and Mason counties.
JKA Well Drilling & Pumps
Family-run Monroe well driller and pump company, founded in 1989, drilling, rehabilitating, inspecting and decommissioning wells and installing pumps, tanks and water treatment for homes in King and Snohomish counties.
Livermore & Son
Family-owned Deming well driller and pump service company drilling steel-cased wells, repairing and replacing pumps, remediating sandy or declining wells, and testing and inspecting wells in Whatcom and Skagit counties.
Lofall Well Drilling
Poulsbo water well driller founded in 1988, drilling residential, Group B community and replacement wells, deepening and rejuvenating wells, decommissioning and replacing pumps in Kitsap, Jefferson, Clallam and Mason counties.
RH Drilling & Services
Water well driller formed in 2010, drilling 5- to 25-inch cable tool and air-rotary wells, deepening and cleaning out wells, and installing pumps and filtration, mainly in Island, Clallam, Pierce and King counties.
Total Wells Pumps and Filtration
Monroe-area well company on the Snohomish–King county line, doing pump repair and replacement, booster and storage systems, well rehabilitation and bailing, camera inspections, real-estate well inspections and filtration.
Southwest & Olympic Peninsula
Arcadia Drilling
Shelton water well driller and pump contractor, family-owned since 1962, drilling wells and installing and servicing pumps, pressure systems and well disinfection across nine western Washington counties.
Mather & Sons Pump Service
Vancouver pump sales and service company, family-owned since 1955, installing and repairing well pumps, pressure tanks and water treatment for homes in southern Washington and the Portland area, plus well testing and sand bailing.
Mountain View Pumps & Filtration
Eatonville pump and filtration company, established in 1994, installing and repairing well pumps, pressure tanks and holding tanks, cleaning wells by brush and bail, and selling water treatment across Pierce, south King, Thurston and Lewis counties.
Wells and More
Family-owned Toutle, Cowlitz County, well service company doing pump and tank installation, well cleaning, flow tests, water sampling and well water filtration, with 24/7 emergency service.
Central Washington
Carpenter Drilling
Benton City drilling contractor, founded in 1995, that does core drilling and builds, restores, cleans and maintains water wells, including Hanford monitoring and water wells.
Cobalt Drilling
Tri-Cities well driller founded in 2021, drilling residential, irrigation and Group A wells, and offering camera inspections, clean-outs, repairs and well decommissioning.
Hoopes Well Drilling
Family-run Richland well driller drilling domestic, irrigation and municipal wells, and rehabilitating, cleaning out and decommissioning existing wells.
Eastern Washington
A & H Well Services
Family-owned well company based in Chewelah that drills wells, installs and repairs pumps, and offers well rehabilitation, video logging, flow and water testing and cisterns, with 24/7 service.
DC Drilling
Moses Lake well drilling contractor drilling domestic, irrigation and municipal wells across the Columbia Basin, with well cleaning, repair, deepening, flow tests and decommissioning.
H2O Well Service
Well drilling, pump installation and repair, and water treatment company founded in 1976, with offices in Hayden and Sagle, Idaho and Deer Park, Washington, serving North Idaho and Eastern Washington.
Harding Drilling
Family-owned Walla Walla well driller in business since 1945, using cable tool rigs to drill domestic and irrigation wells and offering cleanouts, deepening, repairs and water production testing.
Joyco Drilling
Family-owned well driller and pump installer based near Elk, serving northeast Washington and northwest Idaho with drilling, deepening, cleanout, decommissioning, camera inspection, pumps and cisterns.
Vermillion Pump & Drilling
Family-owned Chattaroy well driller and pump company serving Spokane and surrounding areas, offering well drilling, deepening, clean-out and repair, pump systems, reservoirs, well video and certified pump tests.