Annual Water Drilling Equipment Maintenance Minimizes Downtime

A second-generation driller, Justin Mizell’s father started Mizell Well Drilling around the year he was born. The 40-year-old company focuses mainly on 4-inch PVC wells from 100 to 600 feet.

“I don’t work as hard as I used to when I was 16-years-old,” Mizell said. “The water drilling equipment has gotten a lot better.”

They “ran the heck out of" their first DM250 before trading the 2005 model on a 2017 DM250.

“Then in 2023 we got a Geoprobe^® DM250. From 2017 to 2023 the difference is monumental. I couldn’t believe how much was upgraded in five years,” Mizell said. “The top head is so much improved. I’m really impressed with everything since the merger with Geoprobe^® and am excited to see the stuff they do in the future.”

Mizell finds the newer water drilling equipment doesn’t seem to need as much TLC and is grateful he hasn’t experienced any significant downtime in a long time. He attributes this in part to an annual maintenance routine. Mizell typically travels out of town one or two weeks per year and uses that time to schedule routine water drilling equipment maintenance at the Geoprobe^® Southeast Service Center (SESC) in Ocala, Florida.

“I usually take the rig in once a year for full inspection and service — mud pump seals, oil change, etc. I leave it with them for a week while I’m on vacation. I believe that’s why we don’t have many troubles,” Mizell said. “I stay on top of the maintenance and then get the rig to them to do bigger stuff I can’t, or don’t want, to do myself.”

The SESC is 2.5 hours away from his home and he finds comfort knowing that no matter what happens, he can get his water drilling equipment in to be serviced quickly.

“I’m a really good well driller, but not a fan of being a well drilling rig mechanic,” Mizell said. “My Dad was the opposite, but I’d rather spend my time drilling wells versus working on rigs.”

The SESC keeps him from unexpected downtime or having to self-service his equipment.

“It would take me three times as long to complete a repair as it does them,” Mizell said. “I could have drilled two wells in the time it would take me to finish a repair job.”