Well water pump diagnostic FAQs set #5.

If the well pump runs too often, is noisy, seems weak, runs intermittently with no apparent reason, or is otherwise misbehaving, these questions will help sort out what's wrong.

Q&A on Solving Problems with Water Pumps

These questions and answers were originally posted at WATER PUMP REPAIR GUIDE - home. That's a good place to see pump repair approaches organized by type of problem. You'll like the diagnostic and repair help given there.

On 2018-11-20 by (mod) -

Fred

If there's no water being run in the building that I suspect you have a piping leak or a leaky check valve or foot valve.

that would explain the pressure dropping after the pump turns off.

About ... pressure dropping all the way to 0 without the pump turning on is a separate problem. I'd look for a pressure control switch that isn't responding to the fall in water pressure IF pressure falls below the CUT-IN pressure AND the pump doesn't turn on.

On 2018-11-19 by Fred

Pump is 20 years old. Pressure tank, switch, gauge new. All are set correctly. 38psi, 40/60.

Tank fills to 60, then tank drops to 40 cut in pressure, pressure drops to zero.

Tank then slowly builds to 60. Pressure test was done from house to pump, held at 60.

Pump was pulled from housing and pumped water. Is pump needing replacement?

On 2018-11-13 by (mod) - Grundfos control panel turns on the pump when no water is running

Linda

Please take a look at WATER PUMP INTERMITTENT CYCLING as that explains why a pump may appear to run for no reason.

On 2018-11-13 by LINDA PEDERSEN

my grundfos control panel turns on occasionally when no water is running

On 2018-11-10 by (mod) - well runs out of water? Give it some recovery time.

If you wait for an hour or two and still have no water then it may be that the pump has been damaged by overheating by running dry. So the first thing to report back here is whether or not simply waiting gave your well a chance to recover.

On 2018-11-10 00:38:02.064697 by Tiana

My toilet didn’t seal all the way and it continuous ran water, therefore my pump continuously ran for an hour. Now there’s no pressure! What do I do?!

On 2018-10-31 20:38:24.155378 by (mod) -

George

Most likely one of the problems we diagnose in the article WATER PRESSURE INTERMITTENT LOSS

at

https://inspectapedia.com/water/Water_Pressure_Comes_Goes.php

On 2018-10-31 20:22:24.306545 by George Taylor

My water pressure will stop then pressure back up !! What’s going

On 2018-10-14 22:24:10.626219 by (mod) -

pump may be overheating, running dry (low water supply) or due to a bad bearing, or due to low voltage

On 2018-10-14 19:50:19.958636 by Debi

Well pump shuts off and has to be reset everything I run my sprinkler systems lately on ONLY zones 3 & 4 of 4 zone system. Never did that for years. Well company put in new Control box, didn't fix and still has to be reset when ONLY the sprinkler system is on those zones.

Then they said needs new BIG pressure tank. Didn't fix the problem either. So now they say needs new WELL PUMP? Have over $1300 so far and the only time the well pump shuts down is when those two zone are running on the sprinkler system. I can run dishwasher, wash machine and a hose outside with no issues.

I have asked if could be the sprinkler system and Well Pump company says no, just new well pump should fix the issue.

They will "Not Guarantee" the well pump is bad though. Any suggestions?

I don't want to spend $2-$3K for a new well pump as whole yard must be torn apart to get to the well casing if they are not 100% sure that is the problem and the existing 15 yr old pump is ok?

On 2018-10-14 18:24:41.766760 by The Browns

After heavy rain - at least 9 inches- 2 days ago...with normal usage of our well, we lost water. No warning...pressure was fine and color was clear.

After letting it sit for 1/2 hour we had water again with normal pressure, but it wouldn’t last. When checking the pump, it switched on and off normally.

When checking for leaks and soggy areas...again nothing unusual was found. Our well is 80 feet deep with a submersible pump and approximately 20 years old from what we were told when we bought the house.

Any suggestions on what it could be?

On 2018-09-15 02:02:15.039154 by (mod) - pump was off, then later it worked.

Cheryl

let's start with the Diagnostics found at

WATER PRESSURE STOPS, RETURNS

Since that article will be more complete than an off-the-cuff reply here. Please check it out and let me know if that works for you or if there are any questions remaining.

On 2018-09-04 by cheryl

The other day I woke up and my well pump was not working. 24 hours later it started again. Any ideas why?

On 2018-07-22 by (mod) -

Low well recovery rate is a good guess for what you describe.

In the ARTICLE INDEX you can find articles about increasing well yield.

On 2018-07-22 13:09:16.432931 by (mod) -

Low well recovery rate is a good guess for what you describe.

On 2018-07-22 12:00:09.794331 by Diana

My daughter's water well stops working from time to time. We have to turn the pump switch off at the electric box over night and the next day we turn it back on and it starts working. Is that a low water level problem

On 2018-06-25 14:53:13.816789 by (mod) - can't get the pump to turn on

Anon

See WATER PUMP WON'T START at https://inspectapedia.com/water/Water_Pump_Control_Repair.php#NoOn

On 2018-06-25 13:47:15.126261 by Anonymous

My water pump is hot but wont run

On 2018-06-25 13:47:15.116348 by Anonymous

My water pump is hot but wont run

On 2018-06-24 18:22:34.399379 by (mod) -

YOu can try setting the pressure down (search Inspectapedia.com for PRESSURE CONTROL SWITCH ADJUSTMENT

but there are some good diagnostics you'll want to read at WATER PUMP WONT STOP RUNNING - https://inspectapedia.com/plumbing/Pump_Runs_On.php

On 2018-06-24 13:52:19.795353 by Bill

Well will not reach cut off and have the water shut off to the house. Can adjust the pressure down and it will shut off but do not have enough pressure inside house to do anything.

On 2018-06-11 04:02:02.809324 by (mod) -

For the case you describe there's either water running somewhere in the system, such as a running toilet, or there's a leak between the building in the bottom of the foot valve.

On 2018-06-10 17:25:06.156114 by Ron

I just installed a pump and twenty gallon tank at my cabin it is a half hp motor the well is sixteen ft deep and is two hundred feet from the pump. It pumps water fine with lots of pressure. The suction line is one inch poly pipe. My problem is that it is dropping from fifty psi to thirty psi in a couple of hours nobody using water.

I changed the foot valve but it made no difference. No leaks in the suction line because it is easy to see it is just laid on top of the ground. All indications say it is a leak or a foot valve issue. I even took the foot valve up from the bottom of my well and laid it on the ground. No leak. My foot valve is about two feet from the bottom so no issue there. Please advise

On 2018-05-17 18:14:27.074104 by (mod) -

Yes it could be a bad pump pressure control switch or one that's clogged with debris and not properly sensing water pressure

On 2018-05-17 17:58:34.359514 by Bobby

My tank is good and the point is good points turn on for about 5 sec then shuts off could it be the relay it gets hot quick

On 2018-05-07 18:09:21.922252 by (mod) -

Yes Chris the pump and water delivery rate could suffer from
- a damaged impeller or bearing
- a leak in well piping
- reduced well flow rate (of water into the well)
- low voltage to the pump

Check the "low water pressure" or "pump won't stop running" articles found in the ARTICLE INDEX to WATER SUPPLY, PUMPS TANKS WELLS - given above

On 2018-05-07 17:30:49.315107 by Chris

My water pump kicks on at 40psi and shuts off at 60psi just as it should. However, even though the pump kicks on at 40psi the pressure continues to drop down to about 15-20psi and takes
roughly 7-10 minutes to fully recover until it shuts off when it reaches 60psi. The pump is about 15 yrs old. Is it possible the pump is not pumping the volume it should?

On 2018-05-07 by (mod) - why does my water pump not deliver the volume it should?
On

Yes Chris the pump and water delivery rate could suffer from

- a damaged impeller or bearing

- a leak in well piping

- reduced well flow rate (of water into the well)

- low voltage to the pump

Check the "low water pressure" or "pump won't stop running" articles found in the INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to WATER SUPPLY, PUMPS TANKS WELLS - given at the end of any of these pages.

On 2018-05-07 by Chris

My water pump kicks on at 40psi and shuts off at 60psi just as it should. However, even though the pump kicks on at 40psi the pressure continues to drop down to about 15-20psi and takes
roughly 7-10 minutes to fully recover until it shuts off when it reaches 60psi.

The pump is about 15 yrs old. Is it possible the pump is not pumping the volume it should?

On 2018-05-03 23:52:05.763559 by (mod) - water pump won't reach the pressure it used to

It sounds as if your pump won't stop running, perhaps because of low well water or a damaged pump or low voltage - pump can't reach cutoff pressure.

See the diagnosis and repair suggestions at

WATER PUMP WONT STOP RUNNING

and you might also want to see this diagnostic table for a more abbreviated list of causes and cures

WATER PRESSURE TABLE 1: PUMP WON'T RUN, WON'T STOP, or CYCLES

For the complete list of pump diagnosis and repair articles see the live link to INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to WATER SUPPLY, PUMPS TANKS WELLS found at the end of this page

On 2018-05-03 by Susan K Stevens

In the past our water pump has turned o when the pressure reached 52 lbs. The pressure is not going above 42 lbs, so we have to manually turn o the pump. What's the problem?

On 2018-05-04 by (mod) - after 5 minutes the pump change it's sounds and stop pumping water

arslan

That sounds as if your well flow rate is very poor and you're running out of water. That'll be the first thing your plumber or well contractor will check.

On 2018-05-03 by arslan

my water pump give water with good pressure but after 5 minutes the pump change it's sounds and stop pumping water

On 2018-04-19 02:54:05.830910 by Anthony

Not sure of brand it has a control box pump builds pressure shuts off pressre bleeds off switch activates then trip thermal switch has to be reset or you can turn power of control box when pressure bleefs off turn on pump will come on it just wont cycle on its own

On 2018-04-11 02:27:24.225264 by (mod) -

Good chance the presence of a 5000g tank means that there is a well of very very marginal capacity. Running the pump for a day may well have exceeded the well flow rate; if the pump ran dry it could have been damaged. Either of those would leave air in the system.

On 2018-04-11 02:06:05.926745 by randall.macfarlane

I left a hose on overnight and drained my 5000 gallon tank. My system has a well pump that fills the tank and a Gould pressure pump that pressurizes the system and sends water from the 5000 gal tank to the property. I let the well pump run for one day and restarted the pressure pump.

As the pump built up pressure I opened all the lines to bleed the air from the system. Pressure controller cut off at 40 psi. There was a hissing around the pump like air escaping and the water in the pipes was gurgling. I turned on the water hose to the ducks but there was still a lot of air coming through the line.

I opened up all the lines again but can't seem to bleed the air out.
I checked the air valve on the pressure tank and no water coming out. Maybe I should check the pressure (per one of your suggestions).

The pressure pump seems to run smoothly.

Do you know why the air is still in the system?

I will try building up the pressure and turned off the valve that controls the water distribution and see if the air hissing sound and gurgling is still there.
Thanks

On 2018-04-04 21:30:12.692367 by (mod) -

the problem may be the pump if its impeller is damaged, or it could be that there's not enough water in your well.

See the diagnostic procedure at WATER PUMP WONT STOP RUNNING

Also see the Saer water pump parts explosion at http://www.saerelettropompe.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/cod.202-01-2001-Domestiche.pdf

from which I post a typical parts explosion; in this edition the impeller is part 21

On 2018-04-04 14:55:48.366563 by (mod) -

the problem may be the pump if its impeller is damaged, or it could be that there's not enough water in your well.

See the diagnostic procedure at WATER PUMP WONT STOP RUNNING https://inspectapedia.com/plumbing/Pump_Runs_On.php

On 2018-04-02 06:48:54.097982 by Miguel

Hi, I have a problem with my SAER waterpump. The pump is almost brandnew but it was'nt installed for almost a year. When i installed it can't generate a high pressure and it won't shut off. i even replaced my pressure switch, no leaks on line, water supply is adequate. It can only reach a maximum of 15PSI. The pressure gauge is also new. Our local technician can't also determine why? is there any possible reasons why it won't have a high pressure?

thank you.

On 2018-03-26 13:25:46.573972 by Joyce

Water is heating in inside pipes as it sits in them.where the pipes come in the house by the box with capicatator water is then warm in the morning. We feel a small vibration n the pipeline. After running water for while we are back to our ice cold water (which is normal temp). Any ideas as to why water is heating???

On 2018-03-11 22:46:24.149054 by (mod) -

Anon

Please see the diagnostics at WATER PUMP WON'T START https://inspectapedia.com/water/Water_Pump_Control_Repair.php#NoOn

On 2018-03-11 20:38:32.429937 by Anonymous

Why do the pump would not work it is new

On 2018-02-18 02:08:43.491545 by (mod) -

Please see

https://inspectapedia.com/water/Pump_Short_Cycle_Causes.php

On 2018-02-17 10:48:08.834604 by Teresa

I want to make this clear. Well used to have 11 houses it. Now five houses. Lady who took care of bill walked away with whole savings to repair well. No one really knows what was done. Well stopped and then was diagnosed as the part that sends water to each house. We would get water a bit and then nothing after this repair

It lasted for about 10 days with water maybe 30-50 % of time. Then it just stopped. I checked pressure .itbwas 70%. It called for 40%. Nkw Now no water ag all for three houses. Thank you. This has been over 3 month period.

On 2018-02-17 10:42:09.760667 by Teresa

Well going off and kn and then quit working

On 2018-02-01 20:11:53.358244 by (mod) -

I would look for a leak in well piping, maybe in the well (listen at the casing) or between well and building (look for a wet area). If there's a well piping leak you might see that with water to the house turned off you will see pressure in the tank fall after the pump stops.

Yes a leaky foot valve will lose prime.

On 2018-02-01 19:45:53.047554 by Jeremy

Power was off a few months, got power turned back on and water burped out of faucets a few times. pump was only a few years old but i bought a new one and it primes but wont build any pressure. I can take the prime plug out while running and it pumps a little water but I can put my thumb on the hole and stop it.

Other pump was doing same thing. 60 ft. deep well. Bad footvalve possibly? Its like it pumps it right back down the well?

On 2018-01-07 21:54:10.668662 by (mod) -

Cody

I suspect that the pump or its impeller is damaged, OR your pump is protected by a control that switches off the pump when it is not moving water (such as if the well has run dry or if pipes have frozen)

On 2018-01-07 20:55:29.180346 by cody

The well keeps tripping but when I reset it nothing kicks on and then it trips back out after about 30 seconds???

On 2017-12-07 by Auryn

So. I bought a new pump about a month ago and when I first ran it after priming it, it ran smooth for a few days.

This was just to test it out. I then had the pump disconnected and in storage for about 10 days before connecting it all up again to start pumping. ( I didn’t want it exposed to the weather while it was not being used).

However after setting it up the second time, the pump stopped pumping, i.e no pressure.

I checked the inlet pipe to the pump for air leaks it and blockage and everything seems fine. When I started the pump with the faucet closed and open it after it started, the pump just spews all the water from the pump and then nothing more. The only thing I can think of is it may be busted on the inside. Any advice for someone who knows very little about these sorts of things?

On 2017-12-06 21:01:36.986208 by (mod) -

Graeme

The well point pump might turn off when it is not finding water (the well runs dry) if it is protected from damage by a pump protection switch - a feature included in some pump control switches.

Or the motor could be overheating - which of course is damaging it.

See WATER PUMP PROTECTION SWITCH at https://inspectapedia.com/plumbing/Pump_Protection_Switches.php

On 2017-12-06 16:18:05.272885 by Graeme

Is there a reason why the wellpoint pump shuts itself off. Could this be from overheating and if so why would it overheat. Thank you.

On 2017-12-02 14:36:46.928391 by Anonymous

Sounds as if perhaps a pump protection switch is doing it's job, shutting off the pump to avoid damage when there is no water.

On 2017-12-02 10:52:10.926061 by Rick

When turning on my pump, it runs for a few seconds then cuts out, Why? If I depress the switch it start fine, but cuts out after a few second.

What is the problem?

Thanks

On 2017-11-28 01:04:04.878399 by (mod) -

Sarah

Sometimes it's possible to restore water flow into a well using any of several methods such as hydro fracking.

Take a look at WELL YIELD IMPROVEMENT https://inspectapedia.com/water/Well_Yield_Improvement.php and keep me posted on what you decide to try

On 2017-11-27 22:14:54.641035 by Sarah

We have a 30 foot well and it went dry on us a couple of months ago. We have been using out of a cistern we have on site (not hooked to the house). We have checked the Well once a week and it’s not getting any higher. Does this mean the Well is finished?

On 2017-10-21 01:55:04.928825 by (mod) -

Carol,

I suspect a problem of low flow into the well, Or a worn pump or bad impeller, oe cligged foor valve, or possibly a defective pressure control switch. But there could be other causes. Even a piping leak.

At

inspectapedia.com/water/Water_Pressure_Table_3.php

We have a list of common causes for the situation that you describe -- a pump that keeps on running without reaching the cutoff pressure.

please take a look through those Diagnostics and then post another comment or contact me by email to let me know how that works for you and we can proceed from there.

On 2017-10-21 01:39:09.604380 by Carol mckee

I have a Myers on top of the ground well pump it will pump up and hold pressure at 40 but won't shut off just keeps running so we kick it off by hand and it holds pressure but as soon as we turn the shut off to the house on the pressure drown to 10 and just runs! What can be wrong we have checked everything that we can see!!

On 2017-10-18 23:02:34.300543 by (mod) -

Dean,

I would check first that the pump is actually well below the surface of the water in the well.

On 2017-10-17 06:16:14.119834 by Dean

I pulled the pump up and there was no check valve on the pump at all. I installed and tried again with the same result. So i pulled it up and removed everything but the except the pipe coming out of the pump to the surface then i tried it in the dam where i laid it down horizontally 1ft below the surface and it worked with no issue, so i put it back down the bore and it did the something again.

I don't know whats going on. The system now only consists of a 3hp submersible bore pump to a check valve and to 30m of 1 1/2" thick walled polypipe which just spills out on the ground.

On 2017-10-17 04:05:09.518347 by (mod) -

I'm sorry but I don't have a clear understanding of your installation. However if you're hearing air bubbles then it does sound as if there's a leak in the oil piping or a bad check valve that's losing the water in the downpipe

On 2017-10-17 03:56:25.970162 by Dean

Ran the cable down still happened. Sounded like air bubbles when it stopped and get noisier. Its defiantly under water though. Any ideas could it be the check valve.

On 2017-10-15 05:14:46.846781 by Anonymous

I thought that may be the case but the generator is 3000W rated with a max of 4500 to 5000 and the pump is 2200W.

Its just the first time i used it it made 150m up the hill now its got no chance it only gets to my tee at the top of the bore and it stops regardless of weather i send it up the hill or not.

I was worried that the starting wattage may be too high but once it starts coming out i thought it would be right especially because it ran much longer the first time maybe 3 to 5mins before i turned it without any stall off because the dirty water didn't clear

Could the dirty water have effected the pump it was quite dirty and even got in to the joins of the polypipe past the rubber and into the thread.

Or should i try running a cable down to it. Its 200m down the hill so its a long way for cable i got some 4mm2 cable there i could try Or is it worth trying to clean it some how like i could use like some CLR calcium lime rust remover stuff in the bath with it.

On 2017-10-15 04:16:53.791087 by (mod) -

Do you think it's possible that the voltage being delivered to the pump is too low, or the pump is drawing more current than the generator can supply?

On 2017-10-15 04:12:13.832849 by Dean

Hi i installed a new pump yesterday. It seemed to work for a while but pumped dirty water, the water made it to the top of the bore then i sent it 150m up the hill then it stopped and started tripping my generator circuit breaker. Waited a day for water to clear then lifted pump higher to try again.

It pumped clear water then all of a sudden stops pumping and generator is quieter but the circuit breaker isn't tripped then i turn the pump off and the generator gets even quieter, then it back on then 5 secs later circuit breaker tripped on generator. Wait a few minuets then repeat and same again.

On 2017-10-15 01:34:24.491265 by rich

Question i had a new pump put in when we tried to start it i got a light humming noise from the control box i put a new switch and control box on same problem voltage and ohms are good still no water. the well guy is avoiding me it seems like

On 2017-10-15 00:22:41.701932 by John

We have a well system and the 3500 G cistern is near empty. I turned the float upside down and back in the cistern and the pump turned on and water was filling the tank. But.. air is coming in like crazy off and on in the well line. (submersible pump). How does a submersible well pump behave when water in well is not replenishing quickly enough? Does it over heat and take a break and turn on again? The pump seems to be coming back on after a while and it has me wondering what is going on. Thanks!

On 2017-10-05 20:43:24.378807 by Donny

Ran out of water the other day due to no rain, got some rain today and filled the well about halfway. The kitchen faucet gets good pressure on both hot and cold, the toilet tank fills as it should, bathroom faucet has good pressure for hot water but absolutely nothing on cold and the shower pressure is almost non-existent. Can someone please explain this because I'm at a loss, thanks.

On 2017-09-30 18:04:12.570491 by (mod) -

It sounds as if perhaps you have been exhausting the well. It would be worth finding out the actual parameters for your well including the depth of the static head and the will flow rate. You can search inspectapedia for those terms to read details.

On 2017-09-30 17:02:00.891783 by Michele

I filled a 500 gallon water tank to water orchard and now the pressure switch kicks off when I turn on outside spigots(3) and occasionally when you flush toilet and wash hands while the toilet tank Is filling. I have farm animals and fill about five 5gallon buckets of water every day, if I barely turn the spigot on I can (slowly) fill them but if I lift the handle all the way up the pressure switch shuts off instantly.

I often have to restart the well several times to get the buckets filled. However when it shuts off from water use inside the house I typically only have to go to the pump house once

. This happened twice before when we replaced two of the outside spigots and it the water lines connected them were busted and started pouring out water and again when we tried to fill the pool. We fought it for months before it stopped both times. We bought a new pressure tank (large), new on demand water heater, new electrical lines to the well and we replace pressure switches every few months (mostly because ants get between the contacts ).

We actually keep a supply on hand because of the frequency. The well is supposed to be 150' deep, the pump is 70' deep. Pressure tank is set at 30/50, cut in pressure is 28.

I keep reading articles that say that this problem is caused by the well being dry but I use tons of water everyday it only shuts off when too much water comes out at one time (watering animals).

Could the submersible pump not be keeping up with the spigot flow . I cannot understand how it could be lack of water when I can flip the pressure switch back on do laundry and baths etc. all day long with no problems. Water is clean, soft and tastes good, slightly high in iron. well is approx.. 20 years old.

On 2017-09-24 13:26:49.764651 by (mod) -

Monty,

the article that should help you most to deal with a short cycling well pump as you described will be found at https://inspectapedia.com/water/Short_Cycling_Pump.php

On 2017-09-24 08:31:59.008356 by Monty

Water pump cycles every 4 seconds when the water is turned on.

On 2017-09-11 20:52:56.276915 by (mod) -

Good going Kevin, sounds as if debris or muck in the switch sensor port was the problem. If it happens again check also the tube that conducts pressure to the switch.

On 2017-09-11 18:30:50.135794 by kevin

Thanks for the advice. I replaced the switch, so far haven't run into the same issue. Thanks!

On 2017-09-08 15:42:29.803604 by K Holloway

Changed out pump and and wet end on hot tube now the jets and circulation are backwards jets come on when it's supposed to be filtering water and when I engage jet it just circulates

On 2017-09-05 14:12:07.860594 by (mod) -

Usually I trace the problem you describe to a slow-responding pressure control switch that in turn has become debris clogged, or to debris clogging of the tube or pipe that conducts water pressure to the switch sensor port on its base. Try replacing both of those and let me know how that works for you.

On 2017-09-05 12:12:53.965352 by kevin

15-year old pump system, never had problem. Recently it starts to have pressure drop in the morning (to about 10psi on pressure gauge), then come back to normal all by itself after 2-5 minutes. After that the whole day goes fine. The well company came here but couldn't find anything wrong.
Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance.

On 2017-09-03 19:42:53.566680 by fred

the pump runs continuously but wont build more than 25 psi

On 2017-09-03 13:20:59.747921 by Hardy's

We are in Rockport Tex and just experienced hurricane Harvey. Our well worked fine until now. I have pressured the tank up, replaced the switch and still nothing.

I opened the tank valve and it shot muddy water out. I pressured the tank back up and opened the valve up again and now nothing comes out including air. I know that I have 40psi in it.

On 2017-08-14 20:44:42.052294 by Susan

My hot water heater was leaking an extreme amount. Before this was figured out air was put into our blatter tank and it was lost in the water heater. Once a new water heater was put in we now have zero water. The pump above ground is kicking on bit still don't have any water. Any clue.

On 2017-08-13 15:51:02.427492 by Jake

When my well pump kicks on (at 30 psi) the pressure gauge instantly jumps up to about 50psi. The pump runs for a couple of minutes and stops when the pressure gauge reaches 65psi.

When the pump stops, the gauge immediately drops to 45psi. It's ben like this for years and never caused me any problems.

My switch (30/50) recently developed a leak and had to be replaced. When I put the new one in, it kept short cycling because as soon as the pump kicked on, it sensed the 50 psi and shuts off.

So, I adjusted the range to make it shut off like the old switch (at 65psi) and it's working fine. But why is this happening? Is it anything to be concerned about?

On 2017-08-01 11:19:41.069042 by Mark G

My well pump continues to build pressure after the pump love off causing my pressure relief valve to activate. Any suggestions what would cause this?

On 2017-07-26 22:17:13.938275 by (mod) -

Larry,

You raise a common concern: I often hear from people having water equipment or well problems particularly for systems that are used in irrigation or lawn watering systems.

You'd need one of the following to avoid over-taxing the pump and perhaps burning it up:
- a new pump motor with a duty cycle rated for continuous-on usage. Such motors are designed to avoid overheating and to tolerate long on cycles. Look at irrigation pumps.

Talk to the pump manufacturer if you can't find the usage duty cycle in the pump's specifications.

Example: the WAYNE PLS100 1 HP Portable Stainless Steel Lawn Sprinkling Pump rated for continuous duty and capable of 20 ft lift.

Another excellent continuous duty pump (from my reading not my experience first hand) is the AMT High Head Straight Centrifugal Pump - 4900-98, 118 GPM, 1.5" x 1.25", 3 HP, 230v, water pump is, according to the manufacturer's specs, rated for continuous duty.

However the AMT pump is not self-priming and is not designed for application where a water lift-height is involved. You probably need a model that can lift your water.

- a restricted water flow rate + pressure tank that lets the pump stay off for 10-20 minutes at a shot

- a quite large water pressure tank and a pump that could get ahead of the water usage rate, fill the tank and then stay off for 10 or 20 minutes at a time,

On 2017-07-26 21:15:35.521346 by Larry

I use my water well for irrigation.

My pump motor had to be replaced after about 6 years. I open enough valves so when watering the pump runs continuously without turning off and on hoping to increase motor life knowing that these motors are designed to start and stop over and over am I causing early pump failure by leaving it continuously running for hours at a time?

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Continue reading at WATER PRESSURE PROBLEM DIAGNOSIS TABLE for table listing causes & cures for well pump or water pressure problems, or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see WATER PUMP REPAIR FAQs-7- more recent questions and answers about troubleshooting water pumps and well pumps

Or see these

Recommended Articles

• PUMP PRIME, REPEATED LOSS of if you can't keep the pump primed
• WATER PRESSURE LOSS DIAGNOSIS & REPAIR - home
• WATER PUMP CONTROLS & SWITCHES - home
• WATER PUMP REPAIR GUIDE - home

...

Suggested citation for this web page

WATER PUMP REPAIR FAQs-6 at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.

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INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to WATER SUPPLY, PUMPS TANKS WELLS

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