How to Find an Artesian Well on Your Property: It's on Paper, Not in the Ground

What "artesian" actually means

A confined aquifer is a layer of sand or rock that holds water. A confining layer sits on top of it, made of material that slows water down. Michigan's well manual describes confining layers as "geologic materials which slow or restrict the movement of groundwater relative to the adjacent aquifer" Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1.

Water trapped under that lid is under pressure. So when a well pierces the lid, the water climbs up the casing. Michigan puts it this way: water levels in wells tapping confined aquifers "always rise above the top of the aquifer (although not necessarily above the ground surface). These are called artesian wells" Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1. Texas A&M's glossary agrees, defining artesian water as "under enough pressure to rise above the aquifer containing it" Source 2: Texas Well Owner Network, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Well Owner's Guide to Water Supply2.

The part most searches miss is in those parentheses. Only "a flowing artesian well" is one "where water will rise above the ground surface" Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1. An artesian well whose water stops below ground looks like any other well from the yard.

Water can surface on its own, too. Michigan notes natural artesian flow "at the surface from a confined aquifer release point." It also notes that "many flowing wells are located near surface waters" Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1. But none of the sources here offers a wet spot as a test. For what a well is in the first place, see what a water well is.

Already have a well? Check its log

A well log is the driller's record of the hole. North Dakota's well owner guide says it holds "the well installation date, construction details, and the geology encountered while drilling the well hole" Source 4: North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, Private Well Owners Guide: Well Maintenance4. Three entries carry the artesian question.

• The layers. Michigan's records list the "thicknesses of geologic formations penetrated" Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1. Look for a water-bearing layer, such as sand or gravel, sitting under a tighter one, such as clay.
• The static water level. This is how high the water stands in the casing when the pump is off. If it stands above the top of that water-bearing layer, the well fits the definition above.
• The flowing entry. Michigan's log form, for example, asks the driller to "Indicate if the well is flowing." And "for a flowing well, the static water level is above the ground surface" Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1.

Treat that as a pattern, not a ruling on your own log. The driller, or the state agency that holds the log, can read yours properly. The same log also gives the static water level that shock chlorination needs to work out a dose.

Requirements vary by county. Your county health department has the final word on permits, inspections, and what is allowed on your property.

Where to find the log

Well logs are filed state by state, and sometimes a county or district holds them too. Older wells may not be on file at all.

• Michigan. The contractor "shall provide a copy of the well log to the owner, and two copies to the LHD," the local health department. The state also runs a "Water Well Viewer" to see records on a map Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1.
• Texas. "Licensed water-well drillers must submit reports to the state on each well drilled." Of the "1 million plus" wells drilled over a century, "more than 130,000" are in the Texas Water Development Board's groundwater database Source 2: Texas Well Owner Network, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Well Owner's Guide to Water Supply2. The same guide also points to TCEQ's well reports and to local groundwater conservation districts.
• North Dakota. If you do not have your log, "the State Water Commission may have it in their database" Source 4: North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, Private Well Owners Guide: Well Maintenance4. The same guide lists that agency at swc.nd.gov as the North Dakota Department of Water Resources.
• Arizona. "Every modern well in Arizona is required to be registered with the Arizona Department of Water Resources" Source 5: University of Arizona Superfund Research Program, Well Owner's Guide5.

A well log is a different record from a septic permit, even where one office keeps both. If you need that one too, see how to find septic tank records online. Again, your county health department has the final word.

No well yet? What predicts it, and what doesn't

Dowsing does not. NGWA says water witchers and dowsers "have been tested in unbiased experiments, and their success at locating water has been no better than random odds" Source 3: National Ground Water Association, Well Owner's Guide, 2021 edition3.

The logs of nearby wells help more. NGWA says data from wells already drilled "may provide some direction on where on a piece of property a new well should be drilled" Source 3: National Ground Water Association, Well Owner's Guide, 2021 edition3. In bedrock aquifers, Texas A&M notes, yield "can change dramatically over short distances," and a good well can sit "just a few yards from a dry hole" Source 2: Texas Well Owner Network, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Well Owner's Guide to Water Supply2.

Where you are matters, because flowing wells cluster. Michigan counted about 3,500 flowing wells drilled from 2010 to 2017, and 19 percent of them were in just three counties Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1. Still, NGWA is plain that "there are no guarantees about the depth at which a suitable water supply will be found or whether water will be found at all" Source 3: National Ground Water Association, Well Owner's Guide, 2021 edition3.

A flowing well is a regulated condition, not a free fountain

A well that flows "without a pump" sounds like a prize. Michigan files it in its chapter on problem wells instead Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1. It wants the areas where flowing wells occur "delineated" so county well permit programs can regulate how they are built.

Michigan also warns local health inspectors: "Do not probe around flowing artesian wells. You may cause a break-out of flow around the outside of the casing."

On plugging an old well, the sources differ.

• Michigan. Its rules say abandoned wells "shall be plugged by a well drilling contractor or by the well owner," with stricter material rules for a flowing one Source 1: Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Water Well Construction Manual1.
• NGWA. "Attempting to plug a well yourself is likely illegal since there are usually state or local well decommissioning regulations" Source 3: National Ground Water Association, Well Owner's Guide, 2021 edition3.
• North Dakota. "Artesian (flowing) wells have strict plugging requirements," and it recommends a professional well contractor Source 4: North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, Private Well Owners Guide: Well Maintenance4.

On a flowing well, they lean one way: stricter rules, and a professional.

This one lands at DIY-safe. Finding out whether a well is artesian is paperwork, and it is yours to do. Drilling a well, or controlling, capping, or plugging one that flows, is work for a licensed water well contractor. Again, your county health department has the final word.

Where this fits

Being artesian changes how water reaches the well. It does not change who is responsible for testing it, so the guidance in well water testing still applies.