Hi srf,

I hope you get someone with more practical knowledgeable than me to answer you, but until they do I will try my best. I am assuming your well is 1.75" in diameter and you tried to draw water up with a small pump at ground level with your car battery (12V). The pump lift is rated for moving water from the pump upward. Suction lift is the distance from the well water level(this level can be different when the pump is on than when it is off)to the pump impeller. You have 16 feet from the pump to the surface of the well water. Maximum possible lift for a centrifugal pump at ground level is 15 feet under ideal conditions. That is why most suction lift pumps are actually in rooms below ground nearer the water level they are pumping. The jet pump over comes this using a venturi to pull water up as the water is pumped down into the well and back up again. Your best bet is a submersible pump placed near the bottom of the well, but I don't know if they make them that narrow to fit in your 1.74" diameter well. Google a pump supplier and ask them. Good luck.