Being able to tap into a natural
water source to irrigate your garden, is a great way to
reduce your household bills and ensure you have a good
crop of vegetables at harvest times. However if the
property you have purchased does not have a natural
spring, font or well, it is still possible to be more
self-sufficient.
The modern method of
tapping into a natural water source is by drilling a
borehole (furo) into an underground stream or water well. There
are specialists companies in Portugal who will carry out
geological surveys to estimate the depth the borehole
must be drilled before any heavy machinery is lifted
into place.
A borehole works on the same principle of
a well, however due to modern technology means they can
be sunk deeper with minimum amount of manual labour.
Because a borehole is drilled with a mechanical crane
the shaft is narrower.
Like a well the borehole is lined to reduce
contamination and ensure the integrity of the shaft.
Today however instead of bricks and stone boreholes are
generally lined with concrete.
Being able to drill deeper means more properties in
Portugal are able to have a borehole dug. The water is
brought to the surface using pumps and in general
property owners will also have a water storage tank
built at ground level to ensure the pump is not working
around the clock.
