phughes200
Engineer
I am having issues with my well. It is a two inch well that is approximately 35 feet deep and has a jet pump. The well was drilled in 1965. The well head is buried. I have been told by the previous owner that the foot valve and well pipe were replaced sometime around 2007. I suspect that the foot valve is as low as it can go. I have had two main issues:
1) For the last several months, I have been getting air in the system. Just very short burst when I turn on the faucets or shower. After a heavy rain last week, the problem is significantly less. I have never run out of water or had the pressure drop to an unusable pressure. Our household of three people average a total of 1 shower, 1 wash load, 1 dishwasher load a day plus the usual toilet flushing. No outside water usage.
2) After a heavy rain the water will be cloudly (more redish) for a day or two. I am in NC with that nice reddish soil.
So far, I have tried the following:
1) I ran the shower until the pump kicks on at 38 psi. The pump will restore the pressue to the cutoff pressure of 58 at the rate of 1 psi per minute (20 minutes total). The shower draws 2 gpm. If I try the test with the other shower ( 1 GPM) the pressure increases at 2 psi per minute.
2) I had a pump tech out and he stated that the pump and bladder are okay. He recommended opening the well and surging the well to try to improve the yield. It seem this might help if the water level is dropping low enough to air in but doesn't address the sediment issue.
3) I have discussed this with two well drillers on the phone. They both stated that surging the well could 1) cause more problems and 2) be a waste of money. They think the sediment could be from a hole in the casing or a failing seal where the casing meets the bedrock. Either way, they claim that surface water could be entering the well and recommended a new well. They both feel that the system mechanicals (bladder, pump, jet, foot valve and pipes) were working properly. They felt that opening the well would have little to no benifit.
Any thoughts. In my area, most new wells are 6 inch drilled to 200-300 feet. Needless to say, this is not cheap. The property will also make running the pipe difficult and expensive. I would just like a feeling if what I am being told makes sense. The well drillers sound sincere in their analysis or they are very good salesmen. My gut says the former.
Thanks for any help.
Sorry just read the sticky about suppling information. This is what I know:
Type of pump?
Submersible________
Two wire (no control)________
Three wire (control box)______
Wire Size_________ Wire Length________
or
Jet Pump (above ground)____X_____
One or two pipes down the well__2 leavin the pump. Unknow what is in the well_
Size of Pump?
Motor Horsepower?____1 HP______
Pump Model #______________
Date Pump Installed__________
Pumping from?
Cistern tank___________
Pond, lake, river________
Water Well_____X_______
Depth of well___25-40 ft est._______
Depth to water____unknown_____
Pump Setting__________
Pipe Size_____2" casing____"
Drop Pipe Material
PVC________
Steel____S.S___
Poly________
Well Recovery Rate_______gpm
Well Casing Diameter____2___”
Rock Well__________ Sand Well__________ Other______________
Date Well Drilled_______1965_____
Well Casing Material
PVC________ Steel____X (guess)_____ Other_________
Pressure Tank?
Bladder or diaphragm tank (one pipe to tank)_____x_____
Size or model of tank_____52 gallon (12 gallon draw down)_______
Air charge in top of tank, with pump off and water drained____31 psi________PSI
(check with car tire gauge)
or
Plain Hydro Pneumatic tank (two pipes to tank, one in and one out)_________
Size of tank________________
Pressure Switch Setting?
On 30, off 50 ________
On 40, off 60_____x 38on, 58 off____
Other_______________
Pump Control Method?
Cycle Stop Valve model #_________
Variable speed control #__________
Pump Start Relay (sprinkler timer, no tank)__________
Manually turned on and off____________
Pump Protection
Cycle Sensor_________
Pumptec_____________
Low pressure cutoff switch (lever on side)__________
Other_______________
Filters or Softeners______________
Before or after pressure tank_______
Type of filter___________________
Bypass available________________
Water Used For?
House Use___x____ Number of baths___3____ Number of People____3____
High Flow Showers____2___gpm?
Plus/Or
Irrigation with timers________
Irrigation with hoses________
Heat Pump______gpm?
Problems Experienced
No Water_________________
Water only part time________
Water at all times but weak_____
Air in water______x_________
Pressure surging___________
Water Hammer (noise)______
Too Much pressure_________
Other__sediment after rain__________________
Pump makes clicking or buzzing sounds________
No Sounds_______x_______
Pressure gauge reading____58____psi
Other____________________________________
Do you have, and know how to use
an Ampmeter and Voltmeter_____yes_____________
Describe Problem______see above____________________.....
1) For the last several months, I have been getting air in the system. Just very short burst when I turn on the faucets or shower. After a heavy rain last week, the problem is significantly less. I have never run out of water or had the pressure drop to an unusable pressure. Our household of three people average a total of 1 shower, 1 wash load, 1 dishwasher load a day plus the usual toilet flushing. No outside water usage.
2) After a heavy rain the water will be cloudly (more redish) for a day or two. I am in NC with that nice reddish soil.
So far, I have tried the following:
1) I ran the shower until the pump kicks on at 38 psi. The pump will restore the pressue to the cutoff pressure of 58 at the rate of 1 psi per minute (20 minutes total). The shower draws 2 gpm. If I try the test with the other shower ( 1 GPM) the pressure increases at 2 psi per minute.
2) I had a pump tech out and he stated that the pump and bladder are okay. He recommended opening the well and surging the well to try to improve the yield. It seem this might help if the water level is dropping low enough to air in but doesn't address the sediment issue.
3) I have discussed this with two well drillers on the phone. They both stated that surging the well could 1) cause more problems and 2) be a waste of money. They think the sediment could be from a hole in the casing or a failing seal where the casing meets the bedrock. Either way, they claim that surface water could be entering the well and recommended a new well. They both feel that the system mechanicals (bladder, pump, jet, foot valve and pipes) were working properly. They felt that opening the well would have little to no benifit.
Any thoughts. In my area, most new wells are 6 inch drilled to 200-300 feet. Needless to say, this is not cheap. The property will also make running the pipe difficult and expensive. I would just like a feeling if what I am being told makes sense. The well drillers sound sincere in their analysis or they are very good salesmen. My gut says the former.
Thanks for any help.
Sorry just read the sticky about suppling information. This is what I know:
Type of pump?
Submersible________
Two wire (no control)________
Three wire (control box)______
Wire Size_________ Wire Length________
or
Jet Pump (above ground)____X_____
One or two pipes down the well__2 leavin the pump. Unknow what is in the well_
Size of Pump?
Motor Horsepower?____1 HP______
Pump Model #______________
Date Pump Installed__________
Pumping from?
Cistern tank___________
Pond, lake, river________
Water Well_____X_______
Depth of well___25-40 ft est._______
Depth to water____unknown_____
Pump Setting__________
Pipe Size_____2" casing____"
Drop Pipe Material
PVC________
Steel____S.S___
Poly________
Well Recovery Rate_______gpm
Well Casing Diameter____2___”
Rock Well__________ Sand Well__________ Other______________
Date Well Drilled_______1965_____
Well Casing Material
PVC________ Steel____X (guess)_____ Other_________
Pressure Tank?
Bladder or diaphragm tank (one pipe to tank)_____x_____
Size or model of tank_____52 gallon (12 gallon draw down)_______
Air charge in top of tank, with pump off and water drained____31 psi________PSI
(check with car tire gauge)
or
Plain Hydro Pneumatic tank (two pipes to tank, one in and one out)_________
Size of tank________________
Pressure Switch Setting?
On 30, off 50 ________
On 40, off 60_____x 38on, 58 off____
Other_______________
Pump Control Method?
Cycle Stop Valve model #_________
Variable speed control #__________
Pump Start Relay (sprinkler timer, no tank)__________
Manually turned on and off____________
Pump Protection
Cycle Sensor_________
Pumptec_____________
Low pressure cutoff switch (lever on side)__________
Other_______________
Filters or Softeners______________
Before or after pressure tank_______
Type of filter___________________
Bypass available________________
Water Used For?
House Use___x____ Number of baths___3____ Number of People____3____
High Flow Showers____2___gpm?
Plus/Or
Irrigation with timers________
Irrigation with hoses________
Heat Pump______gpm?
Problems Experienced
No Water_________________
Water only part time________
Water at all times but weak_____
Air in water______x_________
Pressure surging___________
Water Hammer (noise)______
Too Much pressure_________
Other__sediment after rain__________________
Pump makes clicking or buzzing sounds________
No Sounds_______x_______
Pressure gauge reading____58____psi
Other____________________________________
Do you have, and know how to use
an Ampmeter and Voltmeter_____yes_____________
Describe Problem______see above____________________.....
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