Ep 4. Well Digger

In season 3 episode 4 of Dirty Jobs, host Mike Rowe meets up with John Morris, a well digger in Kentucky. Morris has been in the business for over 40 years and knows everything there is to know about drilling wells. He and his team work on both residential and commercial projects, and in this episode, they are working on a project for a local hospital.

Rowe spends most of the episode shadowing Morris and his team as they drill a well. The process involves using a drilling rig that looks like a huge truck with a long arm holding a drill bit. Morris and his team must drill through layers of rock and sediment to reach the water table, which can be hundreds of feet below ground.

As they drill, they must continuously monitor the well to make sure that they are not drilling too far or too close to the water table. If they drill too far, they risk hitting bedrock, which can damage the drill bit and make it difficult to continue drilling. But if they drill too close to the water table, they risk contaminating the water with drilling fluid.

Rowe gets to see firsthand how physically demanding the job is. Morris and his team must climb up and down the drilling rig multiple times a day, often carrying heavy equipment with them. They also spend long hours working in the hot sun, and Rowe himself notes that he is covered in sweat after just a few hours on the job.

Of course, no episode of Dirty Jobs would be complete without some unexpected challenges. As Morris and his team work on the hospital project, they encounter a number of obstacles that threaten to derail the entire project. At one point, the rig gets stuck in the mud and it takes several hours to get it unstuck. Another time, they have to stop drilling altogether because they encounter a layer of hard rock that the drill bit cannot penetrate.

Despite these challenges, Morris and his team manage to complete the well on time and on budget. And at the end of the episode, Rowe reflects on what he has learned. He notes that digging wells may not be the most glamorous job in the world, but it is incredibly important work that impacts the lives of millions of people.

Overall, this episode of Dirty Jobs offers a fascinating look at a job that most of us take for granted. It shows just how much hard work and skill goes into drilling a well, and highlights the importance of this often-overlooked profession.