Submersible Well Pump

[whistlepig]

Boy, I bet that was a fun closing!!

The closing really sucked. The wife of the selling couple ran out of the room crying her eyes out. The title agency, that charged us $500.00 to research the title, said for an additional $1,000 they would research the title to make sure that there were no claims from ancient Indians. They said they were not responsible for claims from ancient Indians. We politely told them exactly what place in their body they could put their ancient Indian claims. I love the USA. No other country like it. But always keep a loaded gun next to your bed. And when you are in a room full of bankers, lawyers, and title agency folks always be bright eyed and bushy tailed.

 

[Soundguy]

...and keep your back to the wall, and don't bend over...

 

[psdx]

I don't see anything here that says the pump has failed....yet. Run the water while you watch the pressure gauge at the pressure tank. Make note of the lowest pressure when the pump comes on and the highest pressure when it turns off. Compare these measurements to the range specified on the pressure switch. If a pressure switch fails it can narrow the operating pressure causing your pump to cycle more frequently. If the high/low pressures compare favorably with the pressure switch rating, take the next step.

The pressure tank is X gallons. It either has a bladder or it doesn't. The drawdown volume of water between cycles is a function of the pressure range for your pressure switch (20-40 psi, 30-50 psi, etc.), the size of the tank, whether or not it has a bladder, and if it has a bladder - what the static air pressure is when the tank is full. Each of these variables has an impact on the drawdown capacity of your pressure tank. You can use about any pressure tank manufacturer's website to figure this out for your setup. Once you know the number of gallons that can be withdrawn from the tank between pump cycles, measure the amount of time it takes to go from low pressure (pump on) to high pressure (pump off) and calculate the gallons per minute you're getting from your well.

If you don't have the driller's report for your well, contact the driller (most keep permanent records for historical purposes), or contact the local agency that grants well drilling permits. They should also have a copy. You can then compare the original well output with what you measured above to quantify the difference. If the water production is low, there can be a few things - a blockage, a leak (check the pitless adapter), a failed bladder in your pressure tank, low static water level in your well.....or a lazy, tired pump.

My point is that there are lots of things to do before spending money on a pump. Good luck with your investigation.

 

[heehaw]

i always used gould pumps, until recently, and now i use whatever Lowes is selling: price is usually ok: i do have one submersible i am going to put in this spring, that i bought off ebay: saved quite a bit of money, and it was new in the box..Lowes or ebay, either way, the pumps have been less than $300: my well is 200ft deep...
heehaw

 

[Cat_Driver]

Depends on your environment. In my area the water has a lot of sand in it so it will chew up a plastic propeller in months.

I replaced it with a stainless gould and that lasted 5 years. I took out the Gould and replaced it with a Grundfos.

There's a Company in Texas that makes OEM pumps for Grundfos and sells then for about 1/2 the price of the Grundfos. All stainless steel etc.

I just put it in a year ago so no real history on it, but it is really putting out the water.

 

[Doppelgangar]

Your problem sounds like a restriction in the line from the pump. this will slow down the flow but when the flow is not required the preasure will build up.

Your pump can get jamed in the casing and depending on the iron in the water it could be this that is your problem.

When doing bores one of the jobs was to service pumps this was recomended every 5 or so years. Pulling the screen and reaming the caseing was just part of the this.

Servicing the pump consists of looking at the impellers (usually rubber) and checking the non return vaulve.

Another thing that all should do is at least once a year lift the pump about 3 feet and let it down again. this stops the crud from building up.

Good luck with restoring you water flow.preasure.

 

[SPYDERLK]

Where are you seeing this pressure/flow drop ?, air bubbles also ?

Do you have a dump valve or faucet plumb directly off the tank plumbing area that you could compare ?

"The pressure tank is holding at 45 pounds."
Do you have good flow at outlets when tank is at this pressure ?
"Just no pressure or water volume when the pump is running."
I'm confused as how the tank makes it to 45 and curious as to how your measuring your volume.

Split the system in half at the tank and test each side separately.

Unless your really determined to replace that pump.

It holds 45 pounds when the pump shuts off. When the water starts running the pressure and volume isn't there like it was four years ago. It's a good well. I have no suspicions about the well.

A question not directly answered here could be key to the issue. If you do not have reliably good flow when the tank is at pressure, it may be that the bladder in the tank has ruptured and part of it is obstructing outflow. If the tank was ever waterlogged the bladder may have popped due to being over extended.
larry

 

[TheGoose]

Why is everybody calling a plumber for a well problem? Do you call an electrician for a plugged toilet?

Get rid of the plumbers and call a real well-man, not a plumber who sometimes puts a well pump in.

Either the pump is bad or not, very little in between. I would be very, very wary of a new pump installed for $675.

 

[tommu56]

Can't hurt to check the water depth...only takes 5-10 minutes and that neighbor might be pulling enough water off the aquifer to cause you problems. Aquifiers can be depleted.

BTW, as a bit of an addedum to my previous post. 2011 was the wettest year on record in the state of Pennsylvania. We had drought years (2002-2007) with occasional outages. I couldn't understand how we could lose a well after all the rain we had last year (and continuing into 2012).

Roy don't let the ANTI's hear your well went dry they will blame it on the fracking and try and light your faucet up:laughing:

 

[RoyJackson]

Roy don't let the ANTI's hear your well went dry they will blame it on the fracking and try and light your faucet up:laughing:

Fracking is about 100 miles north of my location.
I'll admit, I've heard some real horror stories about it.