Stellar Service for MiniStar

Having no previous experience in the water well industry, Travis Hampton began working for his father at Hampton Well Drilling during the early 2000s. He soon discovered that this was the career to stick with.

“When my dad decided he was done, I decided to buy the business. It’s been really good,” Hampton said. “We have four employees, including myself, and provide service for a 160-mile area. It seems like it gets bigger every year.”

In the sand hills of Nebraska, where “there’s more cattle than people”, Hampton Well Drilling’s primary focus is on providing livestock wells and installing solar panels.

“We’re doing 40 wells a year, and we’re putting in 60 solars a year just for livestock,” Hampton said. “We average about half a dozen domestic wells and then a few windmills. And it has changed in the last decade. Before that it was 100-percent windmills, and now folks are realizing they’re getting more reliable water with solars.”

In addition to several water trucks and a pump hoist, Hampton relies on a secondhand SpeedStar MiniStar to get the job done. But 10 years of hard work meant it was ready for an upgrade. Hampton knew who to call.

Calling the Experts

“I’ve been following Geoprobe^® a lot, since I want a DM250,” Hampton said. “And I figured the Geoprobe^® Kansas Service Center (KSSC) had a lot more knowledge. I’d much rather have their service guys do upgrades, since they’re familiar with drill rigs, than for me to take the rig apart and not be able to put it back together – or take all winter to do so.”

When he brought his MiniStar in, Hampton’s wish list included:

• Mud pump overhaul

• Breakout wrench addition

• Hydraulic maintenance

• Top head drive refurbishment

First Impressions

As a first time Geoprobe^® visitor, Hampton noticed that it was a “night and day difference” from service he’d gotten elsewhere.

• Friendly Personnel: “All the personnel I talked to and dealt with have been great. They kept me in the loop with the repairs.”

• Done Right the First Time: “Everything I’ve had the KSSC do I’m very satisfied with. The other places I’ve been to were not that way. There was a lot of taking the rig back in, refixing things already fixed, and I had none of those issues with Geoprobe^®."

• Geoprobe Connect^™: “I was really impressed with the records that they keep on equipment, whether you’re buying stuff from them or just having them work on it. My rig has only been there one time, and they already have all the information I’ll ever need. That was above and beyond anybody I’ve ever dealt with.”

One Happy Customer

And now that his rig is back in his hands?

“I’ve absolutely noticed a difference in our rig. We’ve already drilled 22 wells with it,” Hampton said. “We are 100% satisfied.”