MONITORING--Commercial availability of modular casing components and packer-transducer assemblies for of quality/head monitor wells




             UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
                        GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
                        RESTON VIRGINIA  22092

                                                  Code 4351 5016

                                                  June 20, 1979

GROUND WATER BRANCH TECHNICAL MEMORANDUM NO. 79.06

SUBJECT:  MONITORING--Commercial availability of modular casing
                      components and packer-transducer assemblies
                      for construction of quality/head monitor
                      wells

Ground-water projects commonly require fairly detailed information
about the distribution of head, hydraulic conductivity, and
ground-water quality with depth.  Commercial equipment deigned
specifically to assist in the collection of these types of
information is described in the enclosed brochures.  These are 1)
modular casing components useful in the design of multi-zone
monitoring wells and 2) a packer-transducer assembly that can be
run into the casing to obtain information on head, to conduct
hydraulic tests, and to obtain water-quality samples from various
zones in a well.  The modular casing components include a valve
that can be opened for measuring pressure and collection of a
sample, and then closed.  Several of these units can be installed
at selected depths in a single string of casing.

We first saw this equipment on display at the last Geological
Society of America annual meeting.  We are not aware of other
commercial equipment designed to function exactly as described in
the brochures.  The equipment has not been used extensively on a
WRD project, and we can not provide information on actual field
performance.  Consequently, this material is distributed only for
the purpose of new testing equipment that might be suitable for
use without extensive modification.

Additional information on performance, support requirements, and
costs should be obtained from the manufacturer before deciding
whether this sort of equipment is suitable for the needs of an
individual project.  If you utilize the equipment, please provide
us a brief summary of your experience with it.



                                     (s) Gerald Meyer
                                     Chief, Ground Water Branch

Enclosures

WRD Distribution:   A - (Memo only)
                    B - 22 copies each
Regional office (Memo and enclosures)
                    FOL - (Memo and enclosures)