Hydrogeological Survey
Required before you can drill
A geologist maps the aquifer, marks the drilling point and writes the report the Water Resources Authority needs. Skip it and you risk paying for a dry hole.
FromKES 40,000
Get a quoteKenya's borehole guide
Borehole Water in Kenya
Clean at the source is not the same as safe to drink. What the tests look for and what to do about it.
Get a free quote✓ Countrywide, all 47 counties
Survey first
We drill where the water is
Licensed rigs
Permit checked every job
Permits handled
WRA and NEMA sorted for you
Real market rates
Published per metre
Borehole Water
Borehole water in Kenya is often safe to drink, but not always, and you cannot tell by looking at it. Groundwater picks up whatever the rock it sits in contains, which in parts of the Rift Valley means fluoride well above the safe limit, and near the coast means salinity.
This is what the water chemical analysis at the end of drilling is for. It costs very little, about KES 21 a metre inside the drilling rate, and it is the only thing standing between you and a decade of drinking something you should not.
What the analysis tests for
A standard analysis covers fluoride, salinity and total dissolved solids, iron and manganese, nitrates, hardness, pH and bacteriological contamination. Each has a different fix, which is why treating water before you have the report is guesswork.
Keep the certificate. Buyers and valuers ask for it, and it is the baseline you compare against if the water changes years later.
Treating what the report finds
High fluoride, common in the Rift Valley, needs a defluoridation filter and is the one problem people most often ignore because the water tastes fine. Salinity near the coast needs reverse osmosis, which is the expensive answer. Iron and manganese, which stain laundry and fittings, are removed with an oxidising filter.
Bacteriological contamination is different, because it usually means the borehole has a construction problem letting surface water in rather than an aquifer problem. Fix the casing, do not just chlorinate.
Boiling is the one thing worth being clear about. It kills bacteria, so it is a sensible emergency measure while you wait for a report. It does nothing about fluoride, salinity or nitrates, and because boiling evaporates water while leaving the minerals behind, it slightly concentrates them. Boiling is not a treatment for a chemical problem.
Where your water comes from, and why geology decides
A borehole is drilled into an aquifer, a layer of rock or sand that holds water and lets it move through. The water sitting in it has been in contact with that rock for a long time, and it carries whatever the rock is made of. That is the whole explanation for why two boreholes a few kilometres apart can produce very different water.
It is also why your neighbour's test result is not yours. Aquifers are not uniform, and depth changes which one you are drawing from. The only water chemistry that tells you anything about your borehole is the analysis from your borehole.
Testing is not optional anyway
A water chemical analysis is part of the Water Resources Authority process, not an extra your driller invented to pad the bill. It is also the cheapest line in the whole job, at roughly KES 21 a metre inside the drilling rate.
Ask for the certificate before the final payment, not after. It is the one document that proves what you actually bought, and the only baseline you can compare against if the water changes in ten years.
What the job involves
6 line items · market rates
100m Borehole, drilled and equipped
100m · air rotary · electric pump
The most common depth in the Nairobi metro. Covers the survey, permits, 100m of air-rotary drilling with casing, test pumping and an electric submersible pump.
FromKES 980,000
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150m Borehole, drilled and equipped
150m · air rotary · electric pump
Where the water table sits deeper, as in much of Kajiado, Machakos and the drier counties. Same scope as the 100m package with 50 more metres of drilling and casing.
FromKES 1,315,000
Get a quoteAir Rotary Drilling
Per metre · stable rock formation
The standard method where there is solid rock beneath. The per-metre rate already includes mobilisation, casing, graveling, well development and test pumping.
FromKES 6,700
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Solar Pumping System
Solar pump, panels and controller
No power bill and no grid dependency, which matters on farms and off-grid plots. It costs more upfront than an electric pump and pays back through saved tokens.
FromKES 250,000
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WRA and NEMA Permit Processing
Authorisation to drill
The Water Resources Authority permit and the NEMA environmental licence. Drilling without them is illegal and the borehole can be sealed.
FromKES 50,000
Get a quoteWhy Proboreholedrillers
One team from the survey to the first glass of water
A borehole is five jobs bundled into one: the survey that finds the water, the permits that make it legal, the drilling, the test that proves the yield, and the pump. We run all five for you, with licensed rigs and a quote broken down line by line, so you know exactly what you are paying for before anyone starts.
- ✦ Survey first, so you drill where the water is
- ✦ WRA and NEMA permits handled for you
- ✦ A quote itemised at real market rates
Do you need a borehole drilled?
Tell us where the plot is and what the water is for. We will handle the survey, the permits and the drilling, and come back to you with the likely depth and what it will cost. Countrywide, all 47 counties.
Get a free quoteQuestions, answered
Frequently asked questions
Is borehole water safe for drinking in Kenya?+
Often, but not always. It depends entirely on the aquifer. Fluoride in parts of the Rift Valley and salinity near the coast are the common problems, and only a chemical analysis will tell you which apply to your borehole.
How do I treat borehole water for drinking?+
Treat according to the analysis, not by default. High fluoride needs a defluoridation filter, salinity needs reverse osmosis, iron and manganese need an oxidising filter, and bacteriological contamination usually means fixing the casing rather than chlorinating.
Does borehole water need to be tested?+
Yes, and the test is already inside a properly quoted drilling price at around KES 21 per metre. Ask for the certificate before you pay the final instalment.
Does boiling remove fluoride from borehole water?+
No. Boiling kills bacteria, which makes it a reasonable emergency step, but it does nothing to fluoride, salinity or nitrates. Because boiling evaporates water and leaves the minerals behind, it slightly concentrates them. Fluoride needs a defluoridation filter.
Why does my borehole water taste salty or stain the laundry?+
A salty taste usually means salinity or high total dissolved solids, which is common near the coast and needs reverse osmosis. Staining on laundry and fittings is usually iron and manganese, which an oxidising filter removes. The analysis tells you which you have.
How often should borehole water be tested?+
The analysis at the end of drilling is your baseline. Retest if the taste, smell or colour changes, if the yield drops, or if there is flooding or a new activity nearby that could reach the aquifer. Compare against the original certificate, which is why you keep it.
Is borehole water better than piped water?+
It is more reliable, because it does not depend on a rationing schedule, and after the capital cost it is cheaper. Whether it is better to drink depends entirely on your geology. Piped water is treated to a standard; borehole water is whatever the aquifer contains until you test and treat it.
Explore more
Your own water supply, drilled by licensed contractors. Find out what your site needs and what it will take.
View Home →Every line of a borehole quote, priced at the 2026 market rate, so you can tell a fair number from a padded one.
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