Advice on water pulse Repair?

devildog1 · Dec 2, 2012

Good morning all. I want to repair an issue that has bugged me for quite a while with my water pulse. I get to hate when I'm in shower and pump cycles the pressure drops for a few seconds and then a steady stream comes back until pressure switch comes back on and goes through that cycle until I'm done showering.Now I'm not a master plumber but have changed quite a few water pumps for myself and friends or neighbors, both submersible and jet pumps so I'm a bit familiar with the operation of the system. Question now" If I install a second water tank before or after my original installed tank will the larger capacity of water in tanks help resolve this water pulse? I can't replace existing water tank for lager one because of tight quarters where it's located,( under stairway in crawl space). I think existing tank is only about 15 gallons. Thanks for your help TBN'ers.
DevilDog

muddstopper · Dec 2, 2012

Most of the water tanks contain a air bladder that is inflated with pressureized air. These Bladders will sooner or later leak out the air pressure and is usually what causes the water pressure to surge. If you look at you tank you should see a valve stem, like on a car tire. You can use a regular tire guage to check to see if the tank does have pressure or proper pressure. If no or low pressure, you can blow it up using a air compressor or airtank to its proper rateing. If this cures your pulsating water problem, keep a check on it and if it starts pulsating again, then you will have to replace the tank with a new one. I have seen new tanks last for only a year or two and some last for 20 or more years.

BeezFun · Dec 2, 2012

devildog1 said:
Question now" If I install a second water tank before or after my original installed tank will the larger capacity of water in tanks help resolve this water pulse? I can't replace existing water tank for lager one because of tight quarters where it's located,( under stairway in crawl space). I think existing tank is only about 15 gallons. Thanks for your help TBN'ers.
DevilDog

I agree with mudstoppers diagnosis, your tank is probably waterlogged, but if the tank is that small and you have to replace it, I'd move to a new location and buy a larger tank. Even if it holds a charge after you pump it up I'd still add a second tank for more capacity. The less your pump cycles the longer it will last.

Clint S · Dec 2, 2012

Remember to check PSI with the water turned off and the pressure relieved from the system. Should be 2 psi less than the cut in pressure your pump is set at

devildog1 · Dec 2, 2012

Clint S said:
Remember to check PSI with the water turned off and the pressure relieved from the system. Should be 2 psi less than the cut in pressure your pump is set at[/QUOTE
Thanks for responding but the pressure was done and was OK as pressure switch is 20-40 and pressure in tank is about 16 pounds. Maybe I should have made my question a bit clearer? This water pulse has always been there from the very beginning but I never did anything to try and correct it, but now I want to. Pump pressure, switch pressure, and tank pressure is all OK. Question do any of the master plumbers out there think if I install a a 25 gal water tank in line before my existing 15 gallon tank this will either fix or make the issue a bit un- noticeable? My thoughts are if I have a larger supply of water in the two tanks pressure switch won't cycle enough for me to be bothered by the pulse, am I thinking correctly?
DevilDog

BeezFun · Dec 2, 2012

My thoughts are if I have a larger supply of water in the two tanks pressure switch won't cycle enough for me to be bothered by the pulse, am I thinking correctly?

No, you're not thinking about it correctly. No matter what sized tank you have you should never "feel" the pump cycling on and off. The only reason you're feeling it is because there's no air in the tank to provide continuous pressure while the pump cycles on and off. So you effectively don't have a pressure tank, you're running directly off the pump, which is why you feel it cycling. You can prove this to yourself by properly charging the tank you have, which requires isolating the tank, draining pressure and water, then recharging to the proper pressure based on your pump setting. Since you say it's always been this way, you either bought the house with a water logged tank, or the tank wasn't installed correctly.

devildog1 · Dec 2, 2012

BeezFun said:
No, you're not thinking about it correctly. No matter what sized tank you have you should never "feel" the pump cycling on and off. The only reason you're feeling it is because there's no air in the tank to provide continuous pressure while the pump cycles on and off. So you effectively don't have a pressure tank, you're running directly off the pump, which is why you feel it cycling. You can prove this to yourself by properly charging the tank you have, which requires isolating the tank, draining pressure and water, then recharging to the proper pressure based on your pump setting. Since you say it's always been this way, you either bought the house with a water logged tank, or the tank wasn't installed correctly.

Well thank you for the straight answer, thats what I was looking for. So now I'll replace the water tank with a new one, hopefully I can fit a little larger capacity one in its place. Just a point, home was built new, but it seems like this has been a long time issue. Maybe it's like hearing or vision , goes so slowly you don't notice it until you notice it. Does that make sense?
DevilDog

Carl_NH · Dec 2, 2012

Personally I think your pressure is a bit low - I would do 30/50 with the tank set at 28 PSI air charge presuming its a bladder tank.

Depends a little bit on the pump too - if its a submersible constant cycling is not good for the motor and same applies to a jet pump to (above ground), also, if you have a high water level your pump is not working hard and fillign up the tank quickly.

So I would first increase the tank pressure and cut in/out pressure then if you still have a noticeable on/of then look at installing a larger tank is series with the existing one. They make a short and stout tank that holds a lot too so you have options too.

Clint S · Dec 2, 2012

So IF the tank was charged properly you really should not notice. Before changing it out I would drain and recheck pressure. Tanks can lose a few PSI a year. If you check and it is low it would confirm it is bad. The other question is how long between pump cycles when the water is running.