Low water pressure questions ( well system )

[meburdick]

I have low water pressure in my house to the point that if I flush a toilet I get practically no water anywhere else .

Stats : 2 story house. 2 full baths. clothes washer, dish washer, water heater, 3 outdoor spigots. Shallow well ( maybe 125 ft ) . Jet pump . Water tank rated at max. 75 psi ( I think non-bladder type ). Iron filter installed . 30/50 switch . Very old air volume control. Pressure gauge on tank ( shows normal 30/50 psi ). No nipple to pump air into tank.

What I 've done : I drained tank several times in the hope that tank was water logged ( No help ) . I changed from a 20/40 switch to the 30/50 switch ( slight, but unacceptable pressure gain ).

Only thing I can think of to change is the 30/50 switch to a 40/60 switch and replace old air volume control. Any reason I shouldn 't do this ?

Sure could use ya 'll 's advice and suggestions .

As far as I know, the term "water-logged" only refers to conditions found in bladder tanks. It means that the bladder has allowed water to rise to the upper portion of the tank that is normally "air only". When that happens, there is water on top of the bladder pushing it downward in addition to the air pressure. What happens is that the pump will "short cycle" because it doesn't actually fill the tank correctly and you don't get as much water in there as possible. The pressure in the lines will stay fairly constant except right before it cycles - the pressure drops quickly and then comes back when the pump is on.

You mentioned that you get good pressure when the pump is on and it has had chance to "catch up". I believe that your issue is likely in the fittings from the tank into the house lines being obstructed or restricted in some manner - most likely, right at the "T" where it all comes together. Something in there is acting as a restrictor to the water entering the line from the tank, and until / unless the full pressure of the pump can route to the house lines, there just isn't enough "push" there to up the house pressure (and the pump's flow primarly diverts to the tank).

Another thing that you have to look at is the size of the plumbing. You should likely have a 1" copper line coming from the tank to form the start of the household lines. From there, the lines should shrink to 3/4" for much of the run and then down to 1/2" for the taps. If you don't have a way to restrict the flow slightly at the exit points, turning any one tap on will often drop the household pressure pretty significantly.

 

[Domush]

This is not correct. That is the flow rate of the pump. The flow rate of the well is how much water the well is capable of providing per minute over a period of time. What's typically looked for is the recovery rate of the well.

Give me a break, if his well had such awful recovery that flushing a toilet overwhelmed it, his pump would have been dead within weeks. You're complicating a basic testing procedure with unnecessary nit-picking and I'm not going to get into a debate with you over terminology just so you can feel you are contributing, as none of your post brings the OP closer to fixing his pressure issue.

 

[sailorman]

I 'm gonna get some pipe measurements ( dia ) for ya 'll and some pictures of my set up that may give ya 'll some more clues as to what might be wrong . Not sure how long that will take me to get done and posted . Pictures are sometimes better that words .

 

[meburdick]

Give me a break, if his well had such awful recovery that flushing a toilet overwhelmed it, his pump would have been dead within weeks. You're complicating a basic testing procedure with unnecessary nit-picking and I'm not going to get into a debate with you over terminology just so you can feel you are contributing, as none of your post brings the OP closer to fixing his pressure issue.

Flushing a toilet requires that the water be refilled from his tank. Until and unless the tank drops below its minimum threshhold, the pump doesn't even become part of the equation.

My response to *your* post was to clarify terminology and help the OP (and others) better understand how the components of their well work together and where there could be pieces to examine. Heck, I even included some ideas about how to test pieces of the well.

In a separate response, I shared some thoughts on where *I* would be looking for issues if it were my well. I have learned a LOT throughout my life, and the things that proved most useful and valuable were often taught to me by people that "nit picked" over details. I prefer done right over done twice.

 

[Domush]

Flushing a toilet requires that the water be refilled from his tank. Until and unless the tank drops below its minimum threshhold, the pump doesn't even become part of the equation.

Which makes your desire to add a red herring like recovery rate testing even more irrational and pointless.

I have learned a LOT throughout my life, and the things that proved most useful and valuable were often taught to me by people that "nit picked" over details. I prefer done right over done twice.

Then you should have been taught by said nit-pickers the well pump rate is matched to the recovery rate when it was installed, so your little side trip is moot and simply adds unnecessary complexity. Funny you worry about details in terminology, yet ignore the detail of derailing the discussion. You wouldn't happen to work in politics, would you? :duh:

 

[meburdick]

Which makes your desire add a red herring like recovery rate testing even more irrational and pointless.



Then you should have been taught by said nit-pickers the well pump rate is matched to the recovery rate when it was installed, so your little side trip is moot and simply adds unnecessary complexity. Funny you worry about details in terminology, yet ignore the detail of derailing the discussion. You wouldn't happen to work in politics, would you? :duh:

Pump rates are NOT always matched to recovery rates. Recovery rates change over the course of a year and from year-to-year.

The OP has a problem with pressure. Pressure is directly related to volume. How is understanding the flow rate capability of the well derailing the conversation? If your MPG in your car was bad and you tried increasing pressure in the fuel rails to no avail, would it not be desirable to understand that your fuel pump couldn't supply the fuel you needed at any pressure?

Proving inaccurate commentary "just to feel like you contributed" is not helping the OP. I can't help it that you don't like the fact that you were called out for being inaccurate / incorrect in your statements.

 

[sailorman]

tryin ' a test pic.

 

[EarPlug]

If a standard pressure switch is a 40/60 this would mean that the system pressure should be about 60 psi on the high side and 40 psi on the low side. Let's say we were to open a valve just long enough for the pressure to drop below 40 psi the pump would come on. It should recover to the 60 psi pressure in a minute or two.

When flushing a toilet all you need to re-fill is 1.6 gallons. How long does it take to refill the toilet? Get a pressure gage and attached to to one of the hose bibs and track the pressure changes.

 

[sailorman]

Here comes the rest . Plastic pipe is 1" . short copper with the valve is 3/4" . Note slow leak at cut off valve around shaft knob . Been there for years .

 

[meburdick]

I think EarPlug has a good suggestion in getting a pressure gauge. If you can locate a couple of different points in the line where you could attach it, you might be able to see a pressure difference occurring between two points and being at least part of the issue.

For example - the leak in that shut-off valve could indicate that there's something built up inside of there keeping it from seating properly and not leaking. And, if the pressure inside the house doesn't match the outside, it might be a good place to look.