Help with pump/well pleeez!

[Minelson]

This will probably sound really dense but I know NOTHING about pumps and wells so I may make up some of my own words...please bear with me.
We have a well. It supplies water to some outbuildings and a toilet and 1 faucet in the house. There is no water coming from any of them. I got the cover off the underground pump. There is a HUGE salamander down there..at least a foot long I can't see anything out of place or looking wrong but I don't know what I'm looking for. There is a lot of mud down there. I checked the fuse and it's ok. All the lights are working. I don't hear any water. Any ideas what could be wrong? This really stinks!!!!UGH!!! My critters need water and I'm going to have to haul it from the house until this problem is resolved

[Bearfootfarm]

Is there a pressure tank?

Is there a pressure gauge in the water line?

[HeelSpur]

Salamander stoppage?

[Minelson]

Is the pressure tank the big blue plastic thing? I will have to look for a gauge. So are you thinking there is no pressure?

[Minelson]

Originally Posted by HeelSpur

Salamander stoppage?

Ha!~ I think they are pretty harmless..but this one is a bit intimidating

[Bearfootfarm]

Is the pressure tank the big blue plastic thing? I will have to look for a gauge. So are you thinking there is no pressure?

It's usually metal, but that should be the tank

We already know there is no pressure, since the water doesn't run, LOL

The gauge will have a tube coming out of it that runs to the switch that cycles the pump on and off.

It may be the contacts on the switch are corroded and it's not letting the pump come on at the set pressure

[rambler]

There are several types of wells. We'll need to know that you have.

Shallow wells tend to be 2-3 feet across, hole is up to 50 feet deep typically less, hole is full of water and a simple pump moves water out of the hole.

Drilled wells are a 4 to 6 inch pipe going down, with a smaller water pipe (3/4 or 1 inch size) in the middle. Shallower ones - up to 75 feet - can have the pump up on the surface, perhaps they have 2 pipes going down to help get water out from their deepest reaches.

Deeper ones have a pump at the bottom of the small pipe, where it pushes water up from the bottom - submersable pump. They can be 500 feet or more deep. They will also have 2 or 3 wires going down the hole with the smaller pipe.

The expansion tank is good if it's fairly close to the pump, but can be anywhere along the waterline. They often have a pressure gauge on them, and very often this gauge is old and stuck and not working.....

The expansion tank may be about 1/;2 full of water & 1/2 full of air, and allows the pump to build up extra water storage in the tank; the air will contract & expand some to allow even water output. This type of tank needs some air added to it every few months, as the air will slowly 'disolve' into the water. When the tank runs low on air, the pump needs to go on/off very very often, wearing out the pump.

Some pressure tanks - newer typically - have a rubber bladder inside them, so the water & the air don't contact each other. With age, the rubber bladder will rupture, and then you end up with a tank that loses it's air and doesn't work right - like the above type of tank.

Also there will be a pressure switch typically near the pressure tank, with wires running to the pump - typically a grey plastic hood over it. This pressure switch tells the pump when to come on, and when to shut off, to keep the right amount of pressure (and thus water) in the tank & pipes. These pressure switches tend to go bad every decade or 2, much like the pressure gauges mentioned before. It's just a couple of springs and a couple of contact switches, as pressure builds or drops it opens or closes a switch. They come in different pressure ratings, with a nut on them to make minor adjustments. Often the source of trouble here, around a $20 item.

The more we know about what you have there, the better we can help you. It's too hard to guess all the possibilities from all these different options.

Which of the above items can you identify? What type of pump do you have?

Has your well gone dry (very dry by you, or I'd think not a problem this year!).

Did the pump wear out.

Did a pipe get a hole.

Did the pressure switch wear out - or is the tiny pipe leading to it plugges with crud - a common issue too.

Did electricity stop to the pump - you can test it at the pressure switch to see if it's going towards the pump. A surface pump you can test at the pump, a deepwell pump well who knows, eliminate the other possibilities first....

There are many different designs and setups, so the more you can tell us the better chance we have. Did your pump come on & off very quickly before? Did air bubbles come out of the faucets for a time? Was the water dirty for a time? Was there more or less water pressure for a while than normal?

Any clues will help.

Good luck. As always, we are mixing water & electricity here - be careful and know what you are doing.

If you need this working sooner rather than later, call in a well guy, _be there_, and ask questions, learn from him what you have for a system, where it's trouble spots are. As long as you are paying the bill, you best be there & learn from him for the future.

--->Paul

[tinknal]

Pictures might help.

[Minelson]

Ok..hubby just got home. He read the responses here and we are going to investigate to see what kind we have and I will take pictures. First we have to fix the flat tire on my truck and get that to the shop for new tires tomorrow so it might take a while for me to get back on here. Hopefully this will not cost as much as the new tires $20 bucks would be perfect. Thank you so much!

[copperkid3]

The response was very, very good and it has since crossed my mind, that if someone who is
a bit computer savy, could put together a selection of photos corresponding to the various
'types' that you listed, that this response should be posted as a sticky by the mods for future reference.
How about it folks? Think this is a worthy endeavor? These pump and well questions come
along on a semi-daily basis throughout the year and it would certainly help a lot of people in
solving their individual problem(s).
************************************************** *

Originally Posted by rambler

There are several types of wells. We'll need to know that you have.

Shallow wells tend to be 2-3 feet across, hole is up to 50 feet deep typically less, hole is full of water and a simple pump moves water out of the hole.

Drilled wells are a 4 to 6 inch pipe going down, with a smaller water pipe (3/4 or 1 inch size) in the middle. Shallower ones - up to 75 feet - can have the pump up on the surface, perhaps they have 2 pipes going down to help get water out from their deepest reaches.

Deeper ones have a pump at the bottom of the small pipe, where it pushes water up from the bottom - submersable pump. They can be 500 feet or more deep. They will also have 2 or 3 wires going down the hole with the smaller pipe.

The expansion tank is good if it's fairly close to the pump, but can be anywhere along the waterline. They often have a pressure gauge on them, and very often this gauge is old and stuck and not working.....

The expansion tank may be about 1/;2 full of water & 1/2 full of air, and allows the pump to build up extra water storage in the tank; the air will contract & expand some to allow even water output. This type of tank needs some air added to it every few months, as the air will slowly 'disolve' into the water. When the tank runs low on air, the pump needs to go on/off very very often, wearing out the pump.

Some pressure tanks - newer typically - have a rubber bladder inside them, so the water & the air don't contact each other. With age, the rubber bladder will rupture, and then you end up with a tank that loses it's air and doesn't work right - like the above type of tank.

Also there will be a pressure switch typically near the pressure tank, with wires running to the pump - typically a grey plastic hood over it. This pressure switch tells the pump when to come on, and when to shut off, to keep the right amount of pressure (and thus water) in the tank & pipes. These pressure switches tend to go bad every decade or 2, much like the pressure gauges mentioned before. It's just a couple of springs and a couple of contact switches, as pressure builds or drops it opens or closes a switch. They come in different pressure ratings, with a nut on them to make minor adjustments. Often the source of trouble here, around a $20 item.

The more we know about what you have there, the better we can help you. It's too hard to guess all the possibilities from all these different options.

Which of the above items can you identify? What type of pump do you have?

Has your well gone dry (very dry by you, or I'd think not a problem this year!).

Did the pump wear out.

Did a pipe get a hole.

Did the pressure switch wear out - or is the tiny pipe leading to it plugges with crud - a common issue too.

Did electricity stop to the pump - you can test it at the pressure switch to see if it's going towards the pump. A surface pump you can test at the pump, a deepwell pump well who knows, eliminate the other possibilities first....

There are many different designs and setups, so the more you can tell us the better chance we have. Did your pump come on & off very quickly before? Did air bubbles come out of the faucets for a time? Was the water dirty for a time? Was there more or less water pressure for a while than normal?

Any clues will help.

Good luck. As always, we are mixing water & electricity here - be careful and know what you are doing.

If you need this working sooner rather than later, call in a well guy, _be there_, and ask questions, learn from him what you have for a system, where it's trouble spots are. As long as you are paying the bill, you best be there & learn from him for the future.

--->Paul

[Minelson]

Ok..hubby is working on tire so I grabbed the camera

Here is the pump










Here is the well which is about 20-50 feet away

[tinknal]

Here is the first thing I would do. Disconnect the electricity from the well. In the second picture is a little gray plastic box. This is the pressure switch. Take the nut off and look at the contacts. Since there is no pressure the contacts should be closed. Make sure they are making contact. if they are corroded you may have bad contact. You might be able to sand or file the contacts and get a good enough connection to get water for a little while longer. If this is the problem (and you can get the pump to run) you will still want to replace the switch sooner rather than later.

[Bearfootfarm]

Before you try to get it running, and while there is no pressure in the system, look on top of the blue tank for a valve where you can check the air pressure.

It should be 2 lbs LESS than the "turn on" setting on the pressure switch

[Minelson]

It's working!! But who knows for how long. We were poking around with a long stick to find the salamander and see how deep the muck was. Must have hit the pressure switch just enough to make connection. So I watered everyone and filled the duck pool quick. When I turned the hydrant off we noticed a leak...but maybe it's supposed to do that?? Here are the pics of the leak

[tinknal]

Your leak is probably causing the switch to cycle off and on constantly. That will wear a switch out quickly.

[Minelson]

Originally Posted by tinknal

Your leak is probably causing the switch to cycle off and on constantly. That will wear a switch out quickly.

So do you think that is a leak...or maybe pressure release. Emptying out the pipes so they don't freeze maybe???

[Minelson]

Originally Posted by copperkid3

The response was very, very good and it has since crossed my mind, that if someone who is
a bit computer savy, could put together a selection of photos corresponding to the various
'types' that you listed, that this response should be posted as a sticky by the mods for future reference.
How about it folks? Think this is a worthy endeavor? These pump and well questions come
along on a semi-daily basis throughout the year and it would certainly help a lot of people in
solving their individual problem(s).
************************************************** *

I think that is a great idea!

[tinknal]

Originally Posted by Minelson

So do you think that is a leak...or maybe pressure release. Emptying out the pipes so they don't freeze maybe???

It's not supposed to be there. Almost looks like there was a valve there at one time. May have been a shut-off.

[Minelson]

Originally Posted by tinknal

It's not supposed to be there. Almost looks like there was a valve there at one time. May have been a shut-off.

Where is it supposed to be?

[mink]

that might be a frost free hydrant, if it has a handle on top that you lift up and push down to shut off. it it is that is the drain so it dont freeze. id guess you need a new pressure switch..mink