Lost pressure on well today.

[Sir Chomps]

I have a galvanized 82 gal pressure tank. Vertically mounted jet pump. Flushed toilet this morning, went to kitchen sink, noticed low pressure on hot and cold faucets. Noticed pump was still running(outside). Went out to pump house, pump was running but not making pressure. Pressure gauge shows 10 psi but I'm not sure how accurate that is. I'm fairly certain the pump had not been running for long. It's pretty easy to hear it "hum" inside the house.
I'm not sure exactly what to check. I don't see any obvious leaks. There is a small drip coming from the Air Control valve on the side of the pressure tank.
I would call a plumber but I've just paid a$624 vet bill for one of my dogs, another has to go next week and have his teeth pulled. That'll be another $225. I'm medically retired and on a fixed income.
I can send pics of the set up.
If anyone can help, please do.

 

[Reach4]

Could be a clogged jet on the jet pump.

A piece of a wire coat hanger used to be a common wire to use. A piece of 12 AWG copper wire might be easier to find today.
https://terrylove.com/forums/index.php?threads/pressure-drops-quick.67304/page-2#post-500629

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Sir Chomps]

Could be a clogged jet on the jet pump.

A piece of a wire coat hanger used to be a common wire to use. A piece of 12 AWG copper wire might be easier to find today.
https://terrylove.com/forums/index.php?threads/pressure-drops-quick.67304/page-2#post-500629

Thank you for the suggestion. I will give that a go as soon as the sun comes up. I'll give feed back. Very much appreciated!

 

[Valveman]

I am guessing a suction leak.

 

[Sir Chomps]

Update: I was thinking that my galvanized tank was empty, because I could shake it a little, nor could I tell any temperature difference running my hand over the tank.
To gain access to the jet port I'm going to have to remove the pressure regulating valve (maybe I'm wrong on the function/description). I removed the gauge on the pump side, there was a small amount of water down in where the gauge threads in.
When I removed the copper line from the vale going up to the pressure switch, the tank started gurgling. I may have had the faucet on the bottom of the tank open, I think I did because I wanted to make sure there was no pressure when disconnecting the copper line from the valve.
So with the tank gurgling with the copper pressure line disconnected, is that an indication that the "pressure valve" may be clogged or bad?
I am still going to remove the "pressure valve" and check the jet. I was trying to drain the tank down past the point of the black inlet pvc pipe so I wouldn't have 40 gals. of water spilling on the ground and then me turning the power back on and off etc.
The tank never would drain. I tried to drain it through the lower faucet but I was getting minimal flow. It drained for a solid 2 hrs., I could hear gurgling inside the tank, I tried opening a faucet inside the house (single wide mobile home) but it did not improve flow out of the tank. I don't know where the inlet to the house cut-off valve is, so I'm not sure if it was getting back flow from the house?

My next step is to cut the black pvc pipe to allow me to rotate the "pressure Valve" ,remove it and have a look into the jet port.

Please correct me if I'm making more work out of cutting the pvc pipe. I don't see any other way to access the jet port. I was going to heat up the pvc pipe to see if I could break it free from the nipple but it's a little to "close quarters" next to the wooden post (2x6) where the electrical disconnect for the pump is located.

I've added a few pics to help clarify things. Thank you very much, again for the help and advice!

 

[Reach4]

I had mistakenly assumed you were talking about a shallow well jet pump.

Your vertical pump is probably for a deep well, and the jet would be way down in the casing. That casing is often a 2 inch casing, so there is no room for a submersible pump. Accessing the jet would not be a simple thing.

Your type of pump does not have the normal vacuum leak troubleshooting either. There are seals down the well called "leathers". I don't know if they still commonly use leather today, or if there is a newer material that is used. I suspect real leather still.


Image from https://www.pumpproducts.com/blog/goulds-sj-series-vertical-deep-well-jet-pumps-buyers-guide-review/

A good search term try when searching would be "vertical jet pump" leathers packer

 

[Valveman]

Sorry but not much you can do to that kind of pump. The leathers and jet nozzle are at the bottom of the well. You can try adjusting the bolt on the back pressure valve. If that valve is not working, the pump cannot build pressure. But I doubt the back pressure valve is the problem. With that type pump you could be out of water, the leathers could be bad, the jet nozzle clogged, or several other things. You are probably going to need to get someone to pull the pump to see what the problem is. Working on the pump can get expensive, but how much is water worth?

 

[Sir Chomps]

No worries! I appreciate your input! This is my first time trying to trouble shoot/repair a well. I'm not sure of the depth of the well. I'll have been in this place for 6yrs come July . I was thinking the well isn't very deep. I live about 30-35 miles ( as the crow flies) from the coast of SC (that's South Carolina, not Southern China. Lol!).
I don't use the water for drinking. The water has a strong sulphur (rotten eggs) smell, and gets worse when we get a lot of rain, which we've had for the last 7-8 months. I do use it to wash dishes, shower, washing machine etc.
Your saying I may have to pull the casing to get to the problem? It's raining buckets again today and thunderstorms so I may not get back to it today. In the mean time, I'm going to look through my paperwork and see if there is any info on how deep the well is and how old. From the looks of it, it looks pretty old to me. maybe middle 80's to early 90's ?

 

[Sir Chomps]

Sorry but not much you can do to that kind of pump. The leathers and jet nozzle are at the bottom of the well. You can try adjusting the bolt on the back pressure valve. If that valve is not working, the pump cannot build pressure. But I doubt the back pressure valve is the problem. With that type pump you could be out of water, the leathers could be bad, the jet nozzle clogged, or several other things. You are probably going to need to get someone to pull the pump to see what the problem is. Working on the pump can get expensive, but how much is water worth?

Damn it! Just my luck!
I had washed my truck Monday. It gets covered in "oak mold" I guess is what it is, my place is shaded by oak trees, I live close to the coast of South Carolina. So I was thinking, I'll save some money instead of going to the carwash, because even at the carwash, I have to scrub, what ever mold that is off the truck. Trying to take care of my things! I Said! Lol!
The pump kept kicking on and of when I would rinse ,which wasn't uncommon, I didn't have a leak in the hose. It was the next morning around 0915 when I flushed the toilet and all went south.

 

[Valveman]

The gurgling was the tank gulping air. You can't get the last bit if water out of the tank without adding air to the top. It is like holding your finger over a straw full of tea, the tea won't come out until you let air in. You can remove a plug on the side of the tank and it will gurgle faster. Or you can hook up an air compressor to the Schrader valve on the pressure tank and blow water out of the tank. But none of that is going to help your pump. Something is wrong and the pump will need to be fixed.

 

[Sir Chomps]

Here's a pic of the pump. If that helps at all. I'm hoping someone will come back saying,"those pumps are known to have impellers that fail!" Lol!

 

[Valveman]

That is just the motor tag. The pump below the motor should have a tag of it's own. Those are usually pretty bulletproof and dependable pumps. Most likely it will just be bad leathers or something in the well causing the problem.

 

[Sir Chomps]

The gurgling was the tank gulping air. You can't get the last bit if water out of the tank without adding air to the top. It is like holding your finger over a straw full of tea, the tea won't come out until you let air in. You can remove a plug on the side of the tank and it will gurgle faster. Or you can hook up an air compressor to the Schrader valve on the pressure tank and blow water out of the tank. But none of that is going to help your pump. Something is wrong and the pump will need to be fixed.

Understand on the gurgling.
There's no Schrader valve on the tank, its an 85 gal. galvanized tank. There is a port on the backside where an air control valve (Brady AV-100) is located. It had been leaking small drips for a while.
Am I correct its in the pump or down in the casing?

 

[Sir Chomps]

That is just the motor tag. The pump below the motor should have a tag of it's own. Those are usually pretty bulletproof and dependable pumps. Most likely it will just be bad leathers or something in the well causing the problem.

S.O.B.!! Lol! I understand. I do appreciate your input.

 

[Valveman]

Understand on the gurgling.
There's no Schrader valve on the tank, its an 85 gal. galvanized tank. There is a port on the backside where an air control valve (Brady AV-100) is located. It had been leaking small drips for a while.
Am I correct its in the pump or down in the casing?

The Schrader valve will be on the check valve on the inlet side of the pressure tank. Even though the Schrader is down on the inlet pipe you can still blow air in the tank from there.

 

[Sir Chomps]

The Schrader valve will be on the check valve on the inlet side of the pressure tank. Even though the Schrader is down on the inlet pipe you can still blow air in the tank from there.

I have watched a few YouTube videos,which is probably dangerous, Lol! I keep hearing talk of a check valve, but I don't see one on the set up I have here. I'm including a few pics of the air valve (AV-100) and how it leads back to the well.
I've looked through my paperwork from when I bought this place, there's no description of the well, how deep or when in stalled. Which was brilliant on my part. Long story about how I had to move to this place.

Should I quit now and call in the professionals? Am I running down a rabbit hole at this point?
View attachment 71126

 

[Valveman]

The check valve is a actually a foot valve that is at the bottom of the suction pipe and below the leathers on the ejector. The foot (check) valve, the Air volume control or AV valve, and the pressure tank have nothing to do with a low pressure or no water problem. I am afraid you will need to call a pump guy as it will need to be pulled up to see what the problem is. A new foot valve, leathers, or even the ejector are not expensive, just hard to get to with out a hoist truck.

It could still be a problem with the back pressure valve, but I doubt it.

 

[Sir Chomps]

The check valve is a actually a foot valve that is at the bottom of the suction pipe and below the leathers on the ejector. The foot (check) valve, the Air volume control or AV valve, and the pressure tank have nothing to do with a low pressure or no water problem. I am afraid you will need to call a pump guy as it will need to be pulled up to see what the problem is. A new foot valve, leathers, or even the ejector are not expensive, just hard to get to with out a hoist truck.

It could still be a problem with the back pressure valve, but I doubt it.

The check valve is a actually a foot valve that is at the bottom of the suction pipe and below the leathers on the ejector. The foot (check) valve, the Air volume control or AV valve, and the pressure tank have nothing to do with a low pressure or no water problem. I am afraid you will need to call a pump guy as it will need to be pulled up to see what the problem is. A new foot valve, leathers, or even the ejector are not expensive, just hard to get to with out a hoist truck.

It could still be a problem with the back pressure valve, but I doubt it.

I understand the problem is likely down in the well.
Forgive my ignorance to these systems, I've never had to deal with it on my on. I always made enough money to pay someone one! Lol! That's not the case now. Not sure how I'll scrounge up cash for this!
Thank you for your quick reply and your time!

 

[Valveman]

Some pump guys will work with you on the payment. At least get an estimate. If it is just the leathers or something like that, it may not cost very much to fix it.

 

[Sir Chomps]

Some pump guys will work with you on the payment. At least get an estimate. If it is just the leathers or something like that, it may not cost very much to fix it.

Yes. I'm going to get some estimates. My son lives in a town over from me. He used to work with a guy that his family has a well business.
I hate to have to pull that aluminum building off the thing! I just put some shelves in there to keep all the junk I was carrying around in my vehicle ! Lol!