City water + cistern + booster + pressure tank thoughts

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charles_kaplan

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NOTE: I believe this topic is loosely similar to 'Low yield well with cistern and jet pump', but no well, city water. As such I have some questions I am hoping someone might have a best practices answer to.

I have city water, but unfortunately the supply line is undersized. I am a 1/4 mile from the main and have probably 100' elevation difference all with a 1" line. The net result is low pressure and low volume.

About 7 years ago I installed a booster pump and 70 gallon bladder style pressure tank, setup for 40/60 out. Yes I included a backflow preventer.

It all works fine.

But when the pump is running it takes several minutes, during which time it is #1 a bit noisy and #2 I can't help but suspect it is scavenging.

Lately I have been thinking about installing a 2nd pressure tank where the low pressure water first enters the house and before it hits the boost pump. If this tank can hold more than the draw down (~30 gal) the pump will empty this tank before/in-parallel with the street water, thus cycling in seconds rather than minutes.

But then I thought, what if I am watering for hours in the yard, this 2nd tank will empty and the pump will still be running. Will the bladder in the tank be stretched the wrong way and possibly damaged?

What if rather than a 2nd pressure tank I installed a cistern with a float switch, somewhat like here, "https://terrylove.com/forums/index....lp-pumping-uphill-to-house.57314/#post-422117". The big difference is that with a cistern and city water I need a float that actually can limit the water level else the cistern would over-fill.

Is there a better approach to all of this?

I would like something concrete before I go to the plumbing inspector.

Many thank

CK
 

Reach4

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But then I thought, what if I am watering for hours in the yard, this 2nd tank will empty and the pump will still be running. Will the bladder in the tank be stretched the wrong way and possibly damaged?
Once the pressure gets below the pre-charge pressure, the pressure tank will be empty. It will not be damaged.

Will freezing be a problem in your cistern? A submersible pump can be horizontal on the bottom of a cistern. It would have no priming problems. It would be quiet. It would be more efficient than your average booster pump. Having your booster pump outside, maybe in a pump house, would make things quieter in the house.

Suppose the house pressure is on a 40 to 60 PSI system. I wonder how hard it would be to have a system where when the pressure dropped to say 45 PSI, the water to the yard sprinkler would be temporarily shut off until the pressure got up to maybe 55 PSI at your pressure tank. That way, household needs would take precedence.

Another thought is to move your booster closer to the water meter in a pump house or pit as allowed. You would keep the pressure switch at the pressure tank in the house. Now the pressure at the base of the hill could be much higher, and you could get more GPM through the same pipe. And things are quieter in the house.

These are just ideas; I am not a pro.
 

Valveman

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An electric solenoid valve controlled by a float switch is a good way to control the city water supply filling a cistern/storage tank, which is what you need to make this work properly.
 
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