water pressure tank cutoff question

[duckidaho]

I have a water pressure tank on my well. After the pipes froze last year the plumber replaced the cutoff switch. All the indoor water works fine, but when I turn on the outside spigots they have very high pressure (which they've always had) but then it trips a switch on the cutoff and the water shuts off. Then I have to go in and flip a thingy on the cutoff switch. If I turn on the outside spigots half way they work fine, but I'd rather have higher pressure out there. Any ideas? Fixes? Thanks, Russ

[agmantoo]

duckidaho

What you are experiencing is caused by the type of cutoff switch the plumber installed. It is a design that is used to automatically cut off the pump if a line were to burst. If you want to remedy the situation buy a standard 40/60 Square D pressure switch and replace the one you now have. This is a sure fix, not speculation.

[fordy]

Originally Posted by duckidaho

I have a water pressure tank on my well. After the pipes froze last year the plumber replaced the cutoff switch. All the indoor water works fine, but when I turn on the outside spigots they have very high pressure (which they've always had) but then it trips a switch on the cutoff and the water shuts off. Then I have to go in and flip a thingy on the cutoff switch. If I turn on the outside spigots half way they work fine, but I'd rather have higher pressure out there. Any ideas? Fixes? Thanks, Russ

...................First you need to determine the hi and lo pressure(s) for your cotoff switch ! Normal is 40 lo side and 60 high side . Next , determine if the Air bladder inside your pressure tank is set too the correct pressure , do this by turning off the pressure switch and allowing ALL water too evacuate the water tank , Now , with an air pressure gauge check the air pressure in the air bladder just like you you would on a care tire . For a 40\60 pressure switch , set the pressure at 38psi , 2PSI lower than the 40 psi cut in pressure . By allowing all water too run out of the tank you allow the air bladder too expand properly , once set turn the pressure switch back ON and see how the system functions . You really should have a pressure gauge installed on your Ptank so you can actually check too see if the Switch is working properly !
.....................The pressure at the other outlets cannot be greater than the 60 psi max cutoff pressure allowed by the pressure switch , UNLESS the Switch is MAL functioning and allowing the pump too pressure the system greater than the Pswitch is supposed too !
......................The Ptank will have a valve steem on TOP of the tank just like a car tire . Check the pressure AfTER , YOU HAVE DRAINED THE TANK ! , fordy

[oneokie]

What agmantoo said.

You have what is called a low pressure cut off switch. when the system pressure drops below a certain point, it shuts off the pump. This prevents the pump from burning up due to lack of water. Most usually installed on Jet pumps.

Interesting , Agmantoo are you referring to a pressure switch with the little lever on the side that shuts off when the pressure in the system gets too low or is there another type of switch that shuts off when there is too much flow ? I would assume that if the op normally has a lot higher pressure on the outside faucets than he does in the home that he must have a pressure regulator controlling the house pressure that the outside faucets are not fed through .

[rambler]

Originally Posted by WV Hillbilly

Interesting , Agmantoo are you referring to a pressure switch with the little lever on the side that shuts off when the pressure in the system gets too low or is there another type of switch that shuts off when there is too much flow ? I would assume that if the op normally has a lot higher pressure on the outside faucets than he does in the home that he must have a pressure regulator controlling the house pressure that the outside faucets are not fed through .

I'll guess Agman is right.

The outside spigot may be full size pipe relative to the well pipe, while the house plumbing is typically sized down - 3/4 instead of 1, or 1/2 instead of 3/4.

The person might be seeing the better flow from the bigger pipe as 'more pressure'.

Edit: In fact, the person says they don't want the 1/2 'pressure' of a throttled back valve, they want 'full pressure'. Of course, the pressure is the same even if the valve is 1/4, 1/2, or full open. It is the flow (amount) that changes, not the pressure. A common mix-up of terms.

--->Paul