Well Drillers in Cochise County, AZ

Well Drillers in Cochise County, Arizona

Cochise County’s four licensed well drillers serve one of Arizona’s most complex groundwater environments. The county’s broad agricultural valleys — the Sulphur Springs Valley (Willcox Basin), the San Pedro Valley, and the upper Santa Cruz — are ground zero for some of the most contentious groundwater debates in the state, while the surrounding mountain communities and rural ranchettes have more modest but equally important well water needs.

Drilling in the Willcox Basin

The Willcox Basin has seen some of the most dramatic water table declines in Arizona. Annual declines of 3–12 feet in the most pumped areas are not unusual, which has two important implications for new well drilling:

Target depths must account for ongoing decline. A well drilled to 300 feet in the 1990s may now need to be deepened or may be producing from a saturated zone that’s shrinking. New wells are typically drilled 50–100 feet below current water table levels to provide a buffer.
Well location matters more here than elsewhere. As the basin is pumped down, cone-of-depression effects from large agricultural pumps can affect nearby domestic wells. Siting a new domestic well away from large agricultural pump fields is important.

Drilling depths in the Willcox Basin typically run 300–600 feet for domestic wells, with agricultural wells often going deeper. The aquifer is alluvial (sand and gravel), making rotary drilling relatively straightforward.

Drilling in the Huachuca City / Fort Huachuca Area

The Huachuca Mountains and surrounding communities have a more complex hydrogeologic setting. The mountains themselves are relatively wet (highest precipitation in Cochise County), and their crystalline rock formations provide recharge to the surrounding basins. Domestic wells in the communities around Fort Huachuca are typically 200–500 feet deep.

Fort Huachuca is the dominant water user in this area and has worked proactively with ADWR to develop artificial recharge programs to offset pumping impacts on the upper San Pedro River.

Water Quality Considerations

Nitrates: Agricultural use across the Sulphur Springs Valley has elevated nitrate levels in some shallow wells. Test annually if within a few miles of irrigated fields.
Hardness: Moderate to hard across most of the county (200–400 mg/L).
TDS: Generally 400–900 mg/L; palatable in most areas.
Arsenic: Low to moderate; test all new wells per standard practice.

Licensed Well Drillers in Cochise County

Huachuca City

Triple L Well & Pump — (520) 456-9377 — triplelwell.com
Triple L Well & Pump Services — (520) 456-9377 — triplelwell.com
BJ Drilling Company Inc — (520) 623-1010 — bjdrilling.com — Also operates out of Tucson

Willcox