Well Test

Abstract Well tests are conducted in completed wells after development in order to collect information on the hydraulic parameters of the well and surrounding aquifers. Groundwater level data from the well tests are collected, compiled, and graphically plotted, and the data are evaluated using various methods to determine hydraulic parameters of the aquifer and well. Step‐drawdown tests are generally the first type of test performed. This test involves pumping the well at several rates and measuring the change in water level as time progresses. Following the step‐drawdown test, a constant rate pumping test is usually performed. The well is pumped continuously at the design discharge rate over a longer period of time, usually more than 24 h, in order to estimate longer‐term drawdown effects. Recovery tests, carried out after pumping tests, involve measuring the rate at which the water level recovers to its initial level after pumping has stopped. A slug test is a popular and inexpensive method of estimating the hydraulic properties of aquifers in small diameter wells when the hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer materials is too low to conduct a pumping test. This test involves rapidly adding or removing a “slug of water” from a well and measuring the rate at which the water level recovers.