Replacing existing well pump system

[Billy Grayson]

My wife and I recently purchased what we hope will be our retirement home on the Pacific coast of Panama.
The home is a bit of a fixer-upper and our water supply is from an existing well.
The well is about 300 feet away from the house. There is a gas powered pump that pulls water from the well and pushes it to an elevated cistern located behind the house. From there, the water is gravity-fed to a small pressure pump with what looks like a 2 - 2.5 gallon pressure tank, then on to the house. No filtration (which means a LOT of sediment build-up and restricted flow from fixtures) and no water softening. A lot of corners get cut in rural areas of Panama. In this case, it looks like just enough was done to get water flowing into the home.
I'd like some guidance on replacing this system with something more adequate. Not sure what other info may be needed for someone to chime in. Just let me know and I'll give you what I can!

Thanks

 

[Texas Wellman]

Are you on grid or off? Can you get power to the well location?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Billy Grayson]

Are you on grid or off? Can you get power to the well location?

Yes, we have power.

 

[Reach4]

What is the nature of the sediment?

I suggest a lab water test that includes hardness, iron, manganese, pH, arsenic, sodium and more.

How big is the well casing? How deep is the well, if you know? How far down is the water?

Is the plumbing steel?

 

[Billy Grayson]

I know very little about the existing well. Only that its about 100 feet deep.
I plan on bringing a water sample back with me on our next trip. We don't make a habit of drinking the water when we are there, though I've been told by the previous owner that they drank it.
I just want to upgrade the system so that we have adequate pressure and less calcification in our faucets.

 

[Reach4]

Are you thinking about putting in a softener, new pressure tank, and softener? Maybe a new well pump?

If you have 240 volt power, and not just 120, you can use smaller wire to run to the pump when you run the wire... and maybe new 300 ft of poly pipe. You may not need a new pipe, but you might.

What about the sediment-- sand, rust? Are the insides of your toilet tanks orange from rusty water?

 

[Valveman]

I would draw from less than 1/2 way up the cistern tank. Maybe most of the stuff will settle to the bottom. If you run electric power to the well you could hook up a regular house well set with a pressure tank and pressure switch. You can do the same for the booster out of the cistern. Or you can do both so you can turn a couple valves and get water straight from the well or from the cistern.

 

[Billy Grayson]

Are you thinking about putting in a softener, new pressure tank, and softener? Maybe a new well pump?

If you have 240 volt power, and not just 120, you can use smaller wire to run to the pump when you run the wire... and maybe new 300 ft of poly pipe. You may not need a new pipe, but you might.

What about the sediment-- sand, rust? Are the insides of your toilet tanks orange from rusty water?

Probably will be replacing everything once we are there full-time. Most likely will stick with a gas powered pump at the well and replace the pressure tank and pump at the house along with the addition of filters and maybe water softener. Really looking for guidance on size of equipment. Is a 1/2 hp pump and 5 gallon pressure tank enough between the storage tank and house? We have three sinks, two showers, two toilets, washer, and hose spigot.

 

[Valveman]

Not much difference in price. If power is not a problem I would use a 1HP with a PK1A kit. The CSV1A in the PK1A will make the pump work like a small pump when small water is all you are using. But the CSV will open up and give you all the water a 1HP can supply when running multiple taps at the same time. With the CSV a 5 gallon pressure tank is plenty. Without a CSV a 5 gallon tank is not even close.
https://cpkits.com/collections/frontpage/products/pk1a

 

[Billy Grayson]

Not much difference in price. If power is not a problem I would use a 1HP with a PK1A kit. The CSV1A in the PK1A will make the pump work like a small pump when small water is all you are using. But the CSV will open up and give you all the water a 1HP can supply when running multiple taps at the same time. With the CSV a 5 gallon pressure tank is plenty. Without a CSV a 5 gallon tank is not even close.
https://cpkits.com/collections/frontpage/products/pk1a

Thanks very much for that info.
So, with the PK1A in the link you provided, I'd just need the 1 hp pump and any filters I want to add? I'm a little behind the learning curve on working with well pumps, but I'm a quick study!
One of the down sides to living in Panama will be the availability of replacement parts and the difficulty of having something shipped from the states. Have you found these systems to be pretty reliable? What would be a typical lifespan?
Thanks again.

 

[Valveman]

One of the upsides the the PK1A kit is that it comes in a small 18# box. We have shipped them all over the world. And the PK1A will do a better job controlling your pump than a large, heavy, and expensive pressure tank.

Another advantage of the CSV is you can use as large a pump as you may need in the future, and it will make it work like a small pump when that is all you need.

One more advantage is the CSV eliminates the cycling that causes a short life for pumps, tanks, switches, etc. So you should not need repair parts for a long time. Very reliable. Some of those CSV1 valves have been working 20+ years. Pside-Kicks have only been available 8-10 years, but no problems so far.