Galvanized Bladderless Pressure Tank Filling all the Way Up

[Todd71106]

Greetings,

I am a new homeowner and have never had to deal with this problem. I have a 42 gallon
Galvanized Bladderless Pressure Tank with a submersible pump.
I replaced my Pressure switch 40/60 and Pressure gauge on the AVC. When I turn the power back on air comes out the bottom of the AVC until the tank gets about 2/3 full. the pump keeps running but the pressure never goes above 45psi so the pump constantly runs because it never reaches 60psi.
Is there a way to bypass the AVC so that i can empty the tank and manually start with 38psi?
Or, is this not a good idea?

Regards,
Todd
Shreveport, LA

 

[Reach4]

Is there a way to bypass the AVC so that i can empty the tank and manually start with 38psi?
Or, is this not a good idea?

I expect I would not see it as a useful idea if I fully understood what you are suggesting.


I will guess you have a jet pump. Step 1 would be to clean the jet orifice with a wire.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[LLigetfa]

If your submersible won't make enough pressure then you likely have a leak somewhere.

HP tanks cannot be precharged the way captive air tanks can be. The AVC senses the water level in the tank and releases what surplus there is. Over time however, the air level will increase with water use so long as you never drop the pressure too far below cut-in.

You could speed up the process by injecting air at the snifter while the pump in running.

 

[Valveman]

Tank and/or AVC has nothing to do with the pump not building more than 45 PSI. Hole in the pipe or a bad pump.

 

[Todd71106]

Okay, I am going to call someone to come out and look at it. In the past, when the pumps need changing in the neighborhood, the home owner buys a case or two of beer and everyone gets together to pull out the pump. I am hoping my friends return the favor if that is what needs to be done. I'll let y'all know.

 

[Todd71106]

It turned out that a pressure plate that sits on top of the well pipe fell of into the pipe going down to the pump. The well service guy replaced the missing part and now I have 54psi. He says it won't go any higher unless I replace the pump and or remove the missing part from the pipe. He says new Pump is $400 to $500 plus $200 labor if the pressure plate come out with the pump.

I don't know if I want to tackle this job on my own.

 

[Reach4]

It turned out that a pressure plate that sits on top of the well pipe fell of into the pipe going down to the pump.

I am glad you fixed it, but could you tell us more about the problem? I only know pressure plate as a part of an automotive clutch.

 

[Valveman]

I am thinking someone took the bolts out of the well seal instead of just loosening them, and the bottom half of the well seal fell.

 

[Todd71106]

I am thinking someone took the bolts out of the well seal instead of just loosening them, and the bottom half of the well seal fell.

That is what happened. It looks like it was done years ago before I purchased the property. The Well Tech called it a pressure plate, I am unsure of the proper terminology.

 

[Reach4]

It makes sense. What you have is called a split well seal.

I think the top is usually called a top plate. In a split well seal, the plates can be replaced without threading the drop pipe through the plates. The rubber can be replaced by splitting the rubber and doing similarly.

I expect the bottom is called the bottom plate, but I could see it being called a pressure plate, because it squeezes the rubber, making the rubber expand.

To lift out a well seal, the screws/bolts should only be screwed out enough to stop squeezing the rubber. In your case, somebody totally removed some bolts, letting a split bottom plate fall. When discussing well seals, people often warn of that hazard.