Why Horizontal Directional Drilling is Done

Horizontal directional drilling (HDD) refers to drilling into the core of the ground without going in a vertical direction. In this case, it involves digging sideways instead of downwards. This article discusses why you should consider HDD in case you are drilling to lay utilities, exploit minerals like oil or construct underground roads or rail networks.

It Reaches Where Vertical Drilling is Impracticable

You may wish to tap underground water reservoirs but those reservoirs are located underneath a highly populated area like a university campus. It may be hard for you (due to the disruptive nature of surface drilling) to set up a drilling pad on the university grounds in order to reach that water supply underneath it. In such a case, HDD would be the ideal method to access that underground supply since you would set up the drill pad off the university grounds and then drill horizontally to reach the supplies underneath the campus.

Increase the Productivity of a Drilled Zone

Imagine that you dug a well to supply irrigation water to your farm and a borehole engineer informs you that the well will run out of water in a few years. What options would you have?

One option would be to do nothing and wait for the water to dry up. Another option would be to drill horizontally so that your well benefits from water reservoirs that may have been shielded by rocks separating the current rock fracture that trapped the water you are pumping up. HDD would be a more cost-effective way to ensure sustainability of your water supply rather than digging a fresh well in a new location.

Relieve Well Pressure

You may have dug a well to tap underground water but once you reach the water then it begins gushing out at a very high pressure. That high pressure may cause your hoses to burst frequently due to the excessive pressure they are subjected to.

In order to "tame" your well you can perform HDD so that the subsidiary wells (horizontal ones) connecting to the vertical one help to reduce the pressure at which water is gushing out of the main well since some of it will be diverted into the horizontal shafts drilled. Your hardware (hoses, for example) will last longer because it will no longer be withstanding very high flow pressures.

As you can see, horizontal directional drilling offers a less disruptive way to cut costs while accessing or laying underground infrastructure needs. Use it as you drill for different purposes and you will enjoy those benefits it bestows. For more information contact resources like Daley Directional Drilling.