Mali water well to 120 m: heavy mud loss in overburden, how to adjust?
Bakary T.
Verified member · Water well construction
Design depth 120 m, overburden of sand and gravel; after 60 m the mud return is only half.
We run bentonite with a little soda ash at 1.05 specific gravity.
The wall is sloughing and we fear collapse when running casing. Raise mud weight or switch to lost-circulation material?
Discussion (3)
Samuel O.Verified member · Service engineer2026-10-24
Raise viscosity and yield point first, bring gravity to about 1.08, then add lost-circulation pills; do not jump to barite.
Mr. LiuVerified member · Service engineer2026-10-25
In gravel, running temporary casing through the loss zone is often steadier than forcing a plug.
Fatou D.Verified member · Procurement lead2026-10-25
Stock lost-circulation material in advance; buying on site doubles the price and it is often out of stock.
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