diy well drilling mud pump factory

The 42-year-old, family-owned American Drilling Services in Florida, relied on homemade drill rigs to complete primarily 2- to 4-inch residential water wells. With demand increasing, they began looking for newer technology in order to complete more mud pump well drilling.

“Technology is always changing. We used to drill galvanized steel with cable drilling. Now we’re exclusively rotary drilling,” said William Diaz, driller, who has been with the company for seven years. “The technology gets better, and things get easier.”

“We used to do one well per day, occasionally two. The DM250 has helped us keep up with the workload by being able to drill quicker,” Diaz said. “The pulldown power of the top head is significantly stronger than our previous rigs. With the mud pump, we can clean out the hole a lot faster, which means less waiting around.”

“We’re not breaking down all the time, which is a huge advantage compared to our older rigs,” Diaz said. “Overall it’s a great rig. I recommend the DM250 to anyone doing 2- to 4-inch wells. It makes me happier because I’ve now got air conditioning, and I love the self-feed carousel. It’s a fast, great rig.”

Mudslayer Portable Mud System built by a well driller for well drillers, saving their backs and their bottom line. This shaker system was designed by Jim LaPorte, professional water well driller in California for 30 years. Jim realized he needed a reliable mud system that did not require an enormous amount of training and extensive technical education to operate.

The idea of the MudSlayer was born. This mud shaker does not require an experienced user that has a P.H.D. in engineering to operate. This baby is simple, affordable and dependable. It has the power to move the mud, remove the solids and make your well drilling more productive. Saves you time money and stress, and maximizes safety and productivity

We have a two axle towable trailer to move this unit easily and where it needs to go and electric brakes for extra stopping power. Four hydraulic outriggers come standard and make your setup quick and easy. The 500 G.P.M. lift pump is also mounted on a hydraulic boom to insure safety and reduce the risk of back injury.

The unit comes standard with a 2" X 3" X 8 5/8" desanding and mudmixing pump. The drilling or charge pump is a choice of 3x4 mission magnum centrifugal pump or 4.5"x5" American manufacturing duplex pump for drilling most domestic wells or charging most duplex pumps.

Greetings Tim & Charlott, below is a GPS link and information on the well we just installed in the honor of Tim & Charlott King! Your love and commitment has allowed our Clean Water 4 Life ministry to sink over 500 water wells for those in need here in the Solomon Islands! Here is a link to read my current newsletter with lots of pictures! http://www.rickrupp.com/newsletter.php

Togokoba SSEC Church & Community is approx 58 kilometers east of Honiara. It was a long bumpy drive to this village. I had to walk a long way to get to the place where they lived. They explained that their source of drinking water was the stream. They were so happy when I explained that our CW4L team was going to come sink a well right in their village. I tasted the well water several weeks later after our team had blessed them with a water well. It tasted so good! It was nice clean & cold water! It never ceases to amaze me that there is such a nice water table here in the rural areas of the Guadnacanal plains! I counted 10 houses in this community and the population is approx 80 people. Now they finally have a source of clean drinking water! These people have suffered for many years either drinking from an open hand dug well or from the stream. Togokoba SSEC Church & Community is very grateful to our CW4L sponsors.

Historically, most drillers dug two pits prior to drilling a well.  A first pit, called a settling pit, received the drilling fluid and cuttings from the drill hole via a short shallow trench.  The cuttings settled down to the bottom of the the settling pit.  A second pit, called a mud pit, was dug nearby and a second trench directed the overflow of the settling pit into the mud pit.  Most of the cuttings settle to the bottom of the settling pit and the drilling fluid in the mud pit has a much higher liquid to cuttings ratio.  In other words, the water in the second pit, the mud pit, is “cleaner.” Drilling fluid from the mud pit is then pumped, by a mud pump, back down the drillpipe.  During the drilling process, cuttings are continuously shoveled from the settling pit so it does not become clogged with cuttings.  Although most of the cuttings settle in the settling pit, it is also necessary to occasionally shovel cuttings from the mud pit as well.

Below is a photograph of mud pits prepared for drilling.  This photograph is from the hydra-jett site.  Hydra-Fab manufacturing http://hydra-jett.com/index.html  sells small and medium sized drilling rigs and is worth looking at if you are considering moving up to a small rig.

As you might imagine, diggining mud pits is a significant undertaking and it makes an even bigger mess of your drilling site.  Modern drillers, being both ingenious and capitalistic souls, have devised a way to avoid this costly, unpleasant step.  They bring portable mud pits to the drill site.  A portable mud pit is simply a container or series of containers that the drilling fluid from the hole is directed to where cuttings settle out prior to the fluid being pumped again down the drillpipe.  Not only does it eliminate the time/money consuming digging but it leaves a cleaner drillsite upon completion of the well.

….but it frequently doesn’t work as well for those of us who have small portable mud pits.  Using real mud pits results in more efficient drilling.  There is no leakage around the guide tube with real mud pits.

Here is an example of a portable mud pit positioned at the back of a commercial drilling rig.  Cuttings from the hole are directed into the settling pit on the right.  Then drilling fluid passes through to the mud pit on the left and it is pumped back down the hole.

There is a wide variety of designs of portable mud pits.  Here are just a few sketches I found to give you an idea of designs that folks have come up with.

So, by now your are probably wondering, where does all that leave us?  We are not going to buy one of those $500 portable mud pits for our $200 project are we?  Absolutely not, in fact you may just be better off digging your pits.   If you are going to dig several wells you might want to consider using a portable mud pit with a mud pump.  I made one out of wood and it works fine.  It is not as efficient as the commercial mud pits but it does the job.  Please take a look at the video below.

As you can see my portable mud pit is just a wooden box with a fitting for the suction line and a minor obstruction to keep the cuttings away from the suction.  You can probably come up with a better design for a portable mud pit that I have.  I probably could but it is already built and I’m not inclined to build another one – but – If I were doing another one, I’d probably build two boxes that fit inside one another for easier travel and storage, and then sat beside each other when drilling.

You can drill your own shallow water well using PVC and household water hoses.   It is a cheap and effective way to dig your own shallow water well.  Water well drilling isn’t just for the pros with huge commercial drilling rigs.  Digging a water well yourself is both interesting and fun.

The water well drilling methods described here work well in digging/drilling through dirt, and clay, including really hard clay.  They will not work if you need to drill through rock but, if the area you live in is flat or relatively flat, it is definitely worth a try.  Many folks think they have to dig or drill their well into an aquifer.  For irrigation and lawn watering, reaching an aquifer isn’t necessary.  You only have to drill under the standing water level. It is very likely that you can drill your own well.  Many successful wells have been drilled using this well drilling method.  It is cheap. You can expect the “drilling” portion of the project to cost about $200.

In these pages the “do it yourself water well drilling” technique is referred to as well drilling, but many call this technique “washing” or “jetting” a well.   It is somewhat similar to the rotary bit method which most real water well drillers use for water bore drilling.

The DIY technique involves water pumped down the center of a PVC schedule 40 pipe used as both a drill stem and a drill bit.  At the bottom end of the PVC pipe a “drill bit” is fashioned by cutting teeth into the end of the PVC pipe.  The pipe is rotated back and forth as the PVC pipe is slowly worked into the ground while the cuttings are brought to the surface by the upward flow of water in the annular space around the pipe.   If you want to dig your own well, try this technique.

Installing a well and a pump can save a lot of money, especially if you are now paying the local utility for irrigation water.  You have probably noticed that just watering the lawn can get expensive.  You can spend less money watering the lawn.  Actually, you can spend almost no money watering the lawn.  It is great for gardeners, too.

If you are a first time visitor to the site you will probably want to start out with either the “Background” or the “Basic Well Drilling Steps” pages.  The bulk of the site is dedicated to drilling water wells using just two hoses for drilling fluid.  Inexpensive PVC is used for the drill pipe, the drill bit, and the well screen.  This DIY water well drilling technique is very cheap and many successful shallow wells have been installed using this technique.

When drilling a well by hand, it can be very helpful to at least be familiar with the techniques used by real well drillers – the kind with big powerful trucks and huge water tanks.  What we do is extremely similar, almost identical.  We can’t dig holes as wide or as deep but it is the same process.  A local well drilling company was kind enough to let me video their process.  Check it out at “Real Well Drilling.”

There are several enhancements you can make to the basic DIY well drilling technique.  To make the technique even more effective you can use the techniques described on the pages, “Drilling Deeper with BENTONITE” and “Drill 10 Feet Deeper.”  Additionally, converting to a metal drill bit will make your drilling more productive.  These are all techniques that were sent in by users of the site and discovered as they drilled their wells.

A gravel pack can increase a well’s production so there is a section on them.  I don’t recommend you include a gravel pack on your first well but after you get the hang of the technique this is something you will probably want to check out the pages on gravel packs.

Don’t go shopping for a pump without reading this page: Which Pump? You want a shallow well pump, also known as a suction pump. Pool pumps and other types of transfer pumps will not work.

In the “Videos” section, you will find videos that show techniques used world wide.  Some of these techniques, like the Baptist Method, require very little drilling fluid and have been used for centuries.

We’ve been fortunate enough to receive some input from Bob Tabor, a real well driller who has been drilling wells all of his life.  Please be sure and check out the page – “Advice from a REAL Well Driller.”

Bill Granade in Tampa, Florida has developed a very similar DIY water well drilling technique.  He has been wildly successful.  Bill has helped his neighbors drill a bunch of wells his protocols may be useful to you.  Look under “Another Home Driller.”

Several users of this site have been kind enough to send pictures and info about wells that they have drilled.  Check out “Success Stories” in the menu.  For example, one of our recent success stories, Steve in South Jersey is interesting. Steve needed a way to water his Christmas tree farm and he successfully drilled his own well.  Very impressive effort!  We even got a wonderful email from Greg in Australia about his successful well.

For drillers interested in moving up to the next level: be sure and check out the page on Mud Pump Drilling. It is absolutely the way to go if you can buy or borrow a mud pump (sometimes called a trash pump).  It costs more than the two hose method but is still a lot less expensive than hiring a driller.

There is a section for Questions and Answers where I have posted the most common questions I receive.  I hope it helps you.  There are also sections on Source of Supply, Well Drilling Manuals as well as Well Drilling Links.

Commercially drilled water wells tend to be very expensive.  This DIY well drilling technique is very cheap.  It will almost definitely work if you live near the coast and will likely work if you live in a flat inland area.It is great for saving money on watering your lawn and irrigating a garden.

As I mentioned in the video, the most interesting things I have experienced in posting this website are the enhancements and improvements that YOU, the viewers and users of this site have submitted.  I figured out a few improvements to the Brady Well Kit early on and I managed to drill a functional well after several tries and that is why I posted the site.  And then – users started writing me and showing me things they had discovered!  At this point, I can safely say that most of the techniques presented here are not mine.  They are yours!  I hope they help you.  I hope that if you discover an improvement or an enhancement that you will send it to me so I can post it for others to use.

Below is a video submitted by one of the users of this site.  Please take a look at the DIY water well drilled by Travis of Mobile, Alabama.  Travis used a 10 foot long 1.25 inch well screen.  Congratulations, Travis!

The 42-year-old, family-owned American Drilling Services in Florida, relied on homemade drill rigs to complete primarily 2- to 4-inch residential water wells. With demand increasing, they began looking for newer technology in order to complete more mud pump well drilling.

“Technology is always changing. We used to drill galvanized steel with cable drilling. Now we’re exclusively rotary drilling,” said William Diaz, driller, who has been with the company for seven years. “The technology gets better, and things get easier.”

“We used to do one well per day, occasionally two. The DM250 has helped us keep up with the workload by being able to drill quicker,” Diaz said. “The pulldown power of the top head is significantly stronger than our previous rigs. With the mud pump, we can clean out the hole a lot faster, which means less waiting around.”

“We’re not breaking down all the time, which is a huge advantage compared to our older rigs,” Diaz said. “Overall it’s a great rig. I recommend the DM250 to anyone doing 2- to 4-inch wells. It makes me happier because I’ve now got air conditioning, and I love the self-feed carousel. It’s a fast, great rig.”

The 2,200-hp mud pump for offshore applications is a single-acting reciprocating triplex mud pump designed for high fluid flow rates, even at low operating speeds, and with a long stroke design. These features reduce the number of load reversals in critical components and increase the life of fluid end parts.

The pump’s critical components are strategically placed to make maintenance and inspection far easier and safer. The two-piece, quick-release piston rod lets you remove the piston without disturbing the liner, minimizing downtime when you’re replacing fluid parts.

OK, all y’all air drillers just thumb on over to Porky’s column or something. This is for mud drillers. On second thought, I know a lot of you air guys drill about three mud wells a year, and consider it a hassle to rig up mud. So, maybe something I say will be interesting …

The mud pump is the heart of the circulating system, and mud is the blood circulating in the hole. I’ve talked about mud before and will again, but this month, let’s talk about the pump.

Historically, more wells, of every kind, have been drilled with duplex pumps than any other kind. They are simple and strong, and were designed in the days when things were meant to last. Most water well drillers use them. The drawbacks are size and weight. A pump big enough to do the job might be too big to fit on the rig, so some guys use skid-mounted pumps. They also take a fair amount of horsepower. If you were to break down the horsepower requirements of your rig, you would find out that the pump takes more power than the rotary and hoist combined. This is not a bad thing, since it does a lot of the work drilling. While duplex pumps generally make plenty of volume, one of the limiting factors is pressure. Handling the high pressures demanded by today’s oil well drilling required a pump so big and heavy as to be impractical. Some pretty smart guys came up with the triplex pump. It will pump the same — or more — volume in a smaller package, is easy to work on and will make insane pressure when needed. Some of the modern frack outfits run pumps that will pump all day long at 15,000 psi. Scary. Talk about burning some diesel.

The places that triplex pumps have in the shallow drilling market are in coring and air drilling. The volume needs are not as great. For instance, in hard rock coring, surface returns are not always even seen, and the fluid just keeps the diamonds cool. In air drilling, a small triplex is used to inject foam or other chemicals into the air line. It’s basically a glorified car wash pump. The generic name is Bean pump, but I think this just justifies a higher price. Kinda like getting the same burger at McDonald’s versus in a casino.

One of the reasons water well drillers don’t run triplex pumps, besides not needing insane pressure, is they require a positive suction head. In other words, they will not pick up out of the pit like a duplex. They require a centrifugal charging pump to feed them, and that is just another piece of equipment to haul and maintain.

This brings me to another thought: charging. I know a lot of drillers running duplex pumps that want to improve the efficiency of their pumps. Duplexes with a negative suction head generally run at about 85 percent efficiency. The easy way to improve the efficiency is to charge them, thus assuring a 100 percent efficiency. This works great, but almost every one of them, after doing all that work and rigging up a charging pump, tells me that their pump output doubled. Being the quiet, mild mannered type that I am, I don’t say “Bull,” but it is. A duplex pump is a positive displacement pump. That means that it can deliver no more than the displacement it was designed for. You can only fill the cylinder up until it is full. It won’t take any more. The one exception to this is when you are pumping at very low pressure. Then the charging pump will over run the duplex, float the valves and produce a lot more fluid. Might as well shut off the duplex and drill with the charging pump.

Another common pump used in the water well industry is the centrifugal. You see them mostly on air rigs that don’t use mud too often. They have their place, but are a different breed of cat. They are not positive displacement. Flow is a function of speed and horsepower up to the limits of the pump. After that, they just dead-head. With large diameter drill pipe they make a lot of mud, but after the hole gets deeper, friction losses — both inside and outside the drill pipe — build up. This means that the deeper you go, the less circulation you have. This slows the whole process. Positive displacement pumps don’t do this; they pump the same per stroke regardless of pressure. It just takes more horsepower. Also, displacement calculations like bottoms-up time and cement placement are just about impossible. One way to get around the limited pressure of centrifugal pumps is to run two of them in series. I’ve seen a few of these rig-ups and they work very well for large diameter drilling. They will make almost the same pressure as a big duplex for a lot less money. They are still variable displacement, but they roll so much fluid that it doesn’t seem to matter. And run at pretty reasonable depths, too: 300 to 400 psi at 400 gpm is not uncommon with two 3 x 4 centrifugal pumps in series.

I reckon there are pumps for every type of drilling. It is just a matter of using the right one correctly. I once drilled a 42-inch hole 842 feet deep with a 5½ x 8 duplex. Talk about long bottoms-up time … but we got the casing in with less than two feet of fill on bottom! Took time, but we got-er-done.

For the successful execution of your projects, it is important to find an appropriate company with a good track record. We help you in connecting with the top mud pump manufacturers and companies and get the best quotation.

The most widely used mud pumps across the industry are Triplex Reciprocating Pumps. Their application has gained immense popularity with time because they are 30% lighter than duplex reciprocating pumps with relatively less operational cost. Moreover, through these pumps the discharge of mud is smooth and they are capable of moving large volume of mud at higher pressure.

Yes. We help you find the best mud pumps irrespective of your location. We simplify your search by connecting you with top mud pump manufacturers and mud pump companies in your location, according to your budget and business requirement.

The most widely used mud pumps across the industry are Triplex Reciprocating Pumps. Their application has gained immense popularity with time because they are 30% lighter than duplex reciprocating pumps with relatively less operational cost. Moreover, through these pumps the discharge of mud is smooth and they are capable of moving large volume of mud at higher pressure.

The different parts of a mud pump are Housing itself, Liner with packing, Cover plus packing, Piston and piston rod, Suction valve and discharge valve with their seats, Stuffing box (only in double-acting pumps), Gland (only in double-acting pumps), and Pulsation dampener. A mud pump also includes mud pump liner, mud pump piston, modules, hydraulic seat pullers along with other parts.

The wearing parts of a mud pump should be checked frequently for repairing needs or replacement. The wearing parts include pump casing, bearings, impeller, piston, liner, etc. Advanced anti-wear measures should be taken up to enhance the service life of the wearing parts. This can effectively bring down the project costs and improve production efficiency.

Explore the various water well drills with mud pump products available for wholesale at Alibaba.com. Get a water well drills with mud pump for drilling water wells, water exploration holes, geological exploration, coal mines, and other kinds of mining. Some water well drills with mud pump options use caterpillar tread to move. Others use rubber tires, while others require a separate means of transport. Caterpillar tread propulsion can climb up to 25 degrees inclination. Some products in the range are capable of drilling over 200 meters, while others are only used for open-pit mining with depths of around 3 meters. Drilling can be done vertically downwards, horizontally, or in a slanting direction. Drilling speed depends on the power of the machine and the general hardness of the surface. The hole diameter can vary from 90mm to 200mm.

water well drills with mud pump options also include an air compressor, a mud pump, drilling rods of various sizes, connectors, and a drilling tower. Drilling is done using drill bits of various shapes, sizes, and compositions. You can choose between diamond bits, alloy ring-shaped bits, 3-wing alloy bits, PDC bits, and hammer bits. Each drill bit uses different drilling methods, including rotary, percussion, blast hole, and core drilling.

Smaller products have a lifting power of around 25 kilonewtons and weigh about 2,500kgs. They’re ideal for small-scale drillings such as farms and homes. Larger ones are faster with more power, making them ideal for commercial use. Browse through Alibaba.com and find a water well drills with mud pump that’s ideal for your work scope. Buy mine drilling rigs for your wholesale business at competitive prices. Chinese wholesalers provide you with customization options and great after-sales services.

Instead of converted water pipes, all rigs come standard with 200 ft. of high-strength drill stems with wide thread couplings. They also feature carry racks for drill stems, bits, and mud pumps. Other features include:

Hydra-Fab Manufacturing, Inc. also manufactures mud pumps. They are available in a wide range of power levels, from 6.5 HP to 16 HP. Features include:

Drilling your own well instead of using city water has many benefits. For one, it gives you access to clean, clear, and fresh water that is not loaded with chemicals. Ground water can be used for:

Drilling your own well also saves you on utility costs. What"s more, should a water shortage ever occur, you would still have fresh water without the need to pay for city water. You only need electricity to run the pump.

In geotechnical engineering, drilling fluid, also called drilling mud, is used to aid the drilling of boreholes into the earth. Often used while drilling oil and natural gas wells and on exploration drilling rigs, drilling fluids are also used for much simpler boreholes, such as water wells. One of the functions of drilling mud is to carry cuttings out of the hole.

The three main categories of drilling fluids are water-based muds (WBs), which can be dispersed and non-dispersed; non-aqueous muds, usually called oil-based muds (OBs); and gaseous drilling fluid, in which a wide range of gases can be used. Along with their formatives, these are used along with appropriate polymer and clay additives for drilling various oil and gas formations.

The main functions of drilling fluids include providing hydrostatic pressure to prevent formation fluids from entering into the well bore, keeping the drill bit cool and clean during drilling, carrying out drill cuttings, and suspending the drill cuttings while drilling is paused and when the drilling assembly is brought in and out of the hole. The drilling fluid used for a particular job is selected to avoid formation damage and to limit corrosion.

Many types of drilling fluids are used on a day-to-day basis. Some wells require different types to be used in different parts of the hole, or that some types be used in combination with others. The various types of fluid generally fall into broad categories:

Water-based mud (WBM): Most water-based mud systems begin with water, then clays and other chemicals are added to create a homogeneous blend with viscosity between chocolate milk and a malt. The clay is usually a combination of native clays that are suspended in the fluid while drilling, or specific types of clay processed and sold as additives for the WBM system. The most common type is bentonite, called "gel" in the oilfield. The name likely refers to the fluid viscosity as very thin and free-flowing (like chocolate milk) while being pumped, but when pumping is stopped, the static fluid congeals to a "gel" that resists flow. When adequate pumping force is applied to "break the gel," flow resumes and the fluid returns to its free-flowing state. Many other chemicals (e.g. potassium formate) are added to a WBM system to achieve desired effects, including: viscosity control, shale stability, enhance drilling rate of penetration, and cooling and lubricating of equipment.

Oil-based mud (OBM): Oil-based mud has a petroleum based fluid such as diesel fuel. Oil-based muds are used for increased lubricity, enhanced shale inhibition, and greater cleaning abilities with less viscosity. Oil-based muds also withstand greater heat without breaking down. The use of oil-based muds has special considerations of cost, environmental concerns such as disposal of cuttings in an appropriate place, and the exploratory disadvantages of using oil-based mud, especially in wildcat wells. Using an oil-based mud interferes with the geochemical analysis of cuttings and cores and with the determination of API gravity because the base fluid cannot be distinguished from oil that is returned from the formation.

Synthetic-based fluid (SBM) (Otherwise known as Low Toxicity Oil Based Mud or LTOBM): Synthetic-based fluid is a mud in which the base fluid is a synthetic oil. This is most often used on offshore rigs because it has the properties of an oil-based mud, but the toxicity of the fluid fumes are much less. This is important when the drilling crew works with the fluid in an enclosed space such as an offshore drilling rig. Synthetic-based fluid poses the same environmental and analysis problems as oil-based fluid.

On a drilling rig, mud is pumped from the casing, where it emerges from the top. Cuttings are then filtered out with either a shale shaker or the newer shale conveyor technology, and the mud returns to the mud pits. The mud pits allow the drilled "fines" to settle and the mud to be treated by adding chemicals and other substances.

The returning mud may contain natural gases or other flammable materials which will collect in and around the shale shaker / conveyor area or in other work areas. Because of the risk of a fire or an explosion if they ignite, special monitoring sensors and explosion-proof certified equipment is commonly installed, and workers are trained in safety precautions. The mud is then pumped back down the hole and further re-circulated. After testing, the mud is treated periodically in the mud pits to ensure it has desired properties that optimize and improve drilling efficiency and borehole stability.

Drilling fluid carries the rock excavated by the drill bit up to the surface. Its ability to do so depends on cutting size, shape, and density, and speed of fluid traveling up the well (annular velocity). These considerations are analogous to the ability of a stream to carry sediment. Large sand grains in a slow-moving stream settle to the stream bed, while small sand grains in a fast-moving stream are carried along with the water. The mud viscosity is an important property, as cuttings will settle to the bottom of the well if the viscosity is too low.

Most drilling muds are thixotropic (viscosity increases when static). This characteristic keeps the cuttings suspended when the mud is not flowing during, for example, maintenance.

High density fluids may clean holes adequately even with lower annular velocities (by increasing the buoyancy force acting on cuttings) but may have a negative impact if mud weight exceeds that needed to balance the pressure of surrounding rock (formation pressure), so mud weight is not usually increased for hole cleaning.

Higher rotary drill-string speeds introduce a circular component to annular flow path. This helical flow around the drill-string causes drill cuttings near the wall, where poor hole cleaning conditions occur, to move into higher transport regions of the annulus. Increased rotation speed is the one of the best methods for increasing hole cleaning in high angle and horizontal wells.

Heavy material that settles is referred to as sag, which causes a wide variation in the density of well fluid. This more frequently occurs in high angle and hot wells.

For effective solids controls, drill solids must be removed from mud on the 1st circulation from the well. If re-circulated, cuttings break into smaller pieces and are more difficult to remove.

If formation pressure increases, mud density should be increased to balance pressure and keep the wellbore stable. The most common weighting material is baryte. Unbalanced formation pressure will cause an unexpected influx (also known as a kick) of formation fluids into the wellbore possibly leading to a blowout from pressurized formation fluid.

Hydrostatic pressure = density of drilling fluid * true vertical depth * acceleration of gravity. If hydrostatic pressure is greater than or equal to formation pressure, formation fluid will not flow into the wellbore.

Hydrostatic pressure also controls the stress from tectonic forces, which can render wellbores unstable even when formation fluid pressure is balanced.

In practice, mud density should be limited to the minimum necessary for well control and wellbore stability. If too great it may fracture the formation.

Mud column pressure must exceed formation pressure, in this condition mud filtrate invades the formation, and a filter cake of mud is deposited on the wellbore wall.

Depending on the mud system in use, a number of additives can improve the filter cake (e.g. bentonite, natural & synthetic polymer, asphalt and gilsonite).

Chemical composition and mud properties must combine to provide a stable wellbore. Weight of the mud must be within the necessary range to balance the mechanical forces.

Wellbore instability = sloughing formations, which can cause tight hole conditions, bridges and fill on trips (same symptoms indicate hole cleaning problems).

In shales, mud weight is usually sufficient to balance formation stress, as these wells are usually stable. With water base mud, chemical differences can cause interactions between mud & shale that lead to softening of the native rock. Highly fractured, dry, brittle shales can be extremely unstable (leading to mechanical problems).

Various chemical inhibitors can control mud / shale interactions (calcium, potassium, salt, polymers, asphalt, glycols and oil – best for water sensitive formations)

To add inhibition, emulsified brine phase (calcium chloride) drilling fluids are used to reduce water activity and creates osmotic forces to prevent adsorption of water by Shales.

Lubrication based on the coefficient of friction.("Coefficient of friction" is how much friction on side of wellbore and collar size or drill pipe size to pull stuck pipe) Oil- and synthetic-based mud generally lubricate better than water-based mud (but the latter can be improved by the addition of lubricants).

Drilling fluids also support portion of drill-string or casing through buoyancy. Suspend in drilling fluid, buoyed by force equal to weight (or density) of mud, so reducing hook load at derrick.

Hydraulic energy provides power to mud motor for bit rotation and for MWD (measurement while drilling) and LWD (logging while drilling) tools. Hydraulic programs base on bit nozzles sizing for available mud pump horsepower to optimize jet impact at bottom well.

Mud loggers examine cuttings for mineral composition, visual sign of hydrocarbons and recorded mud logs of lithology, ROP, gas detection or geological parameters.

Mud should have thin, slick filter cake, with minimal solids in filter cake, wellbore with minimal cuttings, caving or bridges will prevent a good casing run to bottom. Circulate well bore until clean.

Mud low viscosity, mud parameters should be tolerant of formations being drilled, and drilling fluid composition, turbulent flow - low viscosity high pump rate, laminar flow - high viscosity, high pump rate.

Water based drilling fluid has very little toxicity, made from water, bentonite and baryte, all clay from mining operations, usually found in Wyoming and in Lunde, Telemark.

There are specific chemicals that can be used in water based drilling fluids that alone can be corrosive and toxic, such as hydrochloric acid. However,

Caustic (sodium hydroxide), anhydrous lime, soda ash, bentonite, baryte and polymers are the most common chemicals used in water based drilling fluids.

Water-based drilling mud most commonly consists of bentonite clay (gel) with additives such as barium sulfate (baryte), calcium carbonate (chalk) or hematite. Various thickeners are used to influence the viscosity of the fluid, e.g. xanthan gum, guar gum, glycol, carboxymethylcellulose, polyanionic cellulose (PAC), or starch. In turn, deflocculants are used to reduce viscosity of clay-based muds; anionic polyelectrolytes (e.g. acrylates, polyphosphates, lignosulfonates (Lig) or tannic acid derivates such as Quebracho) are frequently used. Red mud was the name for a Quebracho-based mixture, named after the color of the red tannic acid salts; it was commonly used in the 1940s to 1950s, then was made obsolete when lignosulfonates became available. Other components are added to provide various specific functional characteristics as listed above. Some other common additives include lubricants, shale inhibitors, fluid loss additives (to control loss of drilling fluids into permeable formations). A weighting agent such as baryte is added to increase the overall density of the drilling fluid so that sufficient bottom hole pressure can be maintained thereby preventing an unwanted (and often dangerous) influx of formation fluids

Freshwater mud: Low pH mud (7.0–9.5) that includes spud, bentonite, natural, phosphate treated muds, organic mud and organic colloid treated mud. high pH mud example alkaline tannate treated muds are above 9.5 in pH.

Water based drilling mud that represses hydration and dispersion of clay – There are 4 types: high pH lime muds, low pH gypsum, seawater and saturated salt water muds.

Low solids mud: These muds contain less than 3–6% solids by volume and weight less than 9.5 lbs/gal. Most muds of this type are water-based with varying quantities of bentonite and a polymer.

Oil based mud: Oil based muds contain oil as the continuous phase and water as a contaminant, and not an element in the design of the mud. They typically contain less than 5% (by volume) water. Oil-based muds are usually a mixture of diesel fuel and asphalt, however can be based on produced crude oil and mud

"Mud engineer" is the name given to an oil field service company individual who is charged with maintaining a drilling fluid or completion fluid system on an oil and/or gas drilling rig.mud engineer, or more properly drilling fluids engineer, is critical to the entire drilling operation because even small problems with mud can stop the whole operations on rig. The internationally accepted shift pattern at off-shore drilling operations is personnel (including mud engineers) work on a 28-day shift pattern, where they work for 28 continuous days and rest the following 28 days. In Europe this is more commonly a 21-day shift pattern.

In offshore drilling, with new technology and high total day costs, wells are being drilled extremely fast. Having two mud engineers makes economic sense to prevent down time due to drilling fluid difficulties. Two mud engineers also reduce insurance costs to oil companies for environmental damage that oil companies are responsible for during drilling and production. A senior mud engineer typically works in the day, and a junior mud engineer at night.

The cost of the drilling fluid is typically about 10% (may vary greatly) of the total cost of drilling a well, and demands competent mud engineers. Large cost savings result when the mud engineer and fluid performs adequately.

The compliance engineer is the most common name for a relatively new position in the oil field, emerging around 2002 due to new environmental regulations on synthetic mud in the United States. Previously, synthetic mud was regulated the same as water-based mud and could be disposed of in offshore waters due to low toxicity to marine organisms. New regulations restrict the amount of synthetic oil that can be discharged. These new regulations created a significant burden in the form of tests needed to determine the "ROC" or retention on cuttings, sampling to determine the percentage of crude oil in the drilling mud, and extensive documentation. No type of oil/synthetic based mud (or drilled cuttings contaminated with OBM/SBM) may be dumped in the North Sea. Contaminated mud must either be shipped back to shore in skips or processed on the rigs.

Clark, Peter E. (1995-01-01). "Drilling Mud Rheology and the API Recommended Measurements". SPE Production Operations Symposium. Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi:10.2118/29543-MS. ISBN 9781555634483.