Submersible well pump went out, thoughts?

[rangerfredbob]

The water pressure dropped sometime last week so I finally looked into it today and the pressure tank is fine, pressure switch is fine but it would only get to 30psi and the pump was running constant so I went further up the line and found a piece of teflon in the flow restrictor, thought it was from the check valve, nope... I do have a sand problem (or did for a few years after I moved in) so the pump apparently can't make pressure anymore and lost a part of it... I bought the house in '14 and the well was put in the year before that so it isn't that old, the well is around 100' deep if memory serves. I lowered the pressure switch setpoint so it turns off at 30psi and on at 20 so it's at least not running constantly anymore...

So, I know I gotta get a new pump, current is a 3/4hp 4" 3 wire unit since it has a control box and I checked and it has 3 wires plus ground... Home Depot has a pump for $479, Lowes has one for $469, Amazon has them for $200 on up... Which way would you go?

If it was installed in '13 is it likely iron pipe or plastic? The roof panel on the pump house is easy to get off so I'm not worried about that. I didn't think of pulling the cap off the tube when I had the check valve off...

 

[ponytug]

Do you have a booster pump as well as a well pump? How deep is your well?

I would check to see who the manufacturer is at the various vendors and go from there, as manufacturer/ manufacturing quality is all over the map.

The last thing I want is to put a cheap pump in a well. I personally find replacing a submersible pump not a DIY project, and therefore pricey. Normally, you want to match the pump HP and number of the impellers in the pump stack to the target draw down of your well and the height of the resulting lift to deliver whatever the desired flow and pressure is at the house.

My prior Grundfos submersible pump went 30 odd years before the footer valve started leaking, and if I had understood my well better, I wouldn't have replaced it for a few more years beyond that.

You might want to look at a recent thread;

How to Recover a Lost Submersible Well Pump

I suddenly lost all pressure and water began collecting around the well head. The well is +/- 500' deep with a 3/4 hp. submersible pump in a 6" casing. I dug out and exposed the pipe where it connects to the casing and found water spraying out around the pit-less adapter. I removed the pipe...

www.tractorbynet.com

All the best,

Peter

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

My well is 85 ft deep, been here 42 years. I've replaced 4 pumps over the years. Last year had a Goulds pump installed (they're very highly rated). I put two things on my well house, a 240v breaker switch and a standard (E26) lamp socket. This I wired to one pump leg and ground. I have a purple light bulb in it, I can see it 500ft away. Pump on, light on. It's saved me over the years because normal use (toilet, washer, etc) pump cuts on about 10 seconds. If we see light on I know there's a leak somewhere.
Breaker switch is great, working on pump or vacation...flip it off.

 

[PILOON]

2013 sure suggests poly pipe.
Running and holding 20/30 makes it sound like the problem might not be serious, like perhaps a leaky or poor fitting.
As to depth you might be lucky there as that can hand pull 100 ft easily.
Constant running @ 30 PSI actually hints at a ruptured bladder tank or elsewhere leak.
Foot valve might also be the culprit.

 

[rangerfredbob]

There's a problem with the pump since the piece of teflon I found in the flow restrictor came from somewhere, so the pump has to come up no matter what...

Good to know I should be able to hand pull it, I'm very handy so I'm not too scared but it's still something new...

 

[repete]

Pulled and replaced many a pump over the years. Anyone else remember the 1 1/4" steel pipe in 20' sections?

 

[MAX-24-Dean]

Pulled and replaced many a pump over the years. Anyone else remember the 1 1/4" steel pipe in 20' sections?

Yes,
pulled my pump 2 years ago and the galvanized 1 1/4" pipe had holes in it at the joints of the 20' sections. drove 70 miles for replacement pipe and got it all back in the same day.

 

[BoylermanCT]

Just replaced my pump when we lost all pressure but the pressure switch was calling for power and the top of the well had power. Hand pulled it up 205'. Decided to shorten the pipe by 8 feet as we've been getting sand in the filters and large air gaps. My theory was the pump was partially buried and overheating which vaporized the water to steam and created air gaps in the flow. Also upgraded pump from 3/4 horse to 1 hp based on the manufacturer's sizing chart. New pump is working perfectly, no air in line and no more sand in the filter. Check your wires when you pull the pump out. I didn't do that one time, and turns out the pump was fine but was getting no power at the bottom of the well.

 

[cqaigy2]

Is it pulling the same amperage as when it was new?

 

[rangerfredbob]

The pressure tank is perfectly fine, I checked and it had like 35psi above the diaphragm and was empty because the pump can't make that pressure... I pulled the tank first because I thought it might have somehow been plugged with junk and it wasn't. Speaking of the tank, I initially thought that was the problem and in looking some said to have them at 20psi empty and others something about 2psi below pressure switch setpoint or something... I've always felt the tank should hold more than it seems to... it's an 84 gallon total volume tank and always feels empty when I rock it...

The motor capacitor is leaking so that can't be helping so I just ordered one but it can't cause a low pressure situation when it "sounds" normal. I haven't checked amperage yet but I will check that here in a few minutes, I've never checked it before so I don't know what is "normal"