Costa Tropcal info

Water

If you are thinking of buying a property in the countryside (Campo)  then don't just assume because it has a bathroom and kitchen,with things called taps,that water comes out of them. Lots of properties in the Campo come with a water right which will entitle you to so many hours a month or week. Ours where we live, is three hours per month. This does not sound much but it is 10 litres per second.

When we purchased this house we were told it had a water right. But we had nowhere to store it. We had to have a water deposit built at considarable cost. Even though we had the water right with the house, we still have to pay for the water that we have each month. This is not a much money about 15 euros a month.  We assumed that because we had the right, the water was free. Nobody told us. This caused us a small problem.

Always ask before you buy a property about, water and deposits and the quality of the water. Mostly in the countryside you will be supplied agricultural water this is fine for washing but do not drink it. We buy bottled water to drink. 

If you have found the property that you want and it has no water right or water connected, all is not lost. You may be able to have a bore hole drilled for water.

The start of this process was quite hilarious for us, as a local man turned up with a piece of bent wire inserted into an old bic biro with the refill removed,walked around for a few moments as if devining and then pointed at the ground in the middle of our drive exclaiming the water was right underneath our driveway. When I told him it would be impossible to have a well in that spot he just pointed at a piece of ground about 10 meters away (without using his piece of wire)and said there will do.

I have since learnt that in nearly all mountainous areas you will find water.

Drilling for water

This process costs approx 60 euros per meter, and there are occasions where a depth of 100m or more is required to find water. If water is not found you are still charged per meter for the borehole but at a discounted rate. Once the water table is found the drilling continues for approximatly 10 to 15 meters to create a sump of water for the pump to sit in. You will then need a pump to extract the water. The cost of pumps vary depending on the amount of water per second you have in your well, the cost can be anything from 350 euros too 1800 euros. I found the cheapest way was to go to the local diy store and buy all the things required, as the local plumbers merchants wanted a fortune to fit a pumping system and the system they offered was too big. Just take care when buying a property in spain Check and Check again.

For more info on buying property and to see a buyers check list.