A sand recovery unit for removing sand and other clogging debris from a producing well formation including a cylinder tube component housing an interior filter located across an intake; a DC motor coupled to a pumping mechanism having an intake covered by the filter and discharge orifices along the side wall of the tube; and a one-way flap valve provided in-line with the interior filter in a manner such that the inline flap valve is positioned on an opposite side of the filtering screen from the pumping mechanism. A coupling is also provided for attachment to a drill string and a chargeable ni-cad battery supply is provided for powering the pumping mechanism.