Air in well water line.

[SPYDERLK]

If you remove the check valve at the tank and turn off the supply to the house after the tank and the pressure drops then you have a leak in the supply line. This is sort of the same thing that Army grunt suggested with air.

The pumps have a built in check valve in the top so you should not need another one above the pump. Do you have one 500' continous run of poly pipe from the pump to the tank or is there a splice? If there is a splice that would be my guess..

500' is a long run and how much lift or elevation rise do you have from the creek to the tank?

If I remember correctly the double check valve system can let polluted ground water in while the pressure is down. You want the line from the pump to the house always pressurized.

Sounds good. Get the tank check out. If you have backflow its the bottom check or the water line.
larry

 

[EE_Bota]

Possibly the tank is bad but it doesn't seem waterlogged.

With your combination of aerated water, and low inlet head, you could be sucking air in directly, or sucking air out of the water.

It could be that a throttling valve at the house to limit pumping rate at the pump could limit air problems resulting from the pump inlet. A large tank could make up for the relatively low pumping rate.

Silly ideas come to mind too, like inverting you bladder tank such that it is mounted upside down. That way, you can prevent air from building up in the tank, making sure air is dealt with as soon as it is delivered.

Then downstream of that, you could install an automatic air bleed valve to take out the remaining air.

I agree also, only one check valve if at all possible. Pressure often is needed to reinforce check valve closure. If the elevation difference is much, the upper check (the bad one to have installed) can hold the water, but the lower one, lacking reinforcement pressure, could leak, and the water column will fracture due to its own weight, and form a vacuum as it does, sucking air our of the water, creating a slug of air in your line. When the pump restarts, that slug will remain free air.

 

[scesnick]

So, it seems that a few suggest only one check valve. This coul be easily done since I have easy access to both check vallves. Which check valve would be the best to eliminate? I would guess the one closest to the tank?

 

[Patriotic Stabilist]

What I'm curious about is you actually have clean enough water to drink from a creek! That is awesome.

 

[valley]

Sounds like you have a pvc pipe with your pump inside. Is it possible when your pump kicks on you have draw down or is the pump too deep in the water for that?

 

[scesnick]

What I'm curious about is you actually have clean enough water to drink from a creek! That is awesome.

I live way back in the sticks on top of a mountain. The creek originates on my property.
It is clear and cold but I still have a UV light on it just in case. Although my Grandfather drank this water straight out of the creek for 50 yrs.

Sounds like you have a pvc pipe with your pump inside. Is it possible when your pump kicks on you have draw down or is the pump too deep in the water for that?

The pump is lying on it's side ( which could be an issue i am still looking into) It has atleast one foot of water overtop of it at all times. Usually more. I just wonder if it would be possible for the pump to evacuate the water out of that pipe too quickly cousing some type of vortex or something?

I did watch the actual pump when it turned on and I couldn't even tell it was on other than a very slight buzz sound.

 

[Carl_NH]

As mentioned before remove the check valve at the tank and turn off the supply to the house, run the pump until it shuts off and then watch the gauge. If it slowly goes down you have a leak somewhere.

If it drops you either have a leak in the supply line or a bad check valve at the pump. At the same time you do this you could lift the pump from the creek ( turn it off then pull it out and wipe it down) if water is coming out of the pump then that is the culprit. If no leakage from the pump end then its somewhere in the supply line.

Also the pump laying on its side and any debris that it might pull in could be lodged in the check valve - so you might want to add some sort of a filter like a bag or fine mesh screen over the PVC pipe.

 

[SPYDERLK]

As mentioned before remove the check valve at the tank and turn off the supply to the house, run the pump until it shuts off and then watch the gauge. If it slowly goes down you have a leak somewhere.

If it drops you either have a leak in the supply line or a bad check valve at the pump. At the same time you do this you could lift the pump from the creek ( turn it off then pull it out and wipe it down) if water is coming out of the pump then that is the culprit. If no leakage from the pump end then its somewhere in the supply line.

Also the pump laying on its side and any debris that it might pull in could be lodged in the check valve - so you might want to add some sort of a filter like a bag or fine mesh screen over the PVC pipe.

Yes. Another thing the mention of pump within pvc pipe just reminded me of. -- In connection with EEbota: air being pulled out of the water ... or even entrained. That pipe may restrict the intake - or hide an avenue that is ingesting air. If this is an issue you should see micro bubbles when you use water while the pump is running. OP, is your water ever milky when it 1st comes out? -then clears? That is air. I think its a leak in the lower check tho -- due to poor seating. The upper check, as mentioned, would contribute, as well as pump position/gravity biasing the valve poppet slightly.
larry

 

[Kays Supply]

Any time we ever put a pump in a creek/spring, we always dug a hole deep enough to submerse the pump so that it could stand upright. The check in the pump is a gravity check , on most anyway, no spring. So laying on it's side would be an issue for it if not the bearings. If the creek is moving, the PVC sleeve isn't a " must do" like in a pond. The moving water will cool the motor. I have even seen this setup done to where there is a remote "well" dug offset from the stream and the stream piped through it. That way it could be winterized. Just food for thought.

 

[scesnick]

This is why TBN is such a great site. All great advice.
I am in the middle of six straight 12 hr. shifts right now but as soon as I get a day off I'm going to troubleshoot this system using the advice I got here... Thanks fellas.