I have an antiquated well system with an odd set up. I have a PVC pipe that goes in to the ground (not sure how deep). Attached to that pipe is a 2-wheeled air compressor pump. Specs on the motor say it is 1HP, 12.2/6.0-6.1A, 115/208-230V. (so we have horse power, amperage, and voltage). The pump connects to the PVC with metal pipe (probably galvanized steel). When the wheels spin the pipe gets hot (I'm sure from air passing through it) and water comes up the pipe. The pipe goes up a few feet and then has an elbow to come down in to the top of the lid to the cistern. It's a very large cistern big enough to fit several people, but I don't know the gallons. The wiring to the pump connects to a D-box float switch that sits on top of the lid. The old one was mounted to a pipe coming out of the top of the lid. It has a lever that extends forward and a rod goes through the lever. The rod has a float on it. When the float is down, it pulls the lever down and triggers the pump to turn on. The old switch rusted & kept jamming in downward position so the well repairman replaced it-- but the only switch available was a surface mount switch. He caulked a wooden block to the top of the lid & screwed the switch on to it. Unfortunately, over time the block seems to have shifted and will not shift back to where it originally was. This makes the rod go in to the hole at an angle. We previously adjusted the position of the switch to line up better, but it no longer lines up & the rod keeps turning sideways and keeping the lever down. This has caused the cistern to overflow. It had not happened for a long time but last night it happened again and the well house was flooded almost to the level of the pumps (almost hitting wiring). I pulled it up and now have to keep checking to make sure the float is not getting stuck when water gets used, but it is very frustrating. I was told the rod and D-box setup was not very efficient and it was suggested that I get a new setup. When I spoke to the repairman, he didn't know of any other way to do it (he was grandfathered in from his father being in the business & hasn't updated his knowledge but he is the ONLY repairman for well systems that will come out to my area).
TLR? I need something more efficient and reliable than a D-box switch lever & rod float to connect to a 1hp 12.2Amp 115/208-230V air compressor pump to fill my cistern.
I've been looking at options but having a hard time finding anything that fits exactly with that pump and I also need to figure out how to connect it to the pump. Right now the wires are attached to the switch. I know the wires of whatever I get will likely not be the same size as the wires to the pump (wires to the pump are 10AWG bc anything smaller kept getting fried).
I don't want to spend a ton of money. There are no working electrical outlets to plug things in to in the shed. The roof leaks so I need something waterproof. I need something safe for potable water.
Any suggestions? Any advice/feedback on what else I would need? A contactor or relay of some sort? I've heard relays are for lower powered devices. I want it to work so that the circuit is normally closed (to keep the pump on) until the water is high enough and then have the circuit open to shut it off. Or I suppose it could be normally open until the water level drops. Not sure which way would be best so I need advice.
Is anyone familiar with such a setup? I can provide photos if needed.
TLR? I need something more efficient and reliable than a D-box switch lever & rod float to connect to a 1hp 12.2Amp 115/208-230V air compressor pump to fill my cistern.
I've been looking at options but having a hard time finding anything that fits exactly with that pump and I also need to figure out how to connect it to the pump. Right now the wires are attached to the switch. I know the wires of whatever I get will likely not be the same size as the wires to the pump (wires to the pump are 10AWG bc anything smaller kept getting fried).
I don't want to spend a ton of money. There are no working electrical outlets to plug things in to in the shed. The roof leaks so I need something waterproof. I need something safe for potable water.
Any suggestions? Any advice/feedback on what else I would need? A contactor or relay of some sort? I've heard relays are for lower powered devices. I want it to work so that the circuit is normally closed (to keep the pump on) until the water is high enough and then have the circuit open to shut it off. Or I suppose it could be normally open until the water level drops. Not sure which way would be best so I need advice.
Is anyone familiar with such a setup? I can provide photos if needed.