Air Discharge from Faucets or Fixtures - FAQs

Index to all Q&A on cause & cure for air discharge from plumbing fixtures

How Will Excess Air in the Plumbing System Get Out?

Air can get into the water lines and pressure tank - will it get out on its own?

When working on the water system, air can get into the line, and into the water held in the pressure tank. In this video, the repairman says this can be a big problem:

This makes sense - if air is trapped a working pressure tank on top of the water, the amount of water actually in the pressure tank will displaced by the air above that water. This will reduce the usefulness of the pressure tank.

When replacing parts in the water line, such as the pressure switch or gauge, or making other repairs that allow air into the line, what should be done? Should the air pressure on the air side of the tank be released, as in this video, and then re-pressurized after the water is admitted to the tank?

Will the air above the water on the water side of the tank eventually come out as the tank cycles? In that case, we shouldn't worry about it? On 2016-07-14 by C Fox -

Solution by (mod) -

Not quite so, C. Fox.

Yes air can enter the pressure tank and piping system when new pipes or pressure tank or other piping are installed on a water pump and tank system.

If there is excess air - beyond what the system needs, normally that air will flow out at plumbing fixtures when water is run.

See AIR DISCHARGE at FAUCETS, FIXTURES to read details.

Water tanks that do not use an internal bladder use an air volume control (AVC) that is designed to purge excess air or to insert air when there is insufficient air.

Water tanks that DO use an internal bladder keep air and water separated; air entering that tank through the incoming water piping will be discharged onwards to the plumbing fixtures as the tank bladder empties out during use of the system.

If there is not enough air (resulting in pump short cycling),

WATER TANK AIR, HOW TO ADD explains how to correct that problem.

So in reply to your "what should be done" in nearly all situations, nothing special. After working on the pump, well, tank, piping, or water system, run water at plumbing fixtures (with faucet strainer removed) to flush out debris and excess air.

If the well piping and pump or foot valve were pulled and replaced in the well, it's also good practice to sanitize the well.

Search InspectApedia for WELL SHOCKING PROCEDURE to see how to do that.

Air Bubbles Causd by Biofilm in Well and Piping?

Tip: Also see GASES in WELL WATER

I don't see any mention on here of naturally occuring biofilm in the well and piping as being a possible culprit of air bubbles and pinhole leaks in the water system, or am I missing it? Also a reference to an article but I can't seem to find the article. On 2020-09-17 by Tyler Munson

Solution by (mod) - Research on Biofilms as Source of Bacterial Contamination in Water Supply

Tyler

Thanks so much for the comment about biofilms in wells and piping as a possible source of air discharge at plumbing fixtures.
You didn't miss it, it's not here and is a new topic for me.

I've looked for research describing the release of air or gas bubbles from biofilms in water systems and found some that I'll cite below. However nothing that I've read to date about biofilm gas bubble formation and release seems to capable of explaining the large volume bursts of air that one encounters in building water supply systems as we describe in the article above.

If you have such research or sources please help me out with that data.

Thanks so much, I'll continue to research this. Meanwhile we have a lot of research on biofilms as a possible source of harmful bacteria in water systems, such as

• Blaustein, Ryan A., Daniel R. Shelton, Jo Ann S. Van Kessel, Jeffrey S. Karns, Matthew D. Stocker, and Yakov A. Pachepsky. "Irrigation waters and pipe-based biofilms as sources for antibiotic-resistant bacteria." Environmental monitoring and assessment 188, no. 1 (2016): 56.
• Crusz, Shanika A., Roman Popat, Morten Theil Rybtke, Miguel Cámara, Michael Givskov, Tim Tolker-Nielsen, Stephen P. Diggle, and Paul Williams. "Bursting the bubble on bacterial biofilms: a flow cell methodology." Biofouling 28, no. 8 (2012): 835-842.
  
  Excerpt: This paper provides a detailed user guide for constructing and running the biofilm flow cell system and in addition, incorporates novel modifications which result in a marked reduction in the formation of problematic air bubbles.
• Lee, Kun M., and H. David Stensel. "Aeration and substrate utilization in a sparged packed-bed biofilm reactor." Journal (Water Pollution Control Federation) (1986): 1066-1072.
• Shelton, D. R., L. A. Kiefer, Y. A. Pachepsky, R. A. Blaustein, and G. Martinez. "Coliform retention and release in biofilms formed on new and weathered irrigation pipes." Irrigation Science 31, no. 5 (2013): 971-981.
• Saravanan, Periasamy, Y. Venkata Nancharaiah, Vayalam P. Venugopalan, T. Subba Rao, and Seetharaman Jayachandran. "Biofilm formation by Pseudoalteromonas ruthenica and its removal by chlorine." Biofouling 22, no. 6 (2006): 371-381.
• Zhou, Renwu, Rusen Zhou, Peiyu Wang, Bingyu Luan, Xianhui Zhang, Zhi Fang, Yubin Xian, Xinpei Lu, Kostya Ken Ostrikov, and Kateryna Bazaka. "Microplasma bubbles: reactive vehicles for biofilm dispersal." ACS applied materials & interfaces 11, no. 23 (2019): 20660-20669.
  

Intermittent Air Discharge at Faucets

Tip: See AIR VOLUME CONTROL DEFECT

Recent random air in well water - comes and goes

On well water. For the past 6 months or so we randomly get air in the lines. It'll occur for several days in a row to varying degrees then disappear for a couple weeks.

I can hear the pressure tank (80 gallon - installed Aug '16) filling up with air. The lines come in the house and go through two HD water filters. I've verified there are no leaks between the intake in the house and the pressure tank.

Also have installed a backflow preventer right where the line comes in the house. How can i check if i have a bad valve on the well? Not sure how deep it is. Another issue is since installed the new pressure tank (replaced a 20 gallon that was clogged with sediment) the hydrant which T's off of the line to the house doesn't have pressure if the well isn't running.

Only time we get water from the hydrant is if the well is running. Would installing a backlfow preventer on that line solve this issue? On 2017-07-04 by Sean

by (mod) re: random air in water lines

It sounds as if sediment may have clogged an air admittance valve or air volume control. Sediment clogging the pressure control switch can also cause the start up delay you described.

@Sean, Also meant to add that sometimes the pressure in the tank drops and we loose all water pressure for up to a minute before the pressure switch kicks on and the well starts to run.

Air Bubbles or Discharge Only at Certain Fixtures or Faucets

Why does Air Sputter Out Only at One Fixture?

We get air sputter only oat ur kitchen faucet sputters. Over time it has become worse. the rest of the house seems fine. What could be wrong?( Sept 15, 2014) Anonymous

Reply: follow the pipes backwards

It could be frost heave pushing on your electrical conduit , this can occasionally push your well cap off or suspend it above the casing. - (Oct 2, 2014) mninspector

Moderator adds: thanks for the suggstion MN Inspector but if the problem were at the well cap or casing causing an air leak into the well piping we'd see air at every fixture, not just at the kitchen, and probably when the pump runs we'd see water squirting out at that leak point.

Instead I suggest that you follow the plumbing piping in your system; it may be that the easiest path for excess water tank air to follow upwards from the tank happens to be to the kitchen.

Why does air sputter only at our outdoor spigots?

I have air in the line on both of my outside spigots that causes the hose to sputter, but no air in the lines with the inside faucets.

We do have an Iron Curtain, Water softener and are on Well water. The pressure tank does not loose pressure when all faucets are off and No sediment in the water. The water pressure in the house does not drop and we have not ran out of water. Any idea's or thoughts ? On 2017-05-30 by Laura

by (mod) re: air in outside spigots, hoses sputter

I'd look for an air leak into the well piping or pump as discussed

at AIR DISCHARGE at FAUCETS, FIXTURES. It's often the case that air entering the system doesn't sputter out at all fixtures uniformly; rather it'll follow the easiest exit passage.

Can an outside water faucet let air into the whole system

Can an outside water faucet let air into the whole system and make sink and toilet spitt air On 2018-09-28 by wdp

Reply by (mod) -

Yes, under some unusual conditions (such as loss of building water pressure) if the outside faucet has been left open and if an anti-siphon control at the hose bibb is absent or not working.

Air at Hot Water Taps - Warning

Tip: See AIR DISCHARGE from HOT WATER

Only at Hot Water Taps: Air comes out and we get no hot water

Our water heater does not supply water from its taps because of an air discharge problem. What to do On 2017-05-07 by Anonymous

by (mod) re: heater won't give hot water from taps because of air: electric heater elements burned up?

Anon:

You should be able to open a hot water faucet at a nearby sink and run it until air stops coming out of the faucet and hot water follows.

Sometimes I also speed air removal from a water heater tank by opening the pressure/temperature relief valve during tank fill-up, but this can be dangerous in that if you fool with that valve and can't get it shut again you'll have to shut down the system for safety as well as to stop the leak.

Watch out: if your water heater is electric and you turned it on for even a fraction of a second when the hot water tank was not absolutely full of water then you may have burned up the water heater elements - that would explain why air in your system would kill your water heater.

See our advice and warnings at AIR DISCHARGE from HOT WATER 

If you've already tried those steps then there may be an external source of air in your plumbing system - as is discussed

at AIR DISCHARGE at FAUCETS, FIXTURE

Bubbling rusty air discharged water from new electric water heater

We are putting a new electric hot water system in and its bubbling out of the top valve and has rusty water On 2016-06-10 by Anonymous

by (mod): water heater warning

Anon: this sounds as if air is being forced out of the new water heater tank - it should stop after a few minutes of running hot water.

But WATCH OUT: do not turn on an electric water heater before the tank is full of water - else it will be destroyed.

Air in the deep well system only shows up at one hot water faucet

I, too, have air in my deep well system but it only shows on ONE hot water faucet. 5-8 seconds of blowing air with little water. Not noticable on the cold side or in the adjacent bathroom fixtures. Can a faulty hot-water faucet be the cause.? I've had the entire system examined and no one can find the problem.

Rust filter tank, water softener and well pump all check out. (Mar 21, 2012) Jerry

Reply:

This makes me think that the problem is in the hot water tank and piping and perhaps the closest hot water fixture or one over a rising hot water line that catches air before it reaches more distant fixtures.

Also see WATER SOFTENER CHECK VALVE STUCK

Air Discharge at Fixtures After Plumbing Work

We're seeing air discharge after fixing a plumbing leak

This is an excellent site! We are on a well and have not had any problems until two days ago when we had to switch out a washer and noticed a leak in one of the cold water lines to it . We replaced the copper pipe with pex pipe and everything seemed to be fine .

We were trying to turn the pump back on we noticed a large gushing noise going into the hot water heater and it took quite some time before it filled back up.

Now, when we turn the pump on an open any of the faucets we hear air coming out and occasionally some water will come out but then it dies back down . We check the pressure gauge on the tank and it was moving between 40 and 60 PSI . With nothing open, the PSI stays at 60 .

So I turn the pump off overnight and left the faucets open on the further side from the supply.

Still water will come out in spurts and you can hear air . The hot water heater still has water rushing into it for a few seconds and then cuts off . Since I have outside animals I was able to use the faucet outside and get water to their containers with no problem and the flow seem to be fine and consistent .

So what could be causing the rushing water in the hot water tank as well as the air coming out of the indoor faucets still ? On 2017-02-08 by Pat

by (mod) - air discharge after plumbing work is normal if it is quickly resolved

Pat,

Because a plumber may have to open and drain pipes to work on your system, there will be air in the system afterwards.

But once you've opened faucets at each fixture that air should be discharged and the problem should stop.

IF the problem continues THEN I'd start by checking for a leaky, inadequately crimped or secured PEX connector, though steady water pressure with nothing running argues against that.

Are you sure the sound is running water as opposed to the noise of the water heater tank heating up? That's particularly common if the heater has formed scale.

Air Discharge in Cistern Water Systems

Tip: See also CHECK VALVE FAILURES

Air Discharge in Water PIpes From Cistern with Float Valve

Finding this website gives me hope about the air discharging from our taps. Here's the setup: 450' artesian well flows through upper pipe to cistern with a float valve.

Lower pipe from cistern comes into the house, through a check valve, then a filter, then an inline pump, which pumps water to a bladder pressure tank set for 30/60 on/off. This has worked for years without a problem, until last week the static pressure of the well dropped and we pumped the cistern dry.

When this happens I insert a 20' pipe down the casing with a foot valve on bottom and spigot on top. With hoses, I attach an electric pump from spigot atop the drop pipe to an alternate inlet on the cistern. This pump is plugged into an electronic float switch in the cistern (powers on when tank nears empty, powers off when full).

With this setup, we restored water to the home but now we have air every time we turn on a tap. It seems we just have air in the system but I'm not sure how to clear it. Thanks in advance for any suggestions you may offer. On 2016-08-02 by freebrownies

Suggestion by Mod Cistern Pump Turning on "Late"? or an Air Leak in Piping

With your temporary water source pumping up into a cistern, I'd not expect air from that step to be entering the building piping; the cistern is surely open to the atmosphere at its top, right?

Your cistern level turns on the pump, but perhaps not until too late - allowing air to enter piping between the cistern outlet and the home. I'd thus start by checking the float operation, and if that doesn't solve the problem I'd look for an air leak in the piping.

Air Discharge From Water Softener

Tip: See WATER SOFTENER CHECK VALVE STUCK

I have a private well with a water softener. When the water softener is engaged we get a lot of air and salty water. when it is in by-pass we get a little air. Is this a well problem or a softener problem? Thanks On 2016-07-20 by Anonymous

by (mod) re: air discharge when water softener is in bypass mode

Anon this is probably a softener problem, perhaps with the injector tube or an air leak in the other softener tubing.

Air Leaks at the Well Pump

Tip: See DAMAGED WELL PUMP

Well pump air leaks vs pump check valve vs other air sources

We have been having a problem with excessive air in the line. Sputtering and spitting sounds at the faucets, hissing sounds within the pipes, foamy looking water coming out of the faucets (very fine bubbles in water that comes out of faucet - clears & is potable when left to sit a minute).

We have backtracked all lines to the well & cannot locate any area that appears to be taking in air or leaking. All switches have been checked & appear to be working properly.

The check valve going to the pump was cleaned and appears to be functioning properly also. The problem appears to be starting at the pump itself. We are at a loss for the cause & are hoping that we don't need to replace the entire pump. On 2015-06-03 by Renee Wiedinger

Diagnosis and repair suggestions by (mod)

Renee,

First: check the pump itself more carefully. Sometimes I find an air leak on the pump body itself.

Air leaks into a pump or into piping can be hard to spot as spraying a soap solution won't do much.

As a simple step to eliminate a common but hard to see air leak into well piping often I add a second tight hose clamp at any suspect plastic fittings.

The article AIR DISCHARGE at FAUCETS, FIXTURES includes our best guess at the common sources of air discharge from plumbing fixtures. If you think the problem is at the pump I'd look closely for a leak in the water-handling portion of the pump and its impeller system and pipe connections. I wouldn't assume the pump has to be replaced but if the impeller is damaged or the impeller housing is cracked you will at least need to replace that assembly.

Air Discharge at Fixtures: Artesian Well Water System

Air out of fixtures - artesian well feeds holding tank pumped then into building

I have been getting air out of my fixtures for the last month. My system is "unique" I have a artesian well that constantly drips water at a low volume/pressure into a underground holding tank then a shallow well jet pump sucks that out of the tank and fills an old bladder-less tank.

Normally when my underground tank is full my runoff line drips out the excessive water, but lately my jet pump has not been cycling on and off it seems like it is just pumping water somewhere and running my underground tank empty, if I unplug my pump the tank will fill and runoff after 2 hours or so.

I have replaced my pump and my air volume control with very little or on change. When I unplug my pump and turn it back on after 2 hours it runs fine and with good pressure for a few hours and reverts back to staying on and sucking my underground tank dry. Got any Ideas? - Devin Snyder

Reply:

Devin I'd check for a leak on the water supply system piping. Start looking carefully at the piping between the water storage tank and the building. I'm guessing that your shallow well jet pump is located in the building where it pressurizes a bladderless water pressure tank.

A leak in water piping on the inlet side of the jet pump can suck air into the water lines when the pump is drawing water from the storage tank.

Or of course there may be some other snafu we haven't thought of. Keep us posted - what you find will help other readers.

Air Discharge at Every Plumbing Fixture

Hi, We have air coming from our pipes. We experience the air from flushing the toilets, taking a shower and turning on faucets.

It happens on a daily basis although not every time we run the water. We had our bladder tank replaced in August because the well pump would cycle on when there was no water running in the house. The plumber said we had a bad tank and valve, so he replaced both the tank and the valve.

That seemed to fix the problem of the well pump running when it shouldn't; however, ever since the plumber did his work we now have air in our lines. The plumber's only response was that he would have to pull the well pump up to investigate. That seems extreme to me.

The plumber did not respond to any further contact I tried to make with him, so we've just been dealing with the air in the line hoping it would correct itself. Thank you. (Apr 21, 2012) Tara

...

I have the same problem with periodic Air - Water spurting from ALL faucets, but then there is NO Water at all..anywhere in the house. This could go on for an hour or as little as a few minutes.

My Husband thinks it is because we have more people in the house, but even on days, we may do only 1 Load of Laundry and 1 Shower..there it is all over again.. What could it be? We have a Well And a Water Softener of course. (Oct 5, 2012) SUZ

Reply: Bad AVC is adding too much air to the water pressure tank

Tara, This sounds like an air volume control that is intermittently sticking, perhaps a float type. What valve was replaced by the plumber?

Suz: the correlation with increased air in the plumbing system when there are more people using water argues for a problem with the air volume control or air loss at the pressure tank, or both. Your water tank is losing air and the AVC is not restoring it.

If your well uses a shifter valve and is also low on water, perhaps due to heavy usage, the condition you describe might be explained.

See details at

AIR VOLUME CONTROLS, WATER TANK

Air Discharge at Fixtures: Municipal Water Supply

Sputtering faucets when toilet is flushed - air blamed on washing machine, municipal water supply

We have a sputtering faucet and toilet when flushed in an upstairs bathroom.

We have municipal water supply - no well.

We have bled the pipes but problems return.

We think that old washing machine could be culprit but previous owners had no problems.(we stay in touch.) Interestingly, this condition is mostly noticed right after a moderate rain storm - but on other occasions as well. PLEASE help. 7/24/14 Christina 

Reply by modeator: check the pressure regulator:

Christina

I'm not sure how a washing machine could insert air into a building water supply.

Have you checked or tried replacing the pressure regulator for the building?

Reader follow-up: plumber says valves on old washing machine can admit air into the water supply

Thanks Dan, we had a new pressure reducing valve installed by a plumber. It reduced our pressure to a safer level, but the problem continues.

Another plumber suggested that when the valves of an old washing machine open and close the water, it can create an air pocket.

We will try to replace the washer but what if that doesn't work. What is left…what don't we see?

I contacted our water co. and they suggested to open all faucets….bleed the system….been there…problem comes back.

Reply by mod

On municipal water supply this is a tough one Christina - I'm continuing to think about it. If the air problem shows up ONLY after running the washing machine then indeed the plumber may be on to an answer. So let's try opening faucets, bleeding air, and leaving the washer off for a day or so. Let me know what happens.

Have you confirmed that no neighbors have problems with air in their water supply?

Christina followup:

Ok so far no air. Ran 5 loads of laundry….no air. We are expecting storms tonight so I will see what happens in the morning. Some thoughts in my mind.

Heating system in the house is baseboard/boiler….the system seems to be air bound a lot. we had a plumber bleed the system but I don't think that it was done right..is there anyway that air from the heating system be forced back through the pressure reducer into the water supply with changes or shifts in humidity? i.e. during storms?

We have three maid o mist air purgers which were replaced but i also heard that if the system is plumbed incorrectly air can actually enter into the air release valve. If the systems are truly seperate meaning air can't enter the supply through the heating pipes then this would be irrelevant.

Also the ice maker for the fridge has this weird connection to the copper pipe. could this somehow be involved. I must say that after the next big storm I am anticipating a lot of air. I don't know why but somehow (I'm thinking now changes in humidity or barometric pressure) heavy rains bring this problem on. Thanks for your time.

Christina followup2: no rain, no air

no rain last night…..no air

Modeator Reply: use a pony pump to push any air out of airbound heating system

Christina

About the air bound heating system see the diagnostics and suggestions at

AIR BOUND HEAT SYSTEM REPAIR by PUMP 

Christina

No rain……no air.

On City Water We have air in the water pipes in the morning

New hot water heater put in. Thought air in water lines in the house was just a new tank put in.

We turned on all at the same time all faucets, all air out. Well, now it's a year later and we still have air in lines, mostly in the mornings. We have city water. What is going on and how to fix. On 2015-10-31 by teresa

Suggestions by (mod)

With city water I would be looking for

- a leak in water piping

- bacteria in the water heater (if "air" appears only in hot water)

- city water supply including air (ask the city if that occurs)

Air Gets Into Water Piping at The Well or Well Pipes

Tip: See

• CHECK VALVE FAILURES
• LEAKS in WELL PIPING
• LOSS of WATER in the WELL
• DAMAGED WELL PUMP
• AIR VOLUME CONTROL DEFECT
• GASES in WELL WATER
• SNIFTER VALVE MALFUNCTION

Air shows up in our well water in dry weather when the well is low

During dry late summer months there is a small amount of air in the well water line lasting less than a few seconds when the pump activates. The well is 45 feet deep with a flow of greater than 20 gpm.

The pump is approximately 12 feet below grade. The water level in the well casing is approximately 6 feet below grade and does not drop when the pump activates. Any suggestion. On 2015-09-02 by Brian Washburn

Advice by (mod): air leaks into pipes when the well is low

Check the well: if water level is dropping below the foot valve your need a tail piece at the well piping end.

See WELL PIPING TAIL PIECE 

If water is not dropping below the foot valve then there is either a leak in the well piping

see WELL PIPING LEAK DIAGNOSIS

or a snifter valve or air volume control is misbehaving.

See SNIFTER & DRAIN BACK VALVES

Pump Draws Water Faster Than Well Can Recover so Pumps Air

My new pump draws water faster then my well can recover. so I get lots of air . Is there a bleeder valve that I can install to relive the air an d get jest the water. I never had this problem untill I had to chang my 25 year old Meyers jet pump. My e- mail is letsglo1941@aol.com Please let me know . Thanks!

I have a shallow well and my pump failed . I never had this problem with my old 1/2 hp meyers shallow well pump . the new pump that i have is a selfpriming pump that my well can not keep up and now I get a lot of air in my water system .

Is there a kind of bleeder valve that could remove all the air that i get at the faucts? On 2015-07-26 by Leslie Thibodeau

Recommendations by (mod)

Yes you could consider AIR ELIMINATORS for POTABLE WATER SUPPLIES

But

Watch out: even when a pump is exceeding the well flow we should not see air being pumped: the risk is destruction of the pump.

See WATER PUMP PROTECTION SWITCH
and

See WELL PIPING TAIL PIECE
for two approaches to protecting the pump and fixing the problem you describe.

Also see WATER PUMP WONT STOP RUNNING

Well water pressure drops, pump kicks on, then no water pressure, then air comes out. When water returns it's dirty

I am having my pressure go from 50 to 30 then the pump kicks in but no water pressure comes up then it goes below 30 to 20 or 15 then air comes out, as soon as I shut the water off the pressure comes up slowly.

When I turn the water back on dirty water comes out for a few seconds then clears up but again in sputters for a long time especially the tapes furthest away from the tank.

Should I turn on all the taps to see if I can get the air out of the lines I just drained it this morning and re charged it I put in 50 lbs, is that to much? 7/28/14 Myles 

Reply: well water level is low, pump picking up air

Myles I think you are describing a well running out of water combined with a pump that's picking up air at the water pick up point or foot valve.

What's happening is that after the pump is off for a while the well has recovered enough to give back some water, but that water is muddy: a common symptom of low water in the well.

Improving the yield of the well and raising the well water pickup point can help.

See:

• WELL FLOW TEST PROCEDURE
• WELL YIELD IMPROVEMENT
• WELL PIPING LEAK DIAGNOSIS

Air discharge at fixtures caused by bad well pump or other check valve

My mother had a recurring problem with the air in her water lines. 4" well approx 80' deep with a submersible pump. Tried the easy part first by changing the check valve at the pressure tank.

That helped a little? Tried cleaning the screen with the Nu-well pellets, that helped a little.

The problem wouldn't go away compleyely and so we pulled the pump. turns out that the check valve in the pump discharge was malfunctioning.

New pump installed and problem resolved. On 2016-12-23 by robert G

Solution by (mod) -

Robert

Thank you very much for posting this detail. It will help other readers to know that air in the water system may be traced to a bad well piping foot valve or check valve.

A failing check valve typically shows up as loss of pump prime if the pump is above-ground - like a one-line or two-line jet pump. But when the well pump is a submersible, it's under-water in the well, so loss of prime doesn't prevent the pump from operating.

But when there is a submersible pump combined with a bad check valve, water can drain back into the well from the building and from the well piping, moreso if there is a SNIFTER VALVE installed on the water system, or if there is a leak anywhere in the piping system.

In that case excess air enters the well piping. When the pump next cycles on, that air is pushed up into the building's water pressure tank as well as into the building's water piping where some of it shows up as air discharge at faucets and other plumbing fixtures.

When a snifter valve is in use inside the well (on piping above the water level) (search InspectApedia for that term), a second air volume control in the building at the water tank is intended to vent out excess air pushed back into the water tank when the submersible pump cycles on.

But if THAT device (part of the SNIFTER VALVE SYSTEM) malfunctions, then excess air won't be hissing out at the water tank and instead it'll blow out at plumbing fixtures.

For other readers: a snifter valve and the problems I described above occur particularly on submersible pump wells that use a snifter valve that in turn works with a water pressure tank that does NOT use an internal bladder. Bladder type pressure tanks don't want a snifter valve system installed.

So if you convert an old bladderlerss tank to one that uses an internal bladder, AND if your well used a snifter valve, it needs to be removed.

See details at SNIFTER & DRAIN BACK VALVES

Well water supply stops, then continues, lots of air in water

Just moved into new home about a month ago. Water pressure has been fine, other then occasionally the water would be coming out of the faucet, stop for a couple seconds and continue on. We recently had a UV system installed due to bacteria in the water.

Now all water sources (sinks, tub, toilets) have a LOT of air in them - mostly air is being pushed out of the faucet and we did notice a few spurts of the water were brown in color. Our well is 112' deep and the previous owners had it fracked within the past couple years (their complaint was low water pressure). Could we be out of well water? (May 30, 2014) Melissa

Reply:

Hi Melissa,

Your well could be running low - the fact that the well was hydro-fractured suggests that it has a history of running out of water.

As it's a deep well, probably using a submersible pump, a second source of air could be an old snifter valve on the well piping inside the well (something to ask your well repair company about if they pull the well piping), or the companion vent and air volume controls back at the pressure tank could be allowing excess air into the system.

Unfortunately, given the history you cite I speculate it's the first problem

A very rough diagnostic might be the following: if you see that your water is not air-filled and seems more normal after the well has rested over night (or longer, giving it time to recover), that'd suggest a low flow rate problem in the well .

Other problems such as a leak in well piping can also cause this trouble (though less likely)
A more accurate check would be a well flow test.

One more thing: some hydrofracking companies warrant their work (promising an increased yield) - but I don't know for what period. Something to check into.

See WELL YIELD IMPROVEMENT

Seems air is getting into our water pipes from the well: What's wrong?

I have air in my water system. It sounds and feels like air is entering from the well, which has plenty of water over the submerged pump. while pump is on, and well cover is off, I can see/hear no signs of air getting in.

The pump and line to the house was installed new 2 years ago. I've bled the air from the pipes by opening all faucets, spigots, appliances but it comes back. (Sept 3, 2014) russ

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I just had my well pump replaced less than 2 weeks ago. After about 5-6 days, the water finally cleared. Now, the last 4-5 days the faucets/toilets are spitting a lot of air after several hours of non-use.

Obviously, something is leaking water and picking up air, is it more apt to be a shoe fitting o-ring or a defective new pump? On 2016-11-14 by Anonymous

Reply: check for a bad snifter valve or air volume control

Russ: Look for a well pipe leak or a snifter valve that ought not be there.

See details as explained at SNIFTER & DRAIN BACK VALVES

Anon: If your well and pump and tank use a snifter valve system that may be the problem. Or if your water pressure tank uses an automatic air volume control (AVC) that may need repair or replacement.

See the diagnostic advice at AIR VOLUME CONTROLS, WATER TANK

Where is the Source of Air In Our Water Pipes or at Fixtures?

Why does Air Get into our Pipes when the Cistern Water Level is Low?

We have a cistern with the pressure tank and pump in the house. Why does air get in the lines when the cistern gets low? (Sept 9, 2014) Shane

Reply:

Shane

Most likley the water level falls below the pick-up point in the cistern and the pump pulls a mixture of air and water - which can of course damage the pump.

Take a look at the water intake in your cistern to see if it's ever exposed to the air; If so, adjust the float control switch to keep the pump OFF if water level is near that point.

Can't Find Source of Air in the Water Pipes

I have water treatment equipment and have been experencing air in the water. Our technician looked at the system an said nothing was wrong. we had a plumber look at our water pump. He couldnt find anything wrong and suggested we turn the water treatment system off for a few days.

We did this and had no problems with air in the water. After 3 days we turned the water treatment system back on and started having air in the water again. Also now we have experienced our water turning dark pink/purple from the chemicals in the water

It takes an hour running the water to get clear water. Our technician insists it is not the water treatment system. Does anyone know what coud be wrong? 20 January 2015 Anonymous

Reply:

I would be looking for a leak in the water system piping, often between the water pressure tank and the well foot valve.

Also see WELL PIPING LEAK DIAGNOSIS