Jim Goodman
JEG in Raleigh
I have an 800' deep well with an 8" casing. The water level is 30' below the top of the casing. When the house was built, the well contractor installed a 230 volt, 3/4 hp well pump that put out 8 gal/minute that was set at 300'. The well pump was failing and never provided enough water. So, I just had a new well pump installed a couple of days ago....a 1-1/2 hp Grundfos, SS, 230 volt, 10 gal/minute set at 500'. It puts out plenty of volume at a high enough pressure. So, the day after the pump install, I was watering some plants with the hose going full blast, and suddenly, after about 20 minutes, I lost all water pressure. My 44 gallon pressure tank is in the house a few feet away from the main panel. It turns out there is only a 14 AWG wire running from the panel out to the well, 120 feet away. The pump installer of the new pump ran 8/2 wire down the hole to the pump....so I have a 14/2 wire coming from the panel feeding an 8/2 wire down the hole. When I lost water pressure, the thermal overload safety on the pump had tripped, protecting the pump. It is impossible, without cutting and jack-hammering my concrete carport floor and driveway, to get a new 8/2 or 6/2 wire into my panel. But, my meter base, with an existing sub-panel is remote from the house, and is about 75' from the well, and unobstructed by concrete. A trench can easily be run from the meter base to the well, and a new sub-panel can be installed by the well, so, that is what I'm gong to have done to feed power to the well with 8/2 wire.
Here is my question; my pressure tank and pressure switch are still in the house. Can the 14/2 wire currently running from the pressure switch to the pump be converted to activate some sort of relay that would turn the pump on when the pressure tank calls for it? My concern is, if the wire to power the pump is not coming directly from the pressure switch, but instead is coming from the new remote sub-panel, how does the pressure switch activate the pump to turn on? I've read about "pump start" relays. Is that what I would use?
Here is my question; my pressure tank and pressure switch are still in the house. Can the 14/2 wire currently running from the pressure switch to the pump be converted to activate some sort of relay that would turn the pump on when the pressure tank calls for it? My concern is, if the wire to power the pump is not coming directly from the pressure switch, but instead is coming from the new remote sub-panel, how does the pressure switch activate the pump to turn on? I've read about "pump start" relays. Is that what I would use?