Winterizing water well

[MFRick]

We are having an extraordinary cold front here in Texas. I have a water well system inside a small uninsulated pump house. Temperatures will be single digits overnight for several nights. How concern should I be about freezing and what precautions should I be taking?

 

[Reach4]

Kerosene heater would be nice. Probably sold out in your area.

I would worry.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[WorthFlorida]

If the well is needed for domestic use therefore draining the system is not possible, there are two old time tricks. One is allow the water to dribble out at a faucet so water is being pumped throughout the pump system once in a while. The well water is very warm, well above freezing temp. The other commonly done with pump houses below grade is use a light bulb for heat. Cover the pump & tank with a blanket or tarp OR cover the pump house with the same and keep the light bulb burning. It must be an incandescent or a halogen, no LED type. Use a drop light fixture to keep the tarp from touching the hot bulb. Don't use a hair dryer since they are not designed to run for hours on end. If you have an electric heater it would also work without a tarp or blanket.

 

[Bannerman]

The enclosure does not need to be inhabitable, but only needs to remain above 32℉. As suggested by Worth, a 100 or 150 watt incandescent light bulb will likely provide sufficient heat within the enclosure so as to maintain 33℉+ even through the coldest period. Since heat rises, locate the heat source close to the floor without creating a fire hazard.

 

[Sarg]

Talked to a friend in Pflugerville this morning. Says the big problem is all the piping is less than a foot in the ground.
If I were in that situation I would stockpile water and then drain all my exterior piping.

 

[Reach4]

If the pressure tank is in the well house, dribbling water continuously would prevent the underground pipe from freezing shut. You would still need to heat the well house.

It is often a good idea to open the doors below the kitchen sink if the sink is on an outside wall. That lets heat into the wall with the pipes in it.

 

[Valveman]

Dribbling water is about the best thing you can do. However, without a Cycle Stop Valve dribbling water will cause the pump to cycle on and off. You need to dribble enough water to make the pump cycle every 15 minutes or so. If the pump stays off too long the little 1/4" nipple going to the pressure switch will be the first thing to freeze, then the pump will not come on and everything will freeze. If you have a Cycle Stop Valve and dribble 1 GPM, the pump will run continuously and nothing will freeze.

Also remember when dribbling 1 GPM, you are filling the septic tank by 1440 gallons per day. Best to dribble at an outside faucet for this reason if possible.

I am in Lubbock at 1 degree this morning. I fixed my pump with a pitless adapter and buried my pipes deeper than 18" many years ago and have not had a problem since. However, I was under my sons mobile home yesterday adding a new heat tape so my granddaughter could have water. It has been a while since I have seen it this cold for so long a time.

 

[Sarg]

I now consider my well system too valuable to leave running steady for hours.
I would still choose draining the system ...... But then again there's Rule #2 =
"Your opinion only matters to you. No one else cares what you think".

 

[Valveman]

Lol! I like your rules. However, unless it was set up to drain, it is hard to drain a submersible system below the freeze level. The check valve prevents water from going back down the well. If the water doesn't drain to less than 18" when the frost line is 18", it will still freeze. Also, when using a Cycle Stop Valve and tricking more than 1 GPM, the pump will run continuously. This is actually good for the pump. I have a stock water well that hasn't shut off in almost 19 years now.

 

[Sarg]

Perhaps my mindset comes from having a feeble well and limited water supply. Must be a joy to have an endless supply.
( Just to mention >> We have a second well in a workshop about 100 yards from our residence that we shut down and drain every winter. The few feet of 160# poly that enters through the slab has survived numerous -20 degree days in the last several decades ...... so far. Could be the existing check valve allows the water to leak down out of "trouble". Never studied on it. )