Montana sits in the north of Pretoria on Bushveld Complex rocks, which is different ground from the Pretoria Group suburbs on the eastern side.
Water sits in the weathered mantle and in jointing, so depth to fresh rock is the useful predictor.
What Is Under Montana
The formations below are what a rig actually meets on a Montana property, and between them they govern the depth, the casing requirement and what the hole will realistically give you.
| Formation | Where it sits | What it means for drilling |
|---|---|---|
| Bushveld Complex norite and gabbro | The igneous rocks underlying the northern suburbs | Massive, hard and low in primary porosity. Water sits in the weathered mantle and in jointing, so yields depend on the weathering profile and fracturing. |
| Weathered mantle | The upper section above fresh rock | Often thick here, holds useful water, and needs casing to keep the hole stable. |
| Dykes and fracture zones | Cutting the igneous mass | The better targets, and what a survey is looking for on this ground. |
Send your street and what the water is for, and get an itemised quote for Montana.
Get a Montana Borehole QuoteWhat That Means for Your Borehole
- The weathering profile does a lot of the work here, so depth to fresh rock is a more useful predictor than total depth.
- Yields are moderate, and pairing a modest sustainable rate with storage is the practical design.
- Iron is a common nuisance in water off weathered mafic rock, and it is a treatment question rather than a drilling one.
Where We Work Around Montana
- Montana and Montana Park
- Sinoville and Doornpoort boundaries
- Wonderboom approaches
- Annlin side
- Smallholdings on the northern edge
- Larger stands off Zambesi Drive
What to Watch For Here
Bushveld rocks behave differently from the Pretoria Group. The weathering profile does more of the work, and iron in the water is more common.
Smallholdings on the northern edge carry abstraction volumes that usually exceed Schedule 1 of the National Water Act.
What the Water Is Used For
- Irrigating established gardens and mature trees
- Topping up the pool, subject to what the analysis says
- Washing paving, vehicles and hard surfaces
- Standby supply when municipal water is interrupted
- Reducing a monthly municipal water bill
Wellpoint or Borehole?
Not viable. There is no shallow sand aquifer here, and a driven point needs saturated unconsolidated material that this ground does not offer.
Water Quality in Montana
Groundwater off Bushveld rocks is typically moderately hard and frequently carries iron and manganese, which stain fittings and laundry. Both are treatable once the analysis quantifies them.
A water analysis is what turns that from a general expectation into a number for your specific hole, and treatment should be specified against the result rather than against the area's reputation.
Registration and Abstraction
Boreholes in the City of Tshwane are subject to municipal registration, and the City's water by-laws prohibit any cross-connection between borehole water and the municipal supply. Above that, the National Water Act governs abstraction: reasonable domestic use generally falls under Schedule 1, while larger volumes may need registration or a water use authorisation from the Department of Water and Sanitation. Confirm the current position before drilling. Requirements change, so confirm your position before drilling.
Related Services
For the drilling process itself, the geology across the rest of the country and how a quote is put together, see Borehole Installers South Africa.
Borehole Prices in Montana
Drilling is charged per metre, so depth drives the total. The ranges below are framed for local ground conditions and access.
| Item | Indicative range | What moves it locally |
|---|---|---|
| Drilling, per metre | R450 - R1,000 /m | Fresh norite and gabbro are hard drilling. The depth at which fresh rock appears varies across the area. |
| uPVC casing, installed, per metre | R400 - R700 /m | The weathered mantle is thick here, and casing through it is standard. |
| Mobilisation and site establishment | R2,500 - R9,000 | Access and site conditions move this; a site visit settles it before quoting. |
| Water survey | R5,000 - R12,000 | Targets structure rather than depth. Worth most where yield is fracture-dependent. |
| Yield testing | R3,500 - R15,000 | Establishes the sustainable rate that pump selection depends on. |
| Pump, supplied and installed | R15,000 - R45,000 | Greater depth means more head, which means a larger pump and heavier cable. |
| Storage and booster | R12,000 - R35,000 | Needed wherever peak demand exceeds the borehole's sustainable rate. |
| Typical complete project | R70,000 - R190,000+ | Everything above, excluding treatment, which depends entirely on the water analysis. |
These are indicative ranges, not a quotation. They are compiled from published South African supplier and contractor pricing to give you a starting point for budgeting. They are not our rate card, and no figure here is a commitment.
Treat them as a broad guide only. Published borehole pricing in South Africa varies enormously - different 2026 guides quote per-metre drilling rates for the same province that differ by a factor of three - because depth, geology, access, specification, distance and fuel costs all move the number. Depth in particular is not known until the hole is finished. Figures generally exclude VAT unless noted, and change over time. Only an itemised written quote against your actual site means anything.
Montana Borehole FAQs
Is Montana different from Pretoria East for drilling?
Yes. Montana sits on Bushveld Complex norite and gabbro rather than Pretoria Group quartzite and shale, and the water is held differently.
Practically that means the weathered mantle matters more and iron in the water is more common. Depth to fresh rock is the more useful predictor here.
Why does Montana borehole water stain fittings?
Iron and manganese, which are common in groundwater off weathered mafic rocks. Both oxidise on contact with air and leave marks on laundry, paving and fittings.
Neither is dangerous at typical levels and both come out with the right filtration, sized off an actual water analysis rather than a general assumption.
What depth should I expect in Montana?
It depends on where fresh rock appears under your stand, and that varies. Much of the useful water sits in the weathered mantle above it and in jointing just below.
A per-metre rate with an expected range based on nearby holes is the only sound way to quote it. A fixed depth quoted before drilling is a guess dressed as a number.
Will Montana borehole water stain my laundry?
It can. Iron and manganese are common in groundwater off weathered mafic rock and both leave marks on fittings, laundry and paving as they oxidise.
Neither is dangerous at the levels usually seen, and both come out with the right filtration once the water analysis quantifies them.
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