Cleaning an ancient well on our abandoned land in Portugal

[@tonypereira1484]

Not only is Martin wise he is also a comedian 😂 such a man of many talents 👍

[@andiet8629]

I was chuckling away at Martin too

[@tonypereira1484]

@@andiet8629 Martin’s dad jokes are legendary lol 😂

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

I knew you would love this video ;)

[@tonypereira1484]

@@ourportuguesehomestead I love anything Martin does as he is my off grid mentor lol 😂 and comedic muse lol 😂

[@andiet8629]

@@tonypereira1484 @i'll poke it some more' was my highlight

[@janettegrove5085]

Good job and clever thinking. I understand when you are speaking dutch as I am Afrikaans staying in South Africa

[@mariapelleya7410]

A roof made of pallet wood maybe? To avoid leaves etc from falling into well. Also, maybe, a small stacked stone wall to keep majority of soil from flowing into well when rainy. Great job Marten & able assistants!

[@spacecase0]

I would certainly put a roof over it to keep it clean

[@kpremalal]

Good work brother......have a great well.....😂😂😂😂😂

[@kpremalal]

Thanks

[@UnluckyPlant]

Woohoo, water! 💦🙌🏽 Can’t wait to see if the rains clear out the veins. 🤞🏽 Wondering out loud if there’s a water table map for the area. I assume not, but something you could eventually start if you and your neighbors have enough wells to measure, and want to monitor things over time. It would help if you ever want/need to get a well drilled deeper on the land. Hopefully, that will never be the case! Great work - the hydrogeologist in me loves to see a clean well with flowing water! 😁

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

That's a great idea to track some of the wells! Don't think there's a water table map

[@puraLusa]

@@ourportuguesehomestead instituto hidrográfico português. There is an institute for it, there has been a lot of hidro studies in portugal. Go to their website and contact them. They probably know and can inform u.

[@hubertwebb9869]

I suggest that when you are done or as you go carry the large pile of muck to another area or it could end up back into the well with a good strong rain. I would hate to see all your work wasted.🧡🧡🧡🧡

[@evabloecher]

Patience pays off!! I was so impressed that Maarten kept on trying to find that spot where the water gets in to the well. Congratulations to you all and what a work you all did. All the best to you and your kind neighbor.

[@criaz-apulia]

You must cover it up. I did that to my parents well when I was 12. We kept it covered I'm now 45 still clean 💯. I'm from Minho living in Toronto Canada 🇨🇦 Hopefully moving back to Portugal next year.

[@loream]

Wow! Water! Thats great! 😀

[@100Noddy]

Who would have thought a clean well and water flow would bring such joy. The simplicity of what we really need to thrive in life.

[@ciaobella8963]

Congratulations on discovering the spring. Very exciting! I knew it had to be there somewhere. No one would build such a stone basin without it having a productive spring. If it were me though, I would use a long piece of sturdy metal pipe or rebar to score out that opening a little more.

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

We might go back and poke some more...

[@ciaobella8963]

@@ourportuguesehomestead 🙂👍

[@F-J.]

Or it could collapse it internally and block it maybe ?

[@chengasuncion444]

water is life🙏🙏😊

[@leestimis9264]

All that great composting mud for the garden!! I hope you can get to the garden. Here where I live when they clean their ponds that bottom muck they use for their vegetable gardens it is so rich in nutrients. Wow good job and can't wait to see it full. 👏

[@djaykhay1953]

Good job adding the tripod. Next time use a larger diameter rope. That will make almost as much difference as the pulley/tripod combo. Finally, old fashioned sisal rope will be much easier on your hands than that poly line which you are using. Sisal doesn’t cut into your hands the way slick poly does.

[@klazyy641]

Isn't it great to have good neighbors and a helping community? Glad to see you putting that sludge to some use (fertilizer, of a sort?) and to see the well slowly getting itself back into working order---and to provide for our winged friends. Nice episode and thanks for sharing with us.

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

It’s the best :)

[@bayuperdanaputra4903]

Just make sure to make surrounding wall barrier to protect your well from falling dirt, clay or any others stuff that wasting your cleaning work

[@mikeunum]

Also look at possible loose stones and fix that too.

[@daffs0]

Wow that was awesome can’t wait till the rain comes Thank you for sharing 😁

[@clivewright5437]

Well done, heheheeh Good Work Love and rainbows

[@jimbayler4277]

That tool head that was found was a type of claw fork probably lost the last time someone tried to clean out the well. If you can keep the head secured to the handle, that is an excellent tool for that job.

[@SolarLantern424]

Yes I was wondering if it just needs a new broom handle! Might be useful. :)

[@jimbayler4277]

@@SolarLantern424 : A thicker handle is better. Like for a pitchfork or shovel. I use them for all kinds of landscape applications. Large piles of branches, landscape rock, piles of weeds and leaves, etc. They are also good for unloading debris and other materials from your truck

[@jimbayler4277]

Make a simple windlass to lift the bucket. It makes lifting it easier, and less chance of it falling back down and hitting the digger in the head.

[@July45Sweetpea]

Oh Maarten - that sounds a very daunting task for you. Please take care. xx

[@christophemeathrel2784]

Well, that’s another fine mess you got me into. Laurel and Hardy eat your heart out. Great work guys. 💙🤍❤️👍🇫🇷🍷🇬🇧☔️

[@manassenijenhuis2609]

Dat ziet er uit als een boerenopstand in wording daar in Portugal.

[@timhull8664]

Glad to see you wear the proper safety footware.. and protective clothing..

[@TR4zest]

Maarten is sinking ... What an amazing amount of work it must have been to create the cistern/well? You can now really benefit.

[@cleaningtime8156]

Great job you doing on that beautiful Land 😍 thanks for sharing.

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

Thanks for watching!

[@deranocasper]

Grand job cleaning up the well some sludge there ⚒️👍🍻

[@davidburdick594]

That bucket method worked.......slowly, next time get a water truck with high pressure hose to liquify the dirt and a mud pump to pump out the muck...just an idea, lol

[@Kelleena1on1]

That rake could make a nice coat rack ,:-)

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

Would need a clean first!

[@Kelleena1on1]

@@ourportuguesehomestead yes , lol of coarse .

[@richardteychenne3950]

Good job, even a little extra flow will all add up to give you more water security. Little steps but vital ones.👍👌💪😅

[@frigolero]

What a job! But great that there still comes a bit of water.

[@marlenegearon4709]

Great job! Now the fun begins for the muck in the gardens. That will help soil!

[@rudymazar8666]

Great compost material for your garden

[@janetevans1477]

With a heavy rain ALL that muck is going to get washed right back into well!!!

[@lancedaniels]

Thanks for posting and sharing. Glad that you have the potential water source.

[@CindyVine]

Awesome job guys! Maarten is a machine!

[@lynhardie6291]

A great job done, I sure it's going to fill up nicely, from South Africa 🇿🇦

[@deidrespencer5467]

Congratulations, you two! All that hard work was certainly worth it. 👏 I can't help wondering about the original owners who put in all that stonework ... what an amazing job! Love from Australia 💞

[@janetissabelle]

Wow,I remember when you did this to your well in the garden,brilliant! It’s a lot deeper than I thought,good stone work.

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

We were babies then! Hope I made a better video about it this time.

[@AussiePharmer]

Backbreaking but amazing work. Once you're done add a bit of bokashi liquid/em1. It will get rid of any stagnant smells and dissolve the residual sludge.

[@authorcharlieboring]

You should use the muck in your compost pile. I would have started at the top and cleaned around the edges to prevent fall-in first.

[@dweamy1]

Oh well done!! Great idea with the A frame to hoist up the buckets!

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

Really made all the difference :)

[@candynewton4945]

Eureka! Water young man water. Good job! Thank you for sharing your adventure. 🇺🇸🌹

[@johnsonr9]

I am so glad that all your hard work and sacrifice is being rewarded!

[@vickiturner7349]

You are game!! All the sludge you remove you can put it in your compost to use later on your gardens. Also buy a pair of gum boots to your waste. We call them waiders. Love to you both. From Brisbane Australia ❤️❤️

[@NoeleenGrima]

So exciting ! ❤❤ hope it works out well, when it rains

[@egoyiboclementinaonwuegbut7331]

It's wonderful to see the bottom of your well. I am less afraid of Wells now. Your hard work has paid off. Please keep us updated when the rains arrive. Loved the video

[@LindaSchreiber]

A spring/well, not just a cistern!!! Very cool. Great engineering job, Maarten! I remember watching the saga of the cleaning of the larger well....

[@bobbalbirnie2478]

Great work Maarten! The tripod worked a charm for taking up the buckets and one more use for may be to construct a well cover with it as the frame... Always glad to see you making progress on your homestead and cleaning out the wells must be a satisfying accomplishment for you. Be well.../B

[@simonparkinson5454]

That muck is black gold for your plants and trees as a mulch its soil in the making

[@darrenmcdonald3697]

I love the shots of Louie. Such a good boy.

[@athloneduke]

Hat's off to Maarten & the team for a great job.....unpleasant but necessary....water is the source of life....

[@tenpennyguy]

Three cheers for your hard work! It makes me even more thankful for the deep well I am lucky enough to have. A thought for the future - There are "effluent" or "trash" pumps available fairly cheaply that will pump water & sludge. With the bluetti power supply you might be able to pump the more liquid / muddy stuff out rather than having to use the bucket system. I am thinking of your ongoing maintenance and a way to help clear silt & fine organic stuff our of the wells.

[@bobfmirvine6652]

Great MESSY job!

[@adbc8737]

Wow! Happy your new well has water! 🌀💚🌀

[@oliveoil4487]

I am so happy that Maarten had some help cleaning that well. Great job. Maarten🤜🤜🤜

[@mirianclopes]

Água. Very nice and hard work.

[@Nunohobbies]

good work. water rising in the middle of August in Beira Interior... it must have a good spring.

[@notajoke4587]

Great job as usual. Just a thought could you try to flush the water entrans with water?

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

We've thrown a few buckets of water against it, just needs some more pressure to clean out the rest of the silt in there

[@spark5012]

I was trying to watch this to relax but I got too involved in the drama. I'll definitely be back to see what happened. Excellent music.

[@timbow50]

The mud you are throwing there is going to wash right back in if you don’t have a plan to stop it. Needs a small short wall around the top to keep debris out.

[@danwilkin3031]

Great vid and some good tips we are going to work on a lifting point over our well for cleaning it out

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

A good lifting point and a pulley make all the difference :)

[@skaraborgcraft]

You should be putting all that mud in jars and selling it as exclusive face-pack. One of those jobs with no clamour but essential, people should see this as part of the real work involved in working land.

[@jamesrivis620]

I am 80. As a 9 year old I pulled up a flagstone in the bottom of our German garden and found it was about 5 feet deep between the garden surface and had a dry bottom so I jumped in feet first, broke through what I saw as an earth surface and submerged into the sewage. I had jumped into a sewage transfer well .A 'FAKA Wagen' would normally pump it out. Prior to this event I had found a WW2 air raid shelter which DID have a hard surface floor, that being the reason I made the assumption I did. Barkhausen was heavily bombed by British bombers as it is a major road, river, and rail crossing at the Minden Gap on the River Weser. Hence the village residents dug shelters (not that it would have helped much) If my sister had not had the intelligence to run for a broom with which to help me out then that would have been it for me (and probably a blessing to my abusive step parents, my stepmother thought the whole episode funny and focussed mostly on what a nasty smell was all over me. So watching you standing on the dry sticks and beginning to see you sink into fetid water made me very nervous. Next time have Martyn wear a rope tied around his waist or use planks to keep you from falling deeper.

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

That is an awful story, but thanks for sharing.

[@christines5430]

Wow! You guys did an excellent job clearing that well👍🏽

[@bfox5767]

Great work getting that well cleaned out. Another step towards self-reliance. Good idea of maybe setting up a swimming hole in the future.

[@didisalyers4460]

I watched this and wanted to come and help. Martin needed a small scoop like a cup to help. It will save his hands next time. We used a each container cut into a scoop shape. The handle is strong and it lasted our whole job. I cleaned out a old well using one years ago. I really enjoy your videos.

[@PaddyIrishman]

Great work guys!

[@lightdark00]

New product line! Artesian mud 🙌🏼

[@42apprentice]

Maybe for the future net the top of the well to stop leaves etc falling in?

[@joaochaparro7785]

Hi, hope all are ok there .. because the fires in Castelo Branco. Take care. 🙏😉

[@bevnelson3678]

Great work done.

[@rnggall9640]

Nice work! We use a chain hoist to lift heavy things, takes much less muscle power. Such progress!

[@monalingan9523]

Great endeavor! I hope it will rain soon and fill your well.

[@sukanthyranjitkumar8725]

You can use the muck as compost for your vegetable garden. They will love it as it is in consumable state. Good luck! 👍

[@fava7753]

One of the more wonderful jobs that everyone really looks forward to ;-) . . Up to the eyes in muck and shiza .as we say in GB . . A VERY AROMATIC HEALTHY JOB TO UNDERTAKE ON A BRIGHT AND BREEZY DAY . . A SMALL JCB BACK ACTOR , WILL BE THE ORDER OF THE DAY , NEXT TIME AROUND . KEEP UP THE EXCELLENT WORK AND CONTENT , YOUR ALL DOING JUST FINE . RESPECT TO YOU ALL .

[@marcelcicort9671]

Maybe lay some sand at the bottom to cover that silt and if there is some water spring it will flow through sand as well, so it won't block it...

[@iefkevanschaick1548]

Well done,hard work gives alot of fruit.

[@juliad1768]

Wow the well looks amazing from all the sludge and roots twigs etc, hopefully it will refill xxx

[@rosamperez233]

Nice video, funny martin, in USA was 1 am I hope have more views in 8 hours, nice job I like your channel, I miss the mama and the kids in this video, I hope everything goes as you expected.

[@afrlala3593]

Great job happy that you have help. Thank you family.

[@davidcarter7055]

Everything coming out of the well would be great for your garden 👍

[@rhiantaylor3446]

Have you considered driving a well point into the wet floor to gain access to lower areas of the water table using a suction pump ?

[@michealguinn]

Awesome Awesome best wishes for yalls

[@jeannestott1456]

Loui is enjoying chewing whatever is coming out!!

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

He's a great helper ;)

[@Cloe-q5]

What a healthy mud bath, it puts back all the Vitamins into the body by the smell. If finished end the day with a nice glas of wine..Cheers.

[@AlexanderSauerPlaysWithHeroJr]

cool. good4u.... nice to see n find. not just a overflow reservoir.... even if the little water run comes from excess trapped rain water that soaked into the upper terras levels...cus its summer dry-time there you said ... so youll have a self refilling "well' .. shows there is enough water that builds up and soaks into land during wet winter times...lucky... extra cool. ...dont forget even a little run...but constant even in dry season is more than enough to fill n refill .... year round.....cool. cool. cool.

[@semqueixas]

Great!! Water is a real treasure.

[@stephaniehuet4023]

Hi guys, wondering if you thought of spreading the stuff coming out of the well in your garden. Thought also about building a roof on top of the wells to reduce the frequency of the cleaning?

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

We've cut back the quince that was there, so should help with stuff not falling in. Might put a roof on in the future, but we might also use it as a swimming area.

[@destino2portugal]

i wish i had an ancient stone built well, what a thing of beauty. Lets hope the rain comes back soon. I am with the neighbour, i would jet wash it clean but thats my OCD'ness

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

Yeah we could’ve, but getting water there is still a bit of an operation + no pressure washer haha

[@destino2portugal]

@@ourportuguesehomestead three essential items in Portugal, Strimmer, Chainsaw and Pressure washer 👌 They sometimes have them in Continente really cheap, Karcher K2 for 80 euros which is a bargain. Be amazing to get the well crystal clear and you'll want to swim in it 😍

[@cristinapiscis2025]

You are doing so well! I've just discovered you on KZbin and I'm watching some of your videos. Thank you very much for sharing your experiences!

[@desiebawden61]

Keep it up guys . You inspire me 🌎🌸

[@nessuno1948]

Great job.

[@suzilouden5964]

Great video......I'll bet you are very pleased with the results of your hard graft....👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽

[@dannyray1950]

Adding another layer of security. Good stuff! I'll help with the next one:)

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

It’s the smallest one we have, so will be an easy job ;)

[@F-J.]

A power washer and pump would clean that completely 😀

[@seriouslyjoking2]

Excellent job, Maarten!

[@Hunebed1979]

Respect voor al jullie werk.

[@keithbrandon8540]

Enjoyed the chat and happy for the new well. Should hopefully hold quite a lot of water so a great asset. Will it fill from underground source or rain? 👍

[@ourportuguesehomestead]

Should fill from the ground, just clogged from not being used for so long

[@Tinachimneycreekfarm]

What a lot of hard work but hopefully it will be worth it! Looking forward to watching how you use the wAter.