Drillers @Work 2024
Drilling contractors find themselves in the field far more often than most. Rig-up, rig-down, there are always memorable views worth sharing. Our Drillers @Work gallery for 2024 showcases photos submitted by readers throughout the year.
Drilling of a high-temp (180°C) geothermal steam well in Hellisheiði, Iceland. Well is short and has to be cooled constantly because otherwise it will turn into a Geyser. Later wells that have been drilled in same place were more difficult due to collapsing and thick layers of mud. Rig is a Atlas Copco drill from 1990s on a O&K articulated truck.
Photo contributed by: Ræktunarsamband Flóa og Skeiða
My dad built this rig over three years while undergoing intense chemotherapy and radiation, as well as occasional surgeries. It's a homemade rig based on Deep Rock, 24 hp Honda running a 24 gpm, 1,850-psi hydraulic pump. A 24 hp Honda runs a 3+2 mud pump, 10-foot 2 3/8 rods, top head speed up to 190 rpm with Deep Rock breakout system, four leveling legs with 48-inch stroke, 500-gallon water tank, hydraulic 3,000-psi pressure cleaner, 22 hp motor running auxiliary hydraulic pump for use of mud pump to send to mud pan mounted on another truck (homemade mud cleaning system), 125-gallon plastic drill tub (can stop and flip when full, refill, and start again), box to hold mud, sand, grout, 20-foot pipe rack.
Source: Rice Well Drilling