We moved here about 8 years ago and about 5 years ago began having our first problems with our well. The main symptom is that it the water would come out orange and there'd also be some small grey pebbles that would wreak havoc on my sprinkler. It would come and go, but it's become more of a problem over time.
We've had the well people come out three times to tell us what's going on and they say it's iron, collect their $200 for looking at a bucket and then leave. I then came across one fellow by happenstance that was some sort of well remediation expert and he said it sounded like there was some erosion higher up and that when the static water level reached a certain point, our constant drawing up and down with regular use would cause dirt to fall in. He also said that eventually we'd need a new well, but something we could try is to install 4" casing inside our 6" and extend it all the way down, then dump pea gravel between the 4" and 6" casing to help stabilize the collapse and also provide a degree of filtering. So that became the plan, someday...
Things have been great for close to a year, but it's be going south for about a week and then it all went south this weekend with tons of dirt and rocks and I think something may have either plugged up around the pressure tank, or the pump died, or something weird with the mud, because the pressure tank would have good pressure, then run to a dribble, then I'd close the faucet and it'd fill for 20 second, then it'd have good pressure, then back to a dribble.
So, I hatched a three phase plan. First phase was to raise the pump asap, second was to do the bandaid repair, third being the new well. I setup a Harbor Freight 440lb winch to a bar on the ceiling of the pumphouse and yesterday began raising the pump. It raised about 3" and then the winch motor stalled, so I went back and forth with the winch and got it about 6" up and noticed that I was able to give complete slack to the sling and it didn't go back down. Went back and forth a little more and then it was free, with the winch having no problems stalling anymore.
Something I noticed immediately was that there was already 4" casing inside the 6" casing. There's nothing keeping it centered and you can just wobble it around. The top of it is maybe 3" below the top of the 6" casing. This all seemed weird and made me wonder if the previous owner of the home had been having the same problem and tried to work on it the same way, but never poured any pea gravel between the 4" and 6" casing. Anyway, I was eventually able to get the pump all the way out.
Next we went to Home Depot and grabbed some string and roll of measuring tape. The water level is about 64ft below the top of the casing and the rest of the well goes about 92ft beyond that for a total depth of about 156ft. Measuring the end of the well pump down the black poly tubing to the well cap measures about 157ft. So I guess that explains why the pump was hard to pull out? Interestingly, the pump wasn't really dirty at all, just a couple little rusty spots around a couple fasteners. Maybe pulling it up cleaned it. Pump is a 4" Franklin 224309203. The house was built in 2004, so I'm guessing it's the original pump. Also noticed there was no torque arrestor or safety rope.
My plan now is to get a yard of pea gravel tomorrow and try to fill the gap between the 4" casing and 6" casing, plus cut at least 20ft of tubing. I bought a cap for the 4" casing so I don't have to worry about gravel going down there, but I know it's going to be a pain to get the gravel in the gap, need to make a giant funnel or something. I'm also worried the pump is no good anymore because of how it was acting with making good pressure and then going to a dribble, but I didn't let that go on very long, maybe ten minutes, then I killed the breaker, which wasn't even warm and has me slightly hopeful. The pump also had killer pressure the week before when the water was starting to get dirty and it was just yesterday when it was acting up. But there's also been a rattling sound from the pipes going from the well cap to the pressure tank and I don't remember hearing that before. If it's not working, I figure the worst case is that I waste some time having to pull it out again.
Sorry for the wordy post, been a lot going on and just trying to capture it all. Any comments/advice? I'm thinking maybe I should order a 1hp 3" pump to give things a little room in there, while continuing with my bandaid repair.
We've had the well people come out three times to tell us what's going on and they say it's iron, collect their $200 for looking at a bucket and then leave. I then came across one fellow by happenstance that was some sort of well remediation expert and he said it sounded like there was some erosion higher up and that when the static water level reached a certain point, our constant drawing up and down with regular use would cause dirt to fall in. He also said that eventually we'd need a new well, but something we could try is to install 4" casing inside our 6" and extend it all the way down, then dump pea gravel between the 4" and 6" casing to help stabilize the collapse and also provide a degree of filtering. So that became the plan, someday...
Things have been great for close to a year, but it's be going south for about a week and then it all went south this weekend with tons of dirt and rocks and I think something may have either plugged up around the pressure tank, or the pump died, or something weird with the mud, because the pressure tank would have good pressure, then run to a dribble, then I'd close the faucet and it'd fill for 20 second, then it'd have good pressure, then back to a dribble.
So, I hatched a three phase plan. First phase was to raise the pump asap, second was to do the bandaid repair, third being the new well. I setup a Harbor Freight 440lb winch to a bar on the ceiling of the pumphouse and yesterday began raising the pump. It raised about 3" and then the winch motor stalled, so I went back and forth with the winch and got it about 6" up and noticed that I was able to give complete slack to the sling and it didn't go back down. Went back and forth a little more and then it was free, with the winch having no problems stalling anymore.
Something I noticed immediately was that there was already 4" casing inside the 6" casing. There's nothing keeping it centered and you can just wobble it around. The top of it is maybe 3" below the top of the 6" casing. This all seemed weird and made me wonder if the previous owner of the home had been having the same problem and tried to work on it the same way, but never poured any pea gravel between the 4" and 6" casing. Anyway, I was eventually able to get the pump all the way out.
Next we went to Home Depot and grabbed some string and roll of measuring tape. The water level is about 64ft below the top of the casing and the rest of the well goes about 92ft beyond that for a total depth of about 156ft. Measuring the end of the well pump down the black poly tubing to the well cap measures about 157ft. So I guess that explains why the pump was hard to pull out? Interestingly, the pump wasn't really dirty at all, just a couple little rusty spots around a couple fasteners. Maybe pulling it up cleaned it. Pump is a 4" Franklin 224309203. The house was built in 2004, so I'm guessing it's the original pump. Also noticed there was no torque arrestor or safety rope.
My plan now is to get a yard of pea gravel tomorrow and try to fill the gap between the 4" casing and 6" casing, plus cut at least 20ft of tubing. I bought a cap for the 4" casing so I don't have to worry about gravel going down there, but I know it's going to be a pain to get the gravel in the gap, need to make a giant funnel or something. I'm also worried the pump is no good anymore because of how it was acting with making good pressure and then going to a dribble, but I didn't let that go on very long, maybe ten minutes, then I killed the breaker, which wasn't even warm and has me slightly hopeful. The pump also had killer pressure the week before when the water was starting to get dirty and it was just yesterday when it was acting up. But there's also been a rattling sound from the pipes going from the well cap to the pressure tank and I don't remember hearing that before. If it's not working, I figure the worst case is that I waste some time having to pull it out again.
Sorry for the wordy post, been a lot going on and just trying to capture it all. Any comments/advice? I'm thinking maybe I should order a 1hp 3" pump to give things a little room in there, while continuing with my bandaid repair.