well tank question

[kpster]

hello,

please tell me what you guys think-

our well tank runs for a few seconds then turns off, then comes back on a few seconds later. this rapid cycling goes on during the entire time as someone runs the shower/bath, flushes a toilet ect... we have surges of water pressure going on as well.

we had the system inspected a year ago (before we bought the home) and the tank had the same problem plus the gauge was broken. it was repaired (so we were told) and the gauge replaced. so it seems the pressure problem has returned... any thoughts?

thanks!
kpster

[jnaas2]

There is tank hooked up to your water line where it enters the house with the pressure gauge that you mentioned on it. This tank is basically a big expansion tank full of air that keeps the pump from cycling on and off rapidly. Inside the newer tanks is a rubber bladder that keeps the air in the tank, if it was fixed a year ago and is acting up again it sounds like the bladder is bad. To fill the tank with air turn off the water pump and there will be a valve on the side that looks like a tire valve for airing up your tire, the tank is probably full of water so open a sink valve and fill with water 2 minutes or until you get air out of your faucet. Turn the faucet off and pressurize the tank to 5 psi under the cut-in pressure of your water pump (if the water pump normally starts at 40 psi fill tank to 35 psi )then turn water pump back on. The tank needs to be replaced or keep a eye on it, if you let it continue to short cycle it will cause your water pump to fail

[Hube]

Good advice given, but it is BEST to have air pressure around 2 psi below the cut-in point, not 5 .
Note; if any water bubbles come out of the air valve when valve pin is depressed, could mean a leaky bladder.

[kpster]

thanks for the tip on using the facet to drain. our first attempt was a bit messier!

We definitely have a leaky bladder as the tank was full of water. We've added air to about 2psi (or 38psi in our case) below the kick-in pressure. Things are working fine for now but we've left the compressor down there until we get the tank replaced. oh joy.

Nothing but plumbing problems in this house Live and learn tho.

Do we call a plumber or a "well" company to replace the tank?
Thanks again for the advice
kpster

[kpster]

i have another question....

We've "recharged" the tank but it's still kicking on what we think is too often. On average, how often should a tank set at 40psi kick on (when shower is running) Is this an "answerable" question?
Thanks!

[Hube]

i have another question....

We've "recharged" the tank but it's still kicking on what we think is too often. On average, how often should a tank set at 40psi kick on (when shower is running) Is this an "answerable" question?
Thanks!

************************************************** ******
Answer:
it would all depend on how much this tank holds in actual "drawdown' water.
Some tanks that are listed as having a 32 gallon capacity have a 'drawdown' of only approx 8 gallons.If you were taking a shower and consuming 4 gallons a minute, then the pump would come on every 2 minutes at that rate.
There are some 40 gallon tanks on the market that will give a draw of approx 12 gallons.
In most cases the larger the tank the less(cycling) wear and tear on the pump.

[kpster]

thanks for the info. it's still a bit confusing tho- math isn't my strong suit!

looks like we're getting a new tank- the bladder is shot on the current one. from what i can tell, the tank is a 20gal which seems very under-sized for the 2 1/2 bath house we have. (16 fixtures which includes 2 outside spigots. we also have a sprinkler system)

we are considering the 30gal tank. i've tried to figure out the calculations in determining the size tank one would need but as i said, math and i aren't a good match! does the 30gal sound like a better sized tank?

[Hube]

A larger tank's water capacity will give more water before the pump will kick in again,that is if everything is sized right and the Well is capable of giving up a larger volume of water at one time.

There is a lot of MATH involved in selecting the proper size of tank, pump,etc, for a Well water system:
Pump hp and gpm capability
depth of Well
Gpm of Well
Size of tank.
distance from Well to tank
etc,etc.

In all probability though, you may ok with a larger tank that will give more time lapse between cycles.So it would be up to you to make this decision,either that or get a pro to do some "on site" calculations before going to the expense of another larger tank

[kpster]

thanks again for the info.

according to the "well" guy, our well would be able to handle the larger tank size and increased volume demand.

so, we did go up one size to the larger tank. from all the literature out there on the topic, it seemed to make sense for us. plus the cost difference was not that much and the labor was the same.

we're happy with the tank and glad to be done with this particular problem. Geez, homeownership is fun