Pump will not reach high enough pressure
I have a deep well submersible 2 HP pump with a bladder type pressure tank, 30-50 psi switch. Switch, tank, etc are all in warm crawlspace. I don't know the exact depth of the well, but at least three hundred feet.
This system has worked flawlessly for years, so not an installation issue.
Yesterday we awoke to no water. The pump was not running. I hit the overload reset switch and the pump came on. (I had never had to do this before). I think the pump had been runnning for a while, perhaps overnight.
Pump ran fine but will not bring pressure above about 34 psi. Thus pump will not turn off. And it takes a long time to move the pressure at all; with pipes full, going from 28 - 34 psi takes over 20 minutes. (Typically, pump would have increased pressure from 28 to ~50 psi in a few minutes). Lots of pipe in the house (2 kitchens, 4 baths, 2 large water treatment tanks) so I realize it takes a while to fill everything, but even if I close the house side valve and just let the pump pressure up the pressure tank, that takes a long time too. (It will quickly get the pressure up to the air pressure level in the tank, i.e. 28 psi, but it is slow beyond that).
Checked pressure in tanks (after releasing water pressure, etc) and they were low, about 14 psi. Don't know how long this had been the case, since I had never checked them. Refilled to 28 psi. With pipes full, pump off and water line on house side open, tanks hold pressure, indicating no leak on house side.
Did not know quite how to check to see whether pump is getting the right voltage. Voltage coming in to the box is fine. The pump side has has three wires, red, black, yellow. Voltage R-B is 220, R-Y is 220, BY is 280 (?).
Turned off pump, closed valve on house side but left valve on well side open, pressure held steady for over an hour. (meaning no leak on the well side?)
Weather has been very cold, with nighttime temperatures below freezing for over two weeks, which is very unusual for Virginia. In the cement casing around the well head, there are some PVC pipes that are above the ground, but no leaks at all are visible.
Any ideas? Pump going bad? Some kind of leak inside the well? I don't know much about what I have, e.g. check valves, foot valve, pitless adapter, etc.
Any help would be appreciated, and apologies if I've left out something important.
I have a deep well submersible 2 HP pump with a bladder type pressure tank, 30-50 psi switch. Switch, tank, etc are all in warm crawlspace. I don't know the exact depth of the well, but at least three hundred feet.
This system has worked flawlessly for years, so not an installation issue.
Yesterday we awoke to no water. The pump was not running. I hit the overload reset switch and the pump came on. (I had never had to do this before). I think the pump had been runnning for a while, perhaps overnight.
Pump ran fine but will not bring pressure above about 34 psi. Thus pump will not turn off. And it takes a long time to move the pressure at all; with pipes full, going from 28 - 34 psi takes over 20 minutes. (Typically, pump would have increased pressure from 28 to ~50 psi in a few minutes). Lots of pipe in the house (2 kitchens, 4 baths, 2 large water treatment tanks) so I realize it takes a while to fill everything, but even if I close the house side valve and just let the pump pressure up the pressure tank, that takes a long time too. (It will quickly get the pressure up to the air pressure level in the tank, i.e. 28 psi, but it is slow beyond that).
Checked pressure in tanks (after releasing water pressure, etc) and they were low, about 14 psi. Don't know how long this had been the case, since I had never checked them. Refilled to 28 psi. With pipes full, pump off and water line on house side open, tanks hold pressure, indicating no leak on house side.
Did not know quite how to check to see whether pump is getting the right voltage. Voltage coming in to the box is fine. The pump side has has three wires, red, black, yellow. Voltage R-B is 220, R-Y is 220, BY is 280 (?).
Turned off pump, closed valve on house side but left valve on well side open, pressure held steady for over an hour. (meaning no leak on the well side?)
Weather has been very cold, with nighttime temperatures below freezing for over two weeks, which is very unusual for Virginia. In the cement casing around the well head, there are some PVC pipes that are above the ground, but no leaks at all are visible.
Any ideas? Pump going bad? Some kind of leak inside the well? I don't know much about what I have, e.g. check valves, foot valve, pitless adapter, etc.
Any help would be appreciated, and apologies if I've left out something important.