Borehole Guides for South Africa
Plain-English guides for South African homeowners, from your first questions about boreholes to rules, water quality and long-term upkeep. Each guide shows its sources and says where we could not confirm something.
Last reviewed .
What Is a Borehole?
What a borehole is, how it works and the main types, with what one costs and the risks, including dry holes.
Read guide →RulesPermits and Registration
How the National Water Act, the General Authorisation and municipal by-laws apply, and what we could and could not confirm for each city.
Read guide →UpkeepBorehole Maintenance
A service schedule from monthly checks to five-yearly inspections, with sourced service costs and common problems.
Read guide →Health and SafetyWater Quality Guide
SANS 241 limits, including the health limits for iron and manganese, contamination sources, what to test first by province and how often.
Read guide →Drinking WaterIs Borehole Water Safe to Drink?
Why to test borehole water first, what the results mean and what to do about a failed result.
Read guide →TreatmentBorehole Water Filters
Which borehole water filters suit which problem, and what filters, RO and UV cannot do.
Read guide →WaterBorehole Water: Testing and Treatment
Water test packages and costs, treatment options and the limits of each, on one page.
Read guide →Decision GuideBorehole vs Municipal Water
Running costs, a worked payback example, and whether a borehole can keep the taps running in an outage.
Read guide →Ready to Talk to a Drilling Company?
Send one request and drilling companies in your area can quote. BoreholeZA lists companies from public information and has not inspected them, so ask each one for references.
Request a Free QuoteMain sources behind these guides
- National Water Act 36 of 1998 (DWS copy) (Schedule 1 and licensing)
- Government Gazette 40243, Notice 538 (2 September 2016): Revised General Authorisation (groundwater registration and limits)
- SANS 241-1:2015 drinking water limits (SANAS-accredited lab transcription) (drinking water limits)
- DWS Johannesburg 1:500 000 hydrogeological map brochure (dolomite aquifers, recharge and yields)