No water in bladder tank

[dynaflash]

I will start by saying that I know nothing about wells. I was asked to replace the bladder tank in my Dad's well house. He believed that it was bad because he had very low pressure. I replaced it along with the switch and tee etc. The pressure seems to be a bit better but not much. My questions is that there seems to be no water in the tank. It kicks on and water runs but you can move the tank and tell that it is not heavy, so I assume there is no water getting into it. I do not get exactly how it works, because there is only one line going in. It seems to me that water can not go in the tank unless the air comes out. I know the bladder is separate but think that water needs to be in the bottom half of the tank. It also turns off and on allot. What have I done wrong? any help???? mark_sanders@bellsouth.net and in advance.....THANK YOU. Mark

 

[Leejosepho]

... there seems to be no water in the tank. It kicks on and water runs but you can move the tank and tell that it is not heavy, so I assume there is no water getting into it. I do not get exactly how it works, because there is only one line going in. It seems to me that water can not go in the tank unless the air comes out. I know the bladder is separate but think that water needs to be in the bottom half of the tank.

Pressure switches are usually set with a 20psi differential between their cut-in (on) and cut-out (off) pressures such as 20/40, 30/50, 40/60 and the like. With the pump and plumbing system depressurized, the air behind the bladder should be about 2 or 3 psi lower than the switches cut-in (on) setting. At that point, the pump, when started, is supposed to push against the bladder and on up to its cut-out (off) setting, and with that water forced into the tank being the first to come out for use before the pump again starts up.

It also turns off and on allot. What have I done wrong? any help????

The pressure behind the bladder is probably too high for the pump to overcome, and that could be because the pump is not working properly. Your initial problem of low pressure would not have been fixed by replacing the bladder tank.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[dynaflash]

So you think if I lower the bladder pressure a bit and adjust the pressure switch it may be better? Thanks m

 

[Wondering]

Do you know what pressure your pump cuts on at and what it is on when it turns off?

When you run it and see where it starts at then turn off the power drain the tank, check with a tire guage how much air is in the tank. If you have say 40 lbs of air in the tank but your pump starts at 30, then you need to let air out to 28lbs. The air needs to be 2lbs LESS than the starting pressure of the pump switch.

After this, then if you are off a difference of more/less than a 20 lbs differential between the start/stop points you can adjust that out. Just remember that if you change the cut in on the switch you will have to adjust your air either higher or lower according to which way you went. Just as long as you are 2lbs lower with the air than the cut in.

 

[dynaflash]

Well problem solved.....well sort of

I finally had a pro come and work on the well. He adjusted the pressure switch and let some air out of the bladder tank. It helped but still did not work right. He then lowered the pump 10' into the well and not I would say it was at about 85%. Remember that this well is in North Georgia where the rain level is about 20" short for the year. Thanks for your help