Family Water Well Drilling Business Invests in Its Future

Todd Ferguson's drilling career started with a summer job and a casual remark.

"While I worked for a well drilling company one summer, I mentioned if they were ever selling some equipment I'd be interested," said Ferguson, now owner of Splash Well Drilling. "A year after I graduated, I got the call. My Dad and I got the financing together to buy the cable tool rig in 1986."

The Ontario-based company shifted from a father-son partnership into a three-generation family water well drilling business. Today, son Johnathon handles drilling while daughter Chelsea manages the office.

"I'm glad family came on board. It's a proud feeling having your children working in the company," Todd said. "Every job is a new job — your brain has to work. So being in the water well drilling business never gets stale. That's part of the reason I keep doing it."

Time for a Change

After years of service and multiple rebuilds, their 2001 T3 rig was showing its age. The search for a replacement proved challenging. At the 2022 NGWA show, one manufacturer promised follow-up.

"They said they'd have their Canadian sales rep reach out to me," he said. "I still haven't heard from him."

A friend's purchase of a different brand offered another option — until they took a closer look.

"It was a lot of wires. We're not big on wires, especially all wadded up under the control panel," Todd said. "We're not electricians. We're mechanics who prefer hydraulic over hydraulic and don't want to be chasing wires."

Finding the Right Fit

The path to Geoprobe^® began when Todd saw a DM450 operating in Florida. Conversations with Donnie Wood followed, along with an invitation to the 2024 Open House. Fellow Canadian drillers, Mackinnon, shared positive experiences buying their two DM650s.

"When you're spending that kind of money to buy a big rig, you want to feel good about the people making and supporting it on the back end,” Todd said. “With a DM rig you get good service on the front and the back end of the sale.

The Open House visit sealed the deal.

"I hadn't seen a DM rig run until we went to Open House," Johnathon said. "Being able to see how they're being put together, how they run, and how the rod handling works was the final step in deciding to sign the purchase contract."

The manufacturing tour left a lasting impression

"Seeing everything made in house was impressive," Todd said.

A Rig That Delivers for the Family Water Well Drilling Business

Since delivery, the DM650 has exceeded expectations.

"It's well thought out and laid out well. It's easy to work on because hoses aren't balled together. It has more power, lots of torque to go through glacial till easier," Todd said.

As the primary driller for the family water well drilling business, Johnathon has put the DM650 through its paces. It has exceeded expectations across every application:

• Air Rotary: "It drills a lot faster with more air volume. It's faster to trip in and out of the hole."
• Mud Rotary: "On mud jobs, the pump is easier to hear and see what's going on compared to our old rig and easier to connect to our Mud Slayer."
• Power & Strength: "The torque is higher for using our 12- or 14-inch tricone. The rigid derrick eliminates deflection. It just handles the big jobs well and makes our T3 feel like a toy."
• Rod Handling: "The rod handling and ability to backload the carousel means the driller can stay on the platform drilling while the helper loads the carousel."
• Head Side Shift: "The head shifting both ways makes it easy to open up the table and not have any restriction at the top of the rig."

Service That Keeps Them Running

With drilling season running April through December, reliable support is crucial.

"When you call Geoprobe^®, they understand the water well industry and know what they're talking about," Todd said.

The Geoprobe^® response to warranty work did surprise them.

"We had a hydraulic cylinder leaking and thought they would probably just send us a kit to take in to a shop for a rebuild," Todd said. "They sent us the whole cylinder, so it was plug and play."

Even in Canada, help is only a phone call away.

"When you make a service call, they pick up the phone and try to solve the problem as quickly as possible," Johnathon said. "We've only had a couple of issues, so you know the equipment is solid."

Looking Ahead

Todd is confident in their investment.

"If we're ever looking for another rig, a Geoprobe® DM series rig would be first on the list," he said. "Maybe a DM450 next time."

As for that friend's wire-tangled competitor rig?

"He's admitted he doesn't think it's a 20-year rig. Twenty years down the road I'm confident our DM650 will still be drilling," Todd said. "We might run the truck out, but the drill will still be running."

Racing the Tariff Clock

With completion scheduled for April 2025, potential tariffs threatened the purchase.

"The potential tariffs announced would have made it almost not feasible to complete the purchase," Todd explains. "I asked Donnie if we could get the rig before the end of March."

Geoprobe^® responded by accelerating production.

"We were able to pick up the rig at the border March 28, a few days ahead of when the tariffs were supposed to go into effect," Todd said. "We greatly appreciate the extra effort Team Geoprobe^® put in to make that happen."

Chelsea handled the import process.

"All of them were wonderful to deal with and very fast at responding to anything we may have needed for importing the rig," Chelsea said. "We would highly recommend Geoprobe^® to anyone in the market for a new drill rig."