david gosnell
New Member
i bought a 4 wire submersible pump for my well before i realized my well is a 3 wire controlled by a pressure switch can i still use the 4 wire pump without the neutral wire
4 wire submersible pump
- Thread starter david gosnell
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- Are the wires on your new pump red, black, yellow and green?
- Do you have a control box between the pressure switch and the pump?
- Is your pump powered by a 240 volt circuit?
If the answers are not all yes, tell us what you have.
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Craigpump
In the Trades
You can if you get a control box that matches the motor. However, using only three wires means it won't be properly grounded, bonded or up to current code. In addition, some say that leaving the ground wire from the motor unsealed will allow water to wick into the pigtail socket and cause dead shorts to ground.
Just because you can doesn't mean you should.
Just because you can doesn't mean you should.
Ballvalve
General Engineering Contractor
100 years of pumps with either just 2 wires or 3 wires and a control box. That new ground wire is some over educated, under experienced "engineers" idea to waste a few more thousand tons of copper a year. When I cut off the irrelevant ground wire, I rubber tape it and top everything with Scotch 33. Soon as someone can give a detailed answer what in hell a ground wire does for a pump a few hundred feet under water, I'll use it.
Craigpump
In the Trades
We do tons of well inspections for real estate transactions every year, one of the biggest violations we see are ungrounded/bonded pumps, well caps & steel casings.
I bet you don't like those new fangled GFCI outlets either.....
Are you planning to put GFCI breakers powering submersible pumps soon?
I certainly would not want my basement sump pump powered by a GFCI, although I know it is required some places.
Craigpump
In the Trades
Are you planning to put GFCI breakers powering submersible pumps soon?
No, of course not.
If you were to see some of the horrible pump installs we see with poorly spliced wire, old chafed wire & bare wires under well caps due to rodents you would know why having a properly grounded and bonded submersible pump system makes perfect sense.
Ballvalve
General Engineering Contractor
I like gfci's when they work, dependant on what a 14 year old china girl' mood was that day. I hate the size - when a tiny chip can hold 1TB of information, gfi's are like a pack of cigarettes. Trying to pack one into a normal box is a hazard in itself, especially if it is downfeeding. But a gfi in your bath and kitchen has nothing to do at all with a well that gets visited -maybe- a few times a year.
I know there are tons of rats nest wiring in pump houses. Got one myself that I did 40 years ago. With poly pipe casing and downpipe and even abs well caps nowadays that ground wire does nothing. If you have steel, run a ground to the cap or casing. But even in that case, if a wire rubs bare on the metal cap or casing, its going to blow the breaker or the pump. And that is with or without a ground to the cap and casing.
So I am still waiting for the exact explanation of what that ground wire on the pump does. I think a lot of people are too.
Ballvalve
General Engineering Contractor
I don't think rats get under the well cap, and they don't eat Al or steel flex or water tite flex that should be going to the well. The guy that has romex going to the well cap with or without a ground already has broken code and common sense. I hate rats!
Craigpump
In the Trades
Texas Wellman
In the Trades
I'm in the 4 wire is a good deal camp. In the 90's before all 3-wires were grounded we were routinely shocked or received a little current when testing the water coming straight out of the pump. Ever since they added the ground wire the shocking stopped. I think it's a big improvement.
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