Since 1946
Well Drilling
New residential wells, agricultural systems, and geothermal loops — drilled into southeast Michigan's aquifer by a team that has been doing this work in these counties since 1946.
Explore well drilling →Since 1946 — Washtenaw & Livingston Counties
Your well.Our eighth decade
of keeping it flowing.
Drilling, pumps, treatment, and emergency response. One company. Since 1946. We know southeast Michigan's ground.
Emergency service · 24/7
When your water stops working.Call us — even outside business hours.
We offer after-hours emergency response for pump failures and water loss — and we come with the equipment to handle most jobs in one visit. Call now to confirm availability.
Our services
Everything your water system needs.One company responsible for all of it.
Cribley Drilling and Champion Water Treatment operate under one roof. When you call us about a well, we already know how treatment works — and vice versa.
Emergency Response
Pump Repair & Emergency
Submersible pump failures, pressure tank issues, low flow — diagnosed and repaired with the tools and parts to handle most jobs in a single visit.
See pump service →Champion Water Treatment
Water Treatment
Iron, hardness, arsenic, PFAS, sulfur, nitrates — Champion Water Treatment identifies what's actually in your southeast Michigan well water and installs the system that addresses it.
Learn about treatment →After-Hours Service
After-Hours Emergency
When your water stops working outside business hours, call us. We offer emergency response for pump failures and water loss — and we come with the equipment to handle most jobs in one visit.
Call the emergency line →
By the numbers
The numbers are the story.Each one is on file.
Cribley has drilled wells and treated water in southeast Michigan longer than most competitors have existed. The records from 1946 are still on file. The aquifer depths we documented in 1978 are still accurate. That institutional memory is not a marketing claim — it is how we diagnose your system faster.
- Established1900First well log on fileContinuously held since 1946
- Years of records0+Aquifer survey · 1978Updated every drilling season
- Counties served0Washtenaw · LivingstonSoil, permits, geology — handled in-house
- Full-system ownership0Drilling AND treatmentOne company, one accountability line
Find your situation
What brought you here?Most people arrive at one of four moments.
Hover any situation for a quick preview of what happens next, or click straight through to the right help. Every path ends with a real person on the phone — not a form, not a queue.
Urgent · 24/7 dispatch
No water? No pressure? Pump won't run?
Emergency calls are answered by a person — usually the same technician who would be standing in your basement an hour later. We diagnose by phone first, then dispatch with the parts already on the truck.
- 01Diagnose the symptom by phone — pressure, flow, noise, age of system.
- 02Dispatch with the parts most likely to fix it already loaded.
- 03Most failures fixed in one trip. Water back before we leave.
Our Process
From site visit to first flow — how a new well gets drilled
Four phases. One trusted team. Cribley has run this exact sequence on more wells in Washtenaw and Livingston Counties than we can count — and every one of them is on file.
- 01Surface · 0 ft
Site evaluation and permit
A Cribley driller visits your property to assess soil conditions, identify the best drill location, and review the permitting requirements for your township. In southeast Michigan, permits are county-specific — we handle the paperwork.
- Permit
- County-handled
- Site visit
- One trip
- 02Aquifer · 80–200 ft
Drilling and casing
Our rotary drill rig reaches your aquifer — typically 80–200 feet in Washtenaw and Livingston Counties depending on your specific location. Steel casing is installed to protect the well from surface contamination.
- Rig type
- Rotary
- Casing
- Steel sleeve
- 03Development
Development and testing
The well is developed to flush drilling material, then tested for flow rate and water quality. We want to know what your water contains before we hand anything over to you.
- Flow
- GPM tested
- Quality
- Lab analysis
- 04Commissioned
Pump installation and system connection
A submersible pump sized to your property's demand is installed. The pressure tank and any additional system components are connected. You get a complete well system, not just a hole in the ground.
- Pump
- Submersible
- Hand-off
- Live system
Water Knowledge Hub
Know your well.Know your water.
Most private well owners know very little about the system under their property — until something goes wrong. These articles change that.
Browse the knowledge hubFeatured guide
PFAS in southeast Michigan well water: what Washtenaw and Livingston County homeowners need to know
PFAS contamination has been detected in parts of southeast Michigan. If your home uses a private well, here is what the data actually shows for your county — and exactly what treatment removes it.
Read the guide
5 signs your well pump is failing (and what to do before it stops)
Pump failures rarely happen without warning. Learn the early signs — pressure fluctuations, air in the lines, sputtering flow — and what each one tells you about your system.
Read the guideWhat does it cost to drill a new well in Michigan in 2026?
Drilling costs in southeast Michigan vary by depth, soil conditions, and system requirements. Here are honest numbers and the specific factors that drive them up or down.
Read the guide
Customer stories
From people we've servedin these counties.
Reviews and letters customers have sent us, in their own words.
Very prompt and courteous service from Tod and Justin.They came out within two hours of our call with a backhoe, were able to locate a break in an underground pipe near the well head and repaired it within three hours after arrival, in extremely cold weather.Even apologized for the mess in the yard (not a problem if it means we have water!).Also did a couple of extras/upgrades that we asked for at the last minute for our 36 year-old system.Very refreshing to have such great customer service.Thank you!
Your company drilled three wells for a closed-loop geothermal system in our front yard last Monday September 30.Troy and Travis (plus a lot of impressive machinery) did this job for us, and I wanted to thank you and especially them for doing a great job.They worked extremely well together, and went to late hours to get the job done in one day.They also took care to do minimal damage to the yard, which was difficult due to tight restrictions of room to maneuver.We really appreciate the extra effort by these two guys, they are a definite credit to your company.
A HUGE shoutout to Ken & Chris from Cribley Well Drilling for coming out right away for no water at our home.I was expecting a new well pump but, when they removed the well cap, they found a wire nut rusted and broke.They fixed the connection, put a new regulator on the Bladder and filled the bladder with air.Now how much more honest can it get?So appreciated!
Service area
Two counties.Two very different aquifers.
Southeast Michigan's two primary well counties have different geology, different permitting processes, and different water quality profiles. The ground beneath them is older than the company — and we know where we're drilling at every depth.
Washtenaw
Glacial till over Coldwater shale
Topsoil0–12 ft
Glacial clay12–48 ft
Sand & gravel48–80 ft
Aquifer80–150 ft⌖ DRILL TARGET
Coldwater shale150 ft +
- Typical depth
- 80–150 ft
- Common contaminants
- Iron · Hardness
- Townships
- 08 served
Coverage
- Ann Arbor
- Dexter
- Chelsea
- Saline
- Ypsilanti
- Milan
- Manchester
- Whitmore Lake
Livingston
Deeper drift · Marshall sandstone aquifer
Topsoil0–12 ft
Glacial drift12–55 ft
Sand & gravel55–150 ft
Marshall sandstone150–250 ft⌖ DRILL TARGET
Coldwater shale250 ft +
- Typical depth
- 150–300 ft
- Common contaminants
- Iron · Sulfur · Higher TDS
- Townships
- 06 served
Coverage
- Pinckney
- Brighton
- Howell
- Hamburg Township
- South Lyon
- Green Oak Township
Not sure?
Check your service area
Type your address — we'll tell you which county you're in, what the typical drilling depth is for your township, and whether we cover you.
Start the conversation
Start with a conversation.No pressure, no jargon, no surprise visits.
Tell us about your property and your water situation. We'll tell you what we can do, what it's likely to cost, and whether it needs to be done right now or can wait. If it can wait, we'll say so.