The 1,394 domestic wells on file within 5 miles of Cortland, from the state’s drilling logs: your neighbors’ wells, and the best guide to this ground.
Source: ODNR well logs, domestic wells within 5 miles, retrieved 2026-09-30.
Strong Flow Gives a Cortland Well Options
Flow is the standout figure in the logs around Cortland. Of the 1,267 that record a yield, the middle half give between 15 and 25 gallons per minute, one in four gives 25 or more, and only one in four gives 15 or less.
A well with that much flow leaves room in how the system is built. Pump choice can follow the way the household uses water, and a constant-pressure system, where a variable-speed pump holds pressure steady as taps open and close, has the supply it needs. Irrigation, a second building or a growing household can be planned into the pump size from the start. A pressure tank still earns its place, cushioning short draws so the pump isn't started for every glass of water. What the water needs is covered on the treatment page.
The Water Line Sets the Lift
The water level is the other half of the picture. In the logs near Cortland the middle half of static levels runs from 18 to 48 feet, and one well in four has water 48 feet down or more, so in those wells the pump works against a longer lift even when the well gives plenty.
That changes what sizes the pump. A submersible has to raise water from below that level to the house and still deliver the pressure the fixtures need, so a pump picked on flow alone can come up short on pressure at the top of the lift. Sizing starts from both numbers for your own well, the yield and the pumping level. Pump repair covers a pump that no longer keeps up.
