If you are looking to buy property in a town or village with a water system, you probably need not worry, although it never hurts to ask about water supply. If you are interested in rural property in particular, you should inquire. Too many people, unsophisticated in country ways, have been burned -- or perhaps "parched" is the better term -- when that perfect country home site turned out to have no water. The subsequent cost of obtaining water quickly can easily make your perfect property a costly disappointment.

If the place you are considering has no developed water system, or if the little well and pump in place are clearly inadequate for your needs, naturally you will factor into your planning the cost of developing an appropriate system. But don't let the word system daunt you. More often than not a rural water system consists of little more than a pump to get the water to the surface, as well as a pressure tank. A pressure tank is a marvelously uncomplicated device. Small ones are about the size of a domestic water heater. Water pumped into the bottom compresses the air in the top of the tank, as the tank fills with water. (Remember what they taught you back in high school? Fluids don't compress. Gases, like air, do.) Thus, when you turn on the faucet, water comes out under pressure, just like in town.

However, before you start thinking of systems, consider the fundamental question: Is there adequate water available, and if so, are there any strings attached?

The most common source of rural water is the good old well. Maybe you won't need to drill one. Maybe there is already a well on the place you like. If the previous owner promises, "My Grandpa dug this well, and it ain't never dried up," that may be true, but maybe Grandpa and his progeny made less demand on the well than you will. You can wash the dishes and take a shower, but will it handle a dishwasher and fill your pool?

Some wells are just relatively shallow holes in the ground that rely on so-called ground water -- that is, water retained in the soil that seeps into the well. In the "old days," these wells were often dug by hand. Many can be pumped out. Then you wait for water to seep back in. Also, these wells may dry up if there is less than normal rainfall.

Most wells today are drilled and tap into what we now know as aquifers. An aquifer is a lot like a bucket full of wet gravel: All of the pore spaces within the gravel are filled with water and trapped on the bottom by bedrock, forming a seal. Aquifers vary in size from small to huge. An example of a huge aquifer is the Ogallala Aquifer that stretches from South Dakota down into the heart of West Texas. It takes two long days to drive its length. There are many other large aquifers, as well as the thousands and thousands of smaller aquifers that are used by people whose numbers have never been counted.

The problem with aquifers is that they can run out. Most aquifers get replenished or recharged, as the water people say -- some by local rainfall, and some by rainfall and runoff from many miles away. Problems arise when nature can't keep up with what is being pumped out. More than a few areas have seen wells dry up when numerous new users or a single large user, like a city or a commercial enterprise, tap into the aquifer.

The growing understanding that an aquifer may not be forever is increasingly leading to the formation of underground water districts or authorities. These agencies may have the authority to regulate usage in an effort to preserve an aquifer for all users. Find out if such an agency exists in the area you are considering.

The moral for a buyer of rural property is: Think about water. Ask questions and get answers before you plunk your money down. The moral for Realtors handling rural properties is: Have the answers. Those city folks probably have lots of friends who would like a place in the county.

Published: January 13, 1998

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