They Found a Well Under the Kitchen and Made It Part of the Floor

The kitchen floor was coming up for underfloor heating when a patch of damp ground changed the job. Beneath it was brickwork surrounding a water-filled hole: an old well that the family decided to keep.

The project appeared on TikTok under @mortylad in 2023. In March, Apartment Therapy covered the discovery; by May, Homebuilding had reported how Kevin Mort and his daughter Ellie incorporated the well into the kitchen rather than covering it over again.

A Well Under the Floor

The family's account began with tiles and a concrete subfloor being removed. They noticed damp, gravelly ground and initially suspected a leak. Further investigation revealed the well's brick walls.

They linked it to an older courtyard that had later become part of the kitchen. Their description put the well at roughly 300 years old. Contemporary coverage repeated that estimate; it didn't supply archaeological dating.

Keeping a View Beneath Glass

They wanted the well to remain visible in the finished room. Homebuilding's May 2023 report described a circular metal frame and a specially supplied glass cover fitted over the opening, with heating laid around the feature.

The photographs and videos turned an unexpected obstacle into the centre of the renovation. A glass circle in a floor, though, needs more than a matching diameter: the support, glazing and structure must suit the actual installation. A decorative glass image isn't a specification.

Seventeen Feet Down

The family reported reaching a clay base about 17 feet below the floor and removing water and mud during excavation. Water later returned in the well. Clear-looking water wasn't evidence that it was suitable for drinking.

Nor does a renovation video make entering a well a routine household job. The HSE's confined-space guidance describes risks including low oxygen and dangerous atmospheres. Avoid entering an unknown well and get appropriate professional advice about the opening, structure and any proposed work.

A Family Project on Camera

Kevin's daughter Ellie helped record what happened beneath the floor. The videos followed the opening being uncovered, cleared and incorporated into the room, giving viewers more than a single photograph of a hole.

Ellie explained in the coverage that the well was part of the home's history and that they wanted to preserve it. By May 2023, Homebuilding was describing the glass installation. The feature they had chosen to keep could finally be seen from the kitchen above.