Well again! What else can it be? FRUSTRATED!

[clovergamecock]

Here is what has been done.

1. Pump replaced with Myers 1hp on Monday.
2. Bladder tank replaced last night. 40psi put in and holding same pressure this morning.
3. Checked the depth of the water in the well and it was roughly 60'.
4. Depth of pump to the bottom of the well is roughly 20'
5. Regulator switch NOT replaced but was working last night.

Last night I had 50psi line pressure coming from well to regulator. As I mentioned above I put 40psi in the expansion tank and it shows the same amount this mornig. After my son took a shower this morning we have no water and no pressure from well to regulator. When I manually flip the switch on the reg I get spark at the connectors but still no pressure which was expected because there was 0 line pressure and someone mentioned in another thread that it needs a minimum of 10 psi in the line or the pump will not run. I did the trick of holding the switch half way and still got nothing.

So did the regulator go bad??????

Thanks
Wade

 

[tlbuser]

Have you checked the electrical feed? Did you adjust the pressure switch anywhere in this chain of events?

 

[clovergamecock]

Here is what has been done.

1. Pump replaced with Myers 1hp on Monday.
2. Bladder tank replaced last night. 40psi put in and holding same pressure this morning.
3. Checked the depth of the water in the well and it was roughly 60'.
4. Depth of pump to the bottom of the well is roughly 20'
5. Regulator switch NOT replaced but was working last night.

Last night I had 50psi line pressure coming from well to regulator. As I mentioned above I put 40psi in the expansion tank and it shows the same amount this mornig. After my son took a shower this morning we have no water and no pressure from well to regulator. When I manually flip the switch on the reg I get spark at the connectors but still no pressure which was expected because there was 0 line pressure and someone mentioned in another thread that it needs a minimum of 10 psi in the line or the pump will not run. I did the trick of holding the switch half way and still got nothing.

So did the regulator go bad??????

Thanks
Wade

 

[imgone52]

Our well does this when the return rate (fill rate) on the well goes down. This happens most commonly when our weather has us in near drought. It always refills eventually, just not fast enough to keep up with heavy draw. You might want to check the return rate of the well.

 

[sam5570]

Wade did you check to see if the pump is running when you close the contacts on the switch. i just wen thru problems with well. where is your guage in reference to your tank and switch.

 

[clovergamecock]

sorry all. I was so frustrated I pasted the origional post by accident. Here is what I meant to add a few minutes ago.

I went out and shut the water off from the tank to the house and the pump kicked on immediately and shot to 50PSI. I have looked everywhere in and under the house and cannot find a leak anywhere. I do have a leak in the line to the barn that runs off of the house side line but I have the ball valve shut on that one and have verified no water in the barn.

Idea's???

 

[unbidden]

Is there a filter that needs to be changed? When I first purchased our property I put a charcoal type filter in, this would immediately clog and kill water pressure though the well had not been used for months. I switched to the micro fiber or paper type and no problems.

Try by-passing the filter if you have that type of set up to see if that is the issue.

 

[clovergamecock]

New update. I went under and changed the filter. I use the paper filter cartiges now. I also disconnected the barn at the ball valve and absolutely no water came out which is as I expected since I had the valve off. Lastly I matched the tank pressure with the line pressure coming from the well. Guage at the tank is 45psi and the psi in the tank is 45psi. Thoughts??

Also, How would I test refill rate???

 

[uglyboywith11fingers]

are you saying you pre-charged the bladder tank to 45psi which is also the cutout pressure of the pump switch ???
the tank pre-charge should be a few psi lower than the cut-in pressure of the pump switch, IMO.

Pete

 

[Filedreport]

What is your pump turn on pressure set at? Your tank pressure should be set lower than the turn on.

 

[clovergamecock]

I precharged the tank before opening the valve to the house. I had roughly 50 showing on the water pressure guage. I am not sure how to adjust for what you are describing. How can I do this.

Thanks
W

 

[uglyboywith11fingers]

common pump switch settings are cut-in at 30 or 40 psi and cut out at 50 or 60 psi. (20 psi between cut-in and cut-out).
with pump off, or valve to house closed, relieve pressure in house plumbing by opening a tap.
at this point, tank pressure should be just under cut-in setting.
if you're not sure of your pump cut-in cut-out settings, adjust tank precharge to something just below 30psi, and go from there.

Pete

 

[Filedreport]

I precharged the tank before opening the valve to the house. I had roughly 50 showing on the water pressure guage. I am not sure how to adjust for what you are describing. How can I do this.

Thanks
W

The pre charge of the tank should be a few pounds less than the cut-in pressure of the pump. If cut-in for the pump to turn on is 30 Pre charge should be 28.

 

[mbohuntr]

I'm willing to bet you have a hole in your line. It will lose it's prime when everything else works...

 

[Filedreport]

I'm willing to bet you have a hole in your line. It will lose it's prime when everything else works...

He said "Depth of pump to the bottom of the well is roughly 20' "
I don't think it needs to be prime. If a two pipe then it could be. Plus he had a pressure reading on the line.

 

[Clint S]

Yes the pressure in the tank has to be lower than the cut out. The standard is 2 psi. If the pressure in the tank is too high it will not allow the pump to turn on properly. A 44 psi tank pressure and a 30 lb pressure switch will not get along well. You will just drain all the water from the system and the pressure from the tank will not allow the pump to kick on. I just turn the pump off relieve the pressure in the system and check with a tire gauge. Take pressure off or fill with a pump of some sort. It is always a good idea to check the cut in pressure too, most switches are adjustable and more than a few times I have had a new one be a little off. Just open a faucet and see what pressure the pump kick on.

 

[moship]

Well-trol has this video describing the process. See the first video "How do I check the pressure in my tank"
Amtrol- Troubleshooting

Here's some other links that may help in setting the pressure:
How to adjust your well pressure tank

http://www.freshwatersystems.com/specifications/WellXTrol-Amtrol-Installation-Instructions.pdf

Good luck!

 

[TRR]

In addition to the cut-in pressure and the cut-out pressure, some switches also include a Low-pressure fail over. (Not sure that's the right name for it) What it does is if the pressure falls to low then the switch turns off the pump until the switch is reset. These are normally used on systems that are not monitored regularly and the purpose is to keep from burning up the pump if there is a leak that depletes the water. This could happen to you if you use water faster than the well & pressure tank can supply it. You may have 50psi when you reset it, and all is fine, but if you use water fast enough that the pump turns on at the cut-in pressure and the pressure keeps falling due to using more water than can be supplied, eventually the pressure will fall below the Low-pressure limit and shut the pump off and you'll end up with zero pressure, but a system that is working correctly. (I.e. check to see what kind of pump controller/pressure switch you have.)

Here's a link to the pressure switch I'm referring to: Parts20 Pressure switch 30/50 with Low Pressure Cutoff-FP217-1140-P2 at The Home Depot

It says:

Includes low-pressure safety cutoff to shut off the pump when the system pressure drops to 10 psi

 

[uglyboywith11fingers]

so now we just wait for the OP to let us know how close our diagnosis was...

 

[clovergamecock]

Thanks guys! No update yet. I had to work late. Right now all is good but from all of you alls comments and advice I think I have the tank and the switch pretty far off from what they should be. I will jump on it first thing in the morning with hopefully some good news to follow.

Wade