Tee Water Supply Before Pressure Tank?

[grpark20]

Hello everyone! Long time lurker here that has been utilizing the search feature and cannot get a straight answer. Here is my situation as detailed as I can make it…I will be installing a lawn irrigation system on my 1 ½ acres of property and have a private well supplying water to my home. My property is on a slight slope that fluctuates 15 feet gradually from highest to lowest point. I plan to run 1 inch irrigation lines and utilizing a double check valve backflow preventer. My well and home are new construction dug and built in 2024. My well is 515 feet deep with a 1 hp 10 GPM submersible pump. I am assuming there is a check valve at the well pump. From the well head to my pressure tank in my home is roughly 150 feet of water line. The water line appears to be 1 inch or 1 ¼ inch before the pressure tank. After the pressure tank the line is ¾ inch. My pressure tank is a Wellxtrol WX-203 and the pressure switch is a 40/60 psi. To my knowledge there is no CSV or second check valve. Is there a check valve built into the pressure tank? I will confirm this through testing once I lock down a way ahead. When I measured my water flow and psi at an exterior faucet I got a dismal 4.9 GPM at 44 psi. I think my wife was running water at the time, but I will re-confirm when I get better weather. I also think this is because the piping is so restrictive, and my home is fairly large at 6,000 SF. I have ½ inch lines feeding all the exterior faucets. I am trying to achieve more GPM for my lawn irrigation system. I am determining where to tee off for the lawn irrigation water supply to minimize pump cycling and maximize PSI. I am not very interested in installing a CSV for my situation, but I’ll leave that recommendation up to you experts based on my proposed way ahead.

My plan is to tee off before the pressure tank and match the measured GPM from that tee to the lawn irrigation system. For example, if I measure 9 GPM with the tee before the pressure tank, then I will match each zone in my lawn irrigation system to 8-9 GPM so the well pump runs continuously. I plan to irrigate my lawn between 3-5 AM when no other water is being used in the home, so I am not concerned about water supply or pressure in the home during watering.

Does this sound like the best way ahead?

Does the pressure tank pressurize the water line all the way to the check valve at the well pump? If so, does that mean I will see roughly 50 ish psi during flow since the pressure tank is holding the pressure? If that is accurate, then once the well pump kicks on, will it be able to maintain the same psi running continuously?

Is there a different GPM I should be shooting for per zone to maximize the psi in the system while minimizing pump cycling? When I tee into the line before the well pump I plan on flipping the breaker for the well pump, then opening a faucet so all the water can get pushed out the pressure tank, and then cutting the line for the tee. After I’ll install a shut off directly after the tee, close it, and flip the well pump breaker back on to fill the pressure tank with water.

Is my logic with the way ahead sound? The biggest take away I think is that I can size my lawn irrigation zones to any GPM required. The second option is to tee off after the pressure tank, but I don’t really see any benefits to that. As you can see in the picture, before and after the pressure tank lines are easily accessible. Please let me know your expert opinion and thank you in advance.

George

Picture link... https://i.postimg.cc/prgzYD1X/Water-Layout.png
Picture link... https://postimg.cc/30Fk3DTP

 

[grpark20]

After extensive research, I will be purchasing and installing a CSV1A Cycle Stop Valve. It just makes since because I'll be cutting in a tee anyway. I'm still curious if the proposed way ahead is the best for my situation, even with the addition of a CSV.

 

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[Valveman]

As long as you add the CSV1A before the first tee everything will be controlled. The addition of a Cycle Stop Valve means you can match the zones to the needs of the yard, not the pump. A 10 GPM, 1HP will probably put out about 12 GPM. The CSV will let you install irrigation zones anywhere from 2 GPM to 12 GPM without cycling the pump. Sometimes watering at night is not best for the plants. With the CSV you can install zones at about 7 GPM or less and the house will still have plenty of water so you can irrigate anytime of the day or night.

I would not put any cut off valve before the pressure tank, but one just after the tank is a good idea.

When you were measuring 4.4 GPM at 44 PSI, you were just measuring how much the faucet lets out, not how much the pump can deliver. Open enough faucets so the pump doesn't cycle off and the pressure stays at about 40 and you can measure the total output of the pump.

 

[grpark20]

As long as you add the CSV1A before the first tee everything will be controlled. The addition of a Cycle Stop Valve means you can match the zones to the needs of the yard, not the pump. A 10 GPM, 1HP will probably put out about 12 GPM. The CSV will let you install irrigation zones anywhere from 2 GPM to 12 GPM without cycling the pump. Sometimes watering at night is not best for the plants. With the CSV you can install zones at about 7 GPM or less and the house will still have plenty of water so you can irrigate anytime of the day or night.

I would not put any cut off valve before the pressure tank, but one just after the tank is a good idea.

When you were measuring 4.4 GPM at 44 PSI, you were just measuring how much the faucet lets out, not how much the pump can deliver. Open enough faucets so the pump doesn't cycle off and the pressure stays at about 40 and you can measure the total output of the pump.

I'm tracking about not putting a cut off valve before the pressure tank. I was going to put a cut off valve on the line I add for the irrigation system. When measuring the current GPM is was just a bucket test on an exterior faucet. After that I put a psi gauge on the faucet for measurement. I did not get a psi reading during flow, but will test that before I set up the irrigation system zones. I'll be in touch in the very near future to order my CSV1A. Thank you.