plumbing/well question

[Bob S.]

Howdy,
I need some advice/ opinions on how to proceed with repairs on my well pump. I have a shallow well (25ft)and it's sandy. My pump will not shut off as it's only building about 38psi pressure.
The pressure switch is only adjustable for cut-in pressure,"cut-off pressure determined by inherent differential of switch". I tapped on the tank with a hammer to see if it was water-logged, the top part of the tank sounds hollow and the lower half sounds solid, like maybe full of sand.
I think that I have a couple of problems, but where should I start. I already tried adjusting the pressure switch, both directions but no change.
Thanks
Bob S.

 

[Anonymous-0]

don't belive it's your press switch, belive it to be either a plug jet or a bad pump.

 

[Anonymous-0]

If you have sand in the water you will also have sand in the foot valve and it will not seat. Check the pump prime to make sure the foot valve is working and holds water in the pump. If the pump doesn't hold prime it won't hold pressure right either

 

[Ron Grother]

it's the jet valve in the pump. it's pluged. take the nut out on the face of the pump just above the intake line. run a wire hanger in it two or three time to clear it. might have to do it a cupple times. if it don't work take it apart and clean it.

 

[Sean Feeney]

Replace with a cut in cut out switch $10
Instructions on how to set/up adjust included
blow out line to the switch while its apart go from there

Square D #FSG2J20 20 40 PSI Pressure Switch

 

[David G]

Hire someone in the area with well and pump experience. It is next to impossible to troubleshoot this over the net.

 

[Dusty MI]

I'm with Ron on this. I've had to do this in the past. It was usually a piece of scale in the impeller. Not a very hard job to do.

Dusty

 

[Pete T]

My experince with sand in the water means you have a hole rusted through the casing,which means a quick fix will only prolong having to pull the casing or drill a new well.

 

[Bob S.]

OK, thanks, I'll try a few things tonight and let you know if I have any success.
Bob S.

 

[paul]

Long term, you need to screen off the sand from your pump. That can be difficult to the point of needing a new well, in part depending on local regulations, in part depending where the sand is getting in.

Anything short term, you will be eating up pumps left & right I'd guess. But I understand, wanting to get it going for a while too with what you got.

--->Paul

 

[Anonymous-0]

Yeah thats what you need to do, get rid of the sand, Screen it off, spend thousands of dollars for a new well, in part depending on local regulations, in part depending where the sand is getting in.--- none of this well help if he's sitting on a 1000' of sand. new well could have more sand in it than the old one has now.

 

[Farmer(Ga)]

Bob, I beleve its in the foot valve, Its probley got a small peice of trash in the jet,Take the foot valve apart and take the brass nut(jet) out and clean. Just my opinion from the experence i,ve had with mine. James

 

[Russ from MN]

If you are describing the problem right, it's not the switch! The impeller is either worn out or the jet is plugged or worn out. take the pump apart and look for the problem, and clean the sand out of everything. The inside diameter of the jet is critical to the operation of the pump, as is the diameter of the impeller. I watched an old pump man that used a set of twist drills as a bore gauge, he really knows pumps!If it won't build up over 38 psi a new switch isn't going to make it build more pressure!

 

[paul]

'Here' we aren't allowed shallow wells any more.

If the sand screen in my 260 foot well goes bad, I need to dig a new one, they don't let you reuse the hole unless it's a really wide hole and then you come in with a 50% smaller casing.

I don't make the rules.

But, pumps don't like sand and don't last long, and it sounds like he has sand, so needs to do something to keep the sand out of his pump. Likely he can come up with something cheaper than digging a new well. But.... Never know what the rules are where he lives.

There are all kinds of different deals so anything is possible, but typically the dependable water is near the bottom of a deep sand vein, so it's not likely he has a 25 foot good producing well in 1000 foot sand hole.

Hope he finds something easy (meaning cheap) to correct.

--->Paul

 

[Bob S.]

Howdy,
I'm going to add a little more info, might help.
I have lived here 20 years and replaced the pump 1 time, the sand has always been present. I didn't know how old the pump was when I bought the place so when it got noisey I replaced it (still worked good, just noisey), When I dig for a fence post etc, I hit sand at just under 3ft.
When I removed the foot valve, water was running out of the pipe and I had to reverse the valve to stop it (lot of springs in the area. Question?, how much air pressure should be put in the tank to charge it. Also I'm not clear about the plug to clean the valve or jet, there are 2 plugs in the inlet housing. The inlet housing has a step in it, I think they called it a convertable pump when I bought it. If any of this info helps let me know. Can't afford a plumber, never used one before and I'm too old to start now.
Thanks
Bob S.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Sorry, I forgot bout the gov, states helping people out, we don't have the RULES in Pa. yet, if we have a well makeing a little sand we try to work with it, cause thats usely all that there in that area, and if we drill a new one or try to clean that one out or take it deeper we could lose the whole well, at times that all we can try though. sand is one of the hardest things to deal with in water wells.

 

[yallardeere]

I have a 2 piece well (500 ft) with screen that you can replace...

 

[Russ from MN]

If you are talking about a check valve next to the pump, that is called a check valve, a foot valve has a screen on it and is located down in the well. You need to take the pump apart and look at the impeller, it is probably worn out from years of pumping sand. Then you will also see the jet and its venturi, these parts could all be worn out. If you are always getting sand and this is a sand point well you could drive another point 20 feet away from the first one and T them together, should reduce the amount of sand that you get up into your system. good luck!

 

[paul]

When my screen plugged a few years ago the well folks came & acided out the magnese & iron.

When I asked what other options I had if that didn't work, he said dig a new one. Went into a long discussion about what you can't do. I don't know if there was an option to do a replaceable screen bach when it was put in, but it's not an option with things as they are now here - the guy servicing the well a couple years ago was the same guy that dug it in 1971, he knows wells, could tell me how deep it was and where the other 2 older closed wells on the place were without looking it up.

--->Paul