Hydrofracking Flowback 1973 Style

Ran across this picture of hydrofracking flowback in 1973 in Ohio.  The 13 year old standing by the well is me.

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Permalink Reply by David Perotto on January 2, 2013 at 11:38pm
And you are still alive, quick tell the anti-fracing crowd!!
Permalink Reply by jeff on January 3, 2013 at 2:28am

HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!

Yeah, that was my ? too!  Good one David.

Permalink Reply by gary smith on January 3, 2013 at 2:35am

haha. good pic.   any service people out there got a pic of seven hundred oil wells on fire in iraq?  for 8 months? and we're still here.

Permalink Reply by DLB on January 3, 2013 at 3:26am

Almost 40 years and I'm still going strong.  No ill effects from the flowback.  Can't say the same for raising kids.

Permalink Reply by jb379 on January 3, 2013 at 3:18am

Can't believe the conspiracy theorists have not demanded a pic of you today with your 3 heads, 2 left feet, and swamp creature-like composure due to such exposure.

 

JB

Permalink Reply by Brian Powers on January 3, 2013 at 3:25am

DLB-

Great photo. Fracing technology was just over 25 years old when this job was done, and this was before the more sophisticated frac fluids of today were available. The frac jobs of this era in SW Kansas, where I joined the business and where the technique was developed, used unsieved river sand (angular, poorly sorted and full of fines) and "slick water" as the fluid (water with a bit of polymer gel added to reduce friction). The proppant was added to the fluid via a crude mechanical blender and to increase the proppant concentration, you pumped faster. The highest treatment rate I ever read about was 300 barrels per minute! Downhole pressure was generated by pumping faster at surface than the fluid leaked off downhole.

 

I would hate to have been the guy who had to open the valve at the top of the "tree" (looks like a "lo-torq" style valve to me, which is an isolation valve not designed to throttle flow). I would also be curious as to how much proppant flowed back with the fluid, which would have allowed the frac to close and would reduce flow. I imagine that the swab valve was well eroded by this flowback operation and may not have held when closed.

 

Like you, I was a skinny kid of 13 in 1973 also. Thanks for sharing this photo- a great reminder of the phrase" "if you say you remember the '70's, then you probably weren't there!!!"

 

Brian

Permalink Reply by DLB on January 3, 2013 at 3:45am

It was all quite fascinating to a 13 year old.  The well was a spudder so it took quite a while to drill.  Dad and I would go down to the well after chores (dairy farm) and visit with the drillers.  The well still produces gas for the farm.

Permalink Reply by Brian Powers on January 3, 2013 at 4:57am

DLB-

Its interesting to find someone else on this forum who knows what a spudder well is and has seen the type of rig that drills them. This is old school Chinese water well drilling technology. Its been 25 years since I've seen one. We used to use them to clen frac sand out of the casing after screenout, as the cable tool rigs wee $500/day or more cheaper than performing cleanouts with a well servicing rig.

 

Brian

Permalink Reply by Thomas Moss on January 3, 2013 at 5:38am
we used to take baths in it at the end of the day. maybe beer and whisky 20 minutes later kills off the bad effects. im getting up there in years and lived a pretty healthy life. if I go tomorrow I will beat the average life expectancy. I also let my kids and grandkids drink from a water hose.
Permalink Reply by Dan on January 3, 2013 at 1:23pm

There can be some good super anti-oxidents in some varities of beer and bourbon.  I have subscribed to them for some time over Rx's and blessed with very good health also.  You must remember the day when the science teacher put a drop of mercury in every students hand to play with in class.  We even got sent home from 5th grade with our very own glass jar of carbontetrachloride (on the bus) to kill bugs and bring them back in the jar days later.  That, most likely would be jail time for the teacher today, but she told us not to spill it on us so we didn't.  Maybe drinking and eating food from glass bottles instead of the plastics made from "---"  was a bit healthier then.  I am 100% pro, all this new found resource being put to use and building our economy and nation, but..........It will be a sad sad day when beer starts being bottled in plastic bottles.   

Permalink Reply by Janice L. Hancharick on January 3, 2013 at 8:21am

If cameras were invented (not sure:)) this could have been me in the late 40's ... well, a girl version and a bit younger.  Thanks for sharing!

Permalink Reply by Donald Dixon on January 3, 2013 at 10:13am

The chemicals used in fracing today are far more toxic and carcinogenic than they were in the 70's. I wouldn't suggest that you not go anywhere near the flowback from today's Marcellus wells.

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