Pressure Tank on the Blink?

[lakngulf]

I had a water well dug in 1996. It has worked fairly well over that time, but now has trouble staying on. I can fiddle with the switch and get it to catch but then it goes off and on, off and on, and ultimately off. I can see the pressure needle going back and forth, back and forth.

Has my pressure tank bit the dust?

 

[beersngars]

Try letting some air out of the valve. If you see water as well, it's time for a new one. Check it now as the constant on/off cycling is hard on the pump.

 

[lakngulf]

Try letting some air out of the valve. If you see water as well, it's time for a new one. Check it now as the constant on/off cycling is hard on the pump.

Thanks. I did let some air out earlier, and that is what got it going a bit, BUT, yes, there was water coming out as well.

Does replacement invlove just buying a new tank similar to the one there and connect it up? Do I have to put a certain amount of pressure in it. I do not use it often, so would a small tank work just as well?

 

[beersngars]

Yes, just buy a new one close to what you have. It will come pressurized. You may want to adjust it, but no real need to. IIRC, it should be around 35 psi.

 

[SandburRanch]

Yes, just buy a new one close to what you have. It will come pressurized. You may want to adjust it, but no real need to. IIRC, it should be around 35 psi.

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As beersngars says, if possible buy one that has the same base height so the plumbing connection or tank height doesn't have to be modified.

Also don't plan on just disconnecting it to drain. If it only has a pin hole that caused the air side to fill with water over a ling period of time it won't drain like we would like and will have the water weight to contend with when removing it. It can be drained if need be but is a little more complicated.

The tank should have 2 lb. less pressure IIRC than the cut in switch pressure but keep in mind you are usually using two different gauges to check so being real precise is often a waste of time.

As for the switch being iffie - sometimes crud plugs the orifice in the switch so it doesn't always see the correct pressure. While you are there and the elect. supply cut off, I recommend removing the switch for cleaning or replacement and replace the short 1/4 inch pipe nipple it is often attached with unless it is brass.

 

[2458n]

When I needed a new pressure tank it was indeed full of water. Very heavy. A plumber said just take a chisel and punch a couple of holes. Worked ; but water every where. He is still probably smiling.

 

[SandburRanch]

When I needed a new pressure tank it was indeed full of water. Very heavy. A plumber said just take a chisel and punch a couple of holes. Worked ; but water every where. He is still probably smiling.

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Mine was in a location where I couldn't lift it so I drilled a hole in the top to siphon with a flex clear tubing. The bladder prevented that for some reason so I drilled a series of holes down the side and had success with the siphon tubing. A little slow but so is cleaning a water spill mess. A wet vac may be faster.

 

[Kays Supply]

You can also keep pressure on the tank with an air supply and force a lot of water out a faucet it your line. Just turn the power to the pump off first.

 

[woodchuckie]

It depends on what type of tank you have. Some have the water and air in the same container and all you have to do is drain the water out and put a little less pressure in than the pressure of your cut in pressure. The will become water logged over time and there is a cheap device that delay the water logging.

A tank with a separate air bag just gets air added to the bag which is like a rubber inner tube.

Can you not drain the water through the inlet or outlet pipes.

 

[SandburRanch]

With this bladder style tank, if it took 6 months with pressure for it to water log through a pin size hole it'd probably take 6 months to drain the water. Can't wait that long for a drink.

 

[RobertBrown]

I had a water well dug in 1996. It has worked fairly well over that time, but now has trouble staying on. I can fiddle with the switch and get it to catch but then it goes off and on, off and on, and ultimately off. I can see the pressure needle going back and forth, back and forth.

Has my pressure tank bit the dust?

Your pump is short cycling, and it may be the tank but it doesn't mean the tank needs to be replaced. It may just need air pressure.
If it were my tank I would do the following.
1. note the cut off pressure of the pump, or the highest pressure the pump achieves before it turns off.
2. depress the schrader valve on top of the tank, if you get a lot of water, your tank is shot. The schrader valve looks like the the valve stem on your car tire.
if you get air, go to step 3.
3. turn your pump off and relieve the pressure through any faucet that is convienent, as long as it relieves the pressure on the tank. The tank should be reletively light in weight now, if it is full of water, the tank is shot. If it feels like it has no water or your are unable to tell. Check the air pressure and adjust it until it's 4 psi bvelow the cut off pressure you are curently using. Should be around 40 or higher.
4. turn the pump on and see how it works, try to avoid the short cycling, it's bad for the pump. If air pressure was your problem the pump should shut off just like it used too. If work intermittently then you may just need to adjust the switch. A little adjust ment goes a log way so turn the adjustment nut a half turn at a time.

If you have a large pump (2 hp or larger) your tank may be undersized, so before you buy another make sure you get the proper size. I like these tanks:
WELLMATE Composite Water Storage Tanks
They are fibrglass and seem to be of good quality, oh they are expensive but when you consider the cost of a cheap one and the inconvienence and work involved of replacing, I think it's well worth it HA! get it ?
WELL WORTH IT!
Anyway you will find a sizing chart on the website and a lot of useful information.

 

[TheGoose]

Before everybody here jumps the gun are you sure you have a bladder-style tank? In these parts there are more standard galvanized tanks than bladder tanks. You may just need to add air.

If you do need a new bladder tank I recommend either the composite Well Mate, Flex-con, or WellXtroll. Stay away from the big box stores, their tanks are not very high quality.

 

[dmccarty]

Late last year we started getting water pressure surges in the house. If you were taking a shower there would be increased pressure as the pump turned on. This would happen every 20-30 seconds.

I checked the pressure tank and it was holding pressure best I could tell. Maybe I got a bit of water out of the valve when I checked the pressure. Hmmm, said I. I ended up changing the pressure switch which did help. For a month or two. Then the problem returned.

I went back and checked the pressure tank again. Ours is a bladder tank with an air valve on top of the tank. I checked the pressure but this time water shot into my pressure gauge.

We called the plumber. :laughing:

In THEORY we could replace the bladder in the tank. The problem was I could not find an online supplier nearby, the ones I did find wanted almost as much for the bladder as a new tank, and the suppliers were in China.

Did I mention we called the plumber? This is why.

He installed a metal pressure tank. WellXtroll is sounding familiar. The plumber, who is a good guy, said we should not have any problems with that tank. The tank the well driller installed was a wound fiberglass tank. I figured that would be ok since it will not rust. I read, or my plumber said, that those tanks do not last.

I certainly do not know if that is true for all tanks but ours lasted six years and I would not buy that brand again because what should have been a cheap, fast, fix was not cheap or fast.

If you get water out of the pressure valve on top of the tank ye have a problem. You should be able to search and find the instructions for your tank on the Internet. The amount of pressure you have in the tank depends on your pressure switch. Different switches support different on/off pressures. You need to know the pressure cut on/off for your switch to help diagnose the problem.

We paid about $450 for a new 5ish gallon pressure tank. Installed.

Later,
Dan

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Briefly, pressure tanks are not full of water, they are full of air. When the pump kicks on, the tank should be almost out of water. That gives you the longest pump cycle. If your pump is short cycling, just add air. If there is a leak in the bladder, add air anyway. It will just function as a bladderless tank for a few weeks while you shop around and save yourself a few hundred dollars.

 

[dieselscout80]

How big of a pressure tank is needed?

 

[SandburRanch]

Briefly, pressure tanks are not full of water, they are full of air. When the pump kicks on, the tank should be almost out of water. That gives you the longest pump cycle. If your pump is short cycling, just add air. If there is a leak in the bladder, add air anyway. It will just function as a bladderless tank for a few weeks while you shop around and save yourself a few hundred dollars.

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That will work but only if the hole in the bladder is large enough to quickly equalize the pressure in each of the two separate spaces.

 

[SandburRanch]

How big of a pressure tank is needed?

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For average household use a tank sized for 3 gallon draw down is fairly common. Charts are published for this information.

If a person thought he may need 6 gallon draw down between pump cycles it may be advantageous to install two 3 gallon draw down tanks. The idea is that if one tank failed short cycling would be eliminated and that tank could be changed out while the good tank was still in service.

I have two wells. One with the old style bladder-less tank and the other has a bladder tank. Plan on the bladder tanks to fail the day after warranty ends, for whatever a warranty is worth.

I'll take the galvanized bladder-less tank that has been in service for nearly 40 years even though air has to be added on occasion.

 

[JD5210]

First figure out where the problem is before doing anything and what kind of tank you have.
Sometimes the little copper tube that is connected to the bottom of the tank gets plugged up. If a tank with a bladder, empty the tank if you wiggle it a little and hear water the bladder is bad. Inside of switch cover will tell you if it is a 40/60 or 30/50 switch most likely a 40/60. Only test the bladder when the tank is empty. The bladder should be 5 pounds, someone correct if I am wrong less then the lower setting.
It is possible the switch is bad take a picture of wiring before removing and take the cover to the parts place.
Hopefully you do NOT have a filter before the tank.

 

[woodchuckie]

My steel tanks rust out in a few years. Maybe 6 or 8. The last time I replaced it the price of steel had gotten so high that it was cheaper to get the fiberglass with the bladder. No problem so far. It's been 2 or three years I think.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

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That will work but only if the hole in the bladder is large enough to quickly equalize the pressure in each of the two separate spaces.

The air doesn't know there are two separate spaces. The bladder is just there to keep the air from dissolving in the water. The air in the tank will be under the same pressure whether it is inside the bladder or outside. The bladder is just a membrane. It doesn't hold any pressure at all unless you drain the system.