Do you have a borehole already?
Borehole Drillers South Africa helps you find the best quote, fast, on borehole drilling, pumps, repairs and water treatment across South Africa. Describe the job once, and LEADERR APPROVED providers who cover your area reply with prices.
- Tell us what you need: a new hole drilled, a pump installed, a borehole that has stopped, or the water tested and treated.
- Drilling contractors who cover your area reply with a rate per metre and what it includes, and you compare them yourself.
- Find the best contractor near you, at the best price, so you never pay too much.
- Tell us what you need once, and the quotes come back fast.
- From LEADERR APPROVED providers, vetted and backed by many verified 5-star reviews. Giving you peace of mind that you'll pick the perfect provider for your needs.
Describe the job once and get the best quote, fast.
Get the Best QuoteBorehole Prices in South Africa
Ballpark ranges across the common jobs, so you can check a quotation.
| Item | Ballpark price |
|---|---|
| Drilling, per metre, domestic hole | R450 - R850 |
| Drilling, per metre, agricultural hole | R550 - R1,200 |
| uPVC casing, per metre installed | R220 - R480 |
| Mobilisation, within a metro | R2,500 - R6,500 |
| Typical 60m domestic hole, drilled and cased | R45,000 - R85,000 |
| Geophysical siting survey, domestic stand | R2,500 - R7,500 |
| Submersible pump, installed, domestic | R18,000 - R48,000 |
| Solar borehole pump system, domestic | R35,000 - R65,000 |
| Wellpoint and surface pump, garden setup | R9,500 - R26,000 |
| Repair callout and diagnosis, metro | R850 - R2,200 |
| Pump pull and refit | R4,500 - R12,000 |
| Rehabilitation of a clogged hole | R15,000 - R45,000 |
| Full SANS 241 water analysis | R2,200 - R5,500 |
| 5,000 litre tank and stand, installed | R9,500 - R22,000 |
Prices JUST UPDATED. Ballpark figures, rounded, excluding VAT. They reflect typical South African borehole drilling, pump and water treatment rates. They are not our prices or quotations, and no provider is bound by them.
What Providers Quote For
| Job | Typical scope |
|---|---|
| Borehole drilling | Sited, drilled, cased and developed, quoted per metre |
| Pumps and installation | Submersible pumps sized to the hole, wired and protected |
| Repairs and breakdowns | No water, low flow, tripping pumps and dropped columns |
| Maintenance and cleaning | Annual servicing, and airlifting a hole that has clogged |
| Testing | Yield tests to size a pump, and SANS 241 water analysis |
| Treatment and storage | Iron removal, softeners, UV, tanks and pressure sets |
| Farms and business | Irrigation and commercial supply, with the licensing it needs |
How It Works
- Describe the job. One short request: what you need, where the property is and what the water is for.
- Contractors reply. Those covering your area send a rate and what it includes.
- You compare. Side by side, on what is in the price, not on who answered first.
- You appoint. Directly with the contractor. We are not party to the work.
What to Settle Before You Drill
- The dry hole term. What you pay if no water is found. In writing, before the rig books, and worth more than a small difference in the metre rate.
- Whether casing is included. A rate per metre that excludes the lining is not comparable to one that includes it.
- Who sites the hole. A geophysical survey costs a few thousand rand and improves the odds considerably.
- How the yield was measured. Blown on air or test pumped. They are not the same number and a pump sized off the wrong one fails.
- Whether the pump is in the price. A drilling quote and a turnkey quote are two different jobs.
- Registration. Boreholes are registered with the Department of Water and Sanitation, and some municipalities want to know as well.
Choosing What You Need
- A new borehole. Drilled tens of metres into rock. The main supply option on most properties.
- A wellpoint. A few metres into sand where the water table is shallow. Cheaper, and a garden supply.
- A pump only. Where the hole exists and is cased, and all it needs is equipping.
- A repair. Most boreholes that stop need electrical work or a pump, not a new hole.
- Rehabilitation. Cleaning a clogged hole, which is often a quarter to a half of drilling a new one.
- Testing and treatment. What the water is, and what has to be done to it before anyone drinks it.
Get prices for your own setup rather than a range.
Get the Best QuoteWhat to Include in Your Request
- The address. Suburb and town, so a contractor knows whether they work there.
- What the water is for. A garden, a house, livestock, irrigation or a business.
- How much you need. Roughly, in litres a day, or the area to be irrigated.
- Whether a hole exists. And its depth, water level and yield if you know them.
- Whether the site is surveyed. And if so, the target depth and position.
- The access. Whether a truck can reach the drilling spot, and the gate width.
Availability
- Domestic drilling. Two to six weeks for a rig in the metros, and longer in a dry season.
- Farm drilling. Booked around the rig's route, so several holes on one visit is both cheaper and sooner.
- Pump installations. Usually within a week or two once the yield figure exists.
- Breakdowns. Same day in the metros, at a callout or after hours rate.
- Yield tests. A day on site, and longer where a water use application depends on it.
- Water analysis. A few days from the laboratory, and microbiology must reach it the same day.
Comparing Contractors
- Separate the line items. Mobilisation, drilling per metre, casing per metre, development. Then the quotes compare.
- Price the worst case. Take the rate to the deepest likely depth, not the shallowest.
- Ask what is excluded. Extra casing, rock bits, a second attempt and the pump are the usual ones.
- Check whether VAT is in. On a R70,000 job that is a real difference.
- Ask for the borehole log. A record of what was drilled through and where the water came in. It is yours.
- Check the distance. A contractor with a depot near you often beats a lower rate from further away.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you drill the boreholes yourselves?
No. Borehole Drillers South Africa helps you find the best quote, fast. Independent drilling contractors own the rigs, do the work, carry their own insurance and quote you directly.
What does it cost to use?
Nothing to request quotes. You deal directly with whichever contractor you appoint, on their terms.
How many quotes will I get?
It depends on your area and the job. The metros have a good number of rigs and most requests get several replies; remote districts have fewer, and a specialist job such as a large diameter commercial hole narrows the field further.
How much does it cost to drill a borehole in South Africa?
Roughly R450 to R850 a metre for a domestic hole plus R220 to R480 a metre for casing and a mobilisation charge, which puts a typical 60 metre hole drilled and cased at around R45,000 to R85,000 before the pump. A pump, pipework and electrical work typically add R30,000 to R70,000.
Why is drilling quoted per metre rather than per hole?
Because the depth is unknown until the hole is drilled. The rock decides it, not the quotation. A contractor who quotes a fixed total for an unsurveyed site is either carrying that risk in a high price or planning to stop at a depth that suits them.
What happens if no water is found?
That depends entirely on what you agreed beforehand. Full rate, a reduced dry hole rate and no charge on a surveyed site are all offered in the market. It is the single most valuable line in a drilling quotation, so settle it in writing before the rig is booked.
Do I need permission to drill a borehole?
Reasonable domestic use is generally allowed under Schedule 1 of the National Water Act, and the borehole should be registered with the Department of Water and Sanitation. Abstraction for irrigation or commercial use needs a water use authorisation. Some municipalities also require registration with them and set minimum distances from boundaries and septic tanks, so check with your own council.
Is borehole water safe to drink?
Not until it has been tested. Clear, odourless water can carry E coli or nitrate, neither of which can be seen or tasted at dangerous levels. Have it analysed against SANS 241 before anyone drinks it, and again each year.
My borehole has stopped. Does that mean a new hole?
Rarely. Most boreholes that stop have an electrical, control gear or pump fault, and a good share of no water callouts are solved without the pump leaving the hole. A hole that has lost yield is often clogged rather than finished, and cleaning it costs a fraction of drilling again.
Borehole Drilling and Water Supply in South Africa
Choose the work you need quoted
Drilling and Siting
Borehole Drilling
Sited, drilled, cased and developed, quoted per metre
Farm Drilling
High yield holes for irrigation and livestock
Commercial Boreholes
Supply for estates, factories and institutions
Wellpoint Installation
The shallow option where the ground is sandy
Water Survey
Geophysical siting before the rig is booked
Drilling Prices
What each line item costs, and which ones move the total
Pumps and Installation
Borehole Installation
The whole system, from the hole to the tap
Pump Installation
Submersible pumps sized to the hole and protected
Solar Pumps
Panels, a controller and a tank instead of batteries
Repairs and Servicing
Borehole Repairs
No water, low flow, tripping and cycling pumps
Emergency Repairs
Same day and after hours callouts
Borehole Maintenance
The annual check that stops a breakdown
Rehabilitation
Cleaning a clogged hole instead of drilling again
Water, Testing and Storage
Water Testing
SANS 241 laboratory analysis before anyone drinks it
Yield Testing
The pumped figure a pump should be sized from
Water Filtration
Iron removal, softeners, UV and reverse osmosis
Water Tank Installation
Storage that makes a modest hole behave like a strong one
Get the Best Quote, Fast
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