Rich Maxwell mentions some things to do that makes HDD more successful when directionally drilling in sand.
For the past few months, I have been in places like Tampa, Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Orlando and Pensacola, Fla. Guess what they all have in common? SAND. I have been up to my eyeballs in it. You talk about a specific application for horizontal directional drilling that has matured in the past few years. Drilling in sand has come a long way. I remember five years ago contractors were getting stuck in sand every day. Even on a pilot bore a guy could get 400 feet of drill pipe stuck. And the bad memory — in many cases, they ended up leaving the string. Drillers used to run from any drill pipe that had upset tool joints. But lest we forget, and for you readers who may not drill in sand that often, let me mention some things we have learned to do that make HDD more successful when directionally drilling in sand.