How to replace well pump?

[Richard]

I don't need to replace mine (at least, yet). I'm merely curious.

As I look at my well head, I contemplate the mechanics. My well is maybe 300+ feet deep, my pump itself is at say, 200' and the static water level is at say... 100'.

There is going to be a cable AND some kind of tubing that is attached to the pump.

To start lifting these things out of my 6" casing, you are going to need to twist and bend the wire and more interestingly.... the water pipe.

To make matters even more complicated, again, as I look at my own system, it seems the electricity goes into the well via a piece of conduit, pretty much at the top of the well.

The water itself, seems to come out beneath grade. Does it come through the well casing at 12" below grade...24" below grade?

For conversations, let's not worry about that TOO much and simply say it's 12" (any deeper only complicates my thinking process)

So, as I vision it, you have a pipe that would be about 200' long. It's connected at one end to the pump, goes up the well to this location where it's going to make a 90 degree bend to go through the casing (underground) and over to my house.

How on earth do you pull the water pipe up such that you can create a tight enough bend in it to pull it past itself (at the 12" deep mark)

??

Again, mine is fine, this is simply me being curious about things I am probably better off not being curious about.

 

[heehaw]

an "A" frame over the top of the well is a big help: with a pulley to run the rope thru: an i have used a 55gallon barrel jammed up against the well, for the pipe to go over as it comes out, so it won't be so apt to kink: i am assuming you are using black plastic pipe: as you, or someone, pulls the rope thru the pulley, someone else is backing up with the water pipe or possibly rolling it up as it comes out: which ever is easiest: i have hooked the rope to a vehicle an let someone pull it that way, as long as you stay in really close, quick contact.. i've also pulled them by just hand over hand: up to about 125 ft...in my younger days...go to lowes or home depot, they will have the below grade water line connections an you can see what your dealing with there...
heehaw.

 

[Richard]

Ahhh... well, there's my first problem.

I was presuming the water line was made of something like PVC and not a flexable pipe.

So you basically pull this long 'snake' out of the ground, do what ever you need to do at the pump and feed it back down the mouth of the pipe?

Would you replace the pipe?

Replace the rope?


Again... just asking for conversations sake, my pump is working fine BUT, I realize the day may come.

I also presume having a loader or backhoe might make the hoisting easier or would you suggest it's better to do by hand with a pully ? (more fingertip controll)

 

[Youare]

I have installed my well pump many years ago. I set my pump at 375 feet so it is near what you have.

There should be what is called a pitless adapter at the level the water pipe goes from the well to the house, around here it is at least 5 feet below ground level. There is a tool that looks like a large T-handle with a pipe fitting on one end that screws into the top of the pitless adapter.

The pipe going down to the pump is attached to the pitless adapter. The pitless adapter is a right angle fitting allowing the water to flow from the pump pipe then out through the side of the well casing to the house. When the T-handled tool is screwed into the top of the pitless adapter you can then give it a tug and remove one part of the adapter that has the water pipe connected to it.

Then you can begin to pull the pipe, wire, safety rope, and pump up out of the well. As you pull the pipe you will need some one to stretch out the pipe as it lay along the ground so it does not kink, wrapping it around the house works. Once you start this operation by hand you can not stop until the whole mess it out of the well. Pulling that slimmy pipe hand over hand for 300 feet will take a couple of people unless you have shoulders like the hulk.

The pump people have a three wheeld afair that sets on top of the well casing that is powered by an electric motor that drives the pipe and pump right up out of the well, all you need is someone to stretch out the pipe as it comes out of the well.

When I put my pump in I had a part of vice grips that have a pipe fitting welded to the jaws then cut in half. The inside diameter of the pipe fitting was a little smaller than the plastic well pipe. When we had to stop pulling or pushing the pipe we could clamp the vice grips on the pipe and rest it on the well casing.

You may be able to rent the machine that pulls the plastic well pipe. Check you wire going along the pipe over time the wire rubs on the pipe and itself and will chafe a bare spot through the insulation. Replace the nylon safety rope. You will need a splice kit for the underwater connection to the pump.

To have this done professionally should take about 3 hours, it will take you all day. The well should be shocked with at least a quart of bleach after everything is put back in.

Randy

 

[jayste]

while mine doesn't have a pitless adapter I do have PVC. It's 20' joints with collars that attach each joint. When I pull mine I use a 2X8 board thats long enough to span the casing say 10-12" long and I cut a slot in it that will just fit the OD of the tubing but not let the collar go by(some folks call this a slip block). My son and I will pull ours and its about 180'. As we are pulling it up we raise it high enough to get the collar up out of the casing, slide the board over the tubing and let it rest on top of the casing. At this time we unscrew the top joint out of the collar and lay it on the ground. Repeat for the remainder of joints all the while keeping a hold of the well rope that it tied to the pump. Our wires are just taped to the side of the tubing with black tape. Reverse procedure when installing back in well.

Jay

 

[moeh1]

2 or 3 folks pull 125' feet by hand here without any issue. Thats the average depth here. Down the road a mile it is more like what you have, and 200' worth is doable but quite heavy. If you have the black flex pipe and a round bale and a tractor handy, you can pull the pump slowly that way by wrapping it over a bale to keep from kinking. If you have rigid pipe, the other guys have described it, plus the wiring at the top, you'll need the submersible shrink crimp kit for a new pump. I've read that the average live of a submersible is like 8 years, hoping that author was wrong, or I'm on borrowed time....

 

[emmy71]

I've read that the average live of a submersible is like 8 years, hoping that author was wrong, or I'm on borrowed time....

I hope that's wrong because that is about how long ago I helped my dad replace his. And when I say helped that means I pulled the pump and he wired up the new one.

Terry

 

[dex3361]

My Red Jacket pump 1/2 HP with Black poly pipe has been in for 22 years and I have been on pump watch for 7 years if it dies I will install the same pump back in. I have only pulled it out 1 time and I used a 100 galvanized t handle to screw into the pitless adapter to begin the pull.

 

[tommu56]

here is how i pulle d my pump to lower it

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/b...tan-winch.html

thread 12

tom

ps what up with all the pump Questions today?

 

[RobertN]

We have a 450' well, pump at 425'. We have black poly pipe. Was here when the well company replaced the pump.

They had a car rim mounted on a frame so it could rotate. They pulled the pipe up about 8', letting it ride over that rotating rim so the poly pip did not kink. Then the put a rope around the top of the poly pipe and well"head". There was an existing rope in the wheel, they tied to it too. Then, they drove 425' pulling the whole shabang out.

We had two issues; one a broken wire, and two, a 10 year old pump in bad shape.

 

[Highbeam]

I recently pulled a 275' deep pump connected with black poly. The install was only a few years old and the reason was that the wires had chaffed the well casing and a short circuit developed. We had a whole group of guys to trade off lifting and also to lay the pipe out on the ground.

The pitless adapter only very slightly protrudes into the well casing once you lift the black poly pipe out of it. The wires will have a wire nut right at the well cap so you can disconnect the circuit at the poly pipe when you begin.

Be sure to zip tie or even tape the wires at regular intervals against the poly pipe to prevent the rubbing.

Some wells in my area use galvanized iron pipe and those buggers are heavy. We pull those 20 feet at a time with a boom truck and then unthread the section, repeat.

The pump will be heavy to pull up since that long poly pipe is full of water. There is a lot of water in a two hundred foot long pipe. The water will mostly drain out as you raise the pump so it will be much easier to drop the pump down. Plus gravity helps.

Don't drop the pump. Some well setups will allow you to drop the pump and not be able to retrieve it.

 

[dmccarty]

How "bendable" is the black pipe?

I want to build a well house and one of my concerns is being able to pull the pump. I know some people who have fixed well houses with very little space inside. They have maybe 8 feet to the ceiling and a standard size door in front of the well. One well is very old maybe 75-100 years old and the other is 20ish years old.

I sure do not want to build a well house, say 12x12, and then have to tear it apart to repair the pump.

I THINK we have the black pipe for the well. I know its the supply to the house from the well. One of the things I did not get to see what the well drilling on our well.

Later,
Dan

 

[tommu56]

The black 1" poly pipe comes in a roll about 3- 4 ft in diameter from the factory once you open it up you can bend it in a 5' diameter with out any problem.

As for pulling a solid pipe a friend of mine had that issue we put a 2' piece of 4" pvc pipe through roof with a boot flashed to roof and a pipe cap on when we were done.

tom

 

[beenthere]

Had to pull my pump last summer. It hung on the galvanized pipe, and put it back with 20+' sections of special plastic well pipe with threaded male/female fittings on ends. Pump sits about 275' in a 320' well.

Here is shot of rig for pulling, and one of putting the plastic back down. Shows the clamp for holding the plastic pipe. Getting ready to put the well head on. I don't have the pitless setup, but instead what they call a Morrison head.

 

[Highbeam]

Ha! I've seen "skylights" put into well houses for this reason too. The black poly is very flexible even when cold. You will easily be able to stand on the ground and pull the pump with the hose going right over your shoulder so if you can stand up in the well house comfortably then you can get the hose out.

The real height consideration is the tool that you use to remove the pipe from the pitless adapter. Some of these adapters are 5' below grade so you need a 6' long metal tool to pluck it out of the well. As you raise the tool you will need clearance to lift the tool straight up for the 6 or so feet above your casing. Our pitless adapters are only 2-3 feet below grade (freeze depth) so it's not that big of a deal.

Most folks build a pumphouse beside the well that houses the pump tanks and controls. You don't really need the well itself inside the building.

 

[BryanMA]

wrt flexibility of the black plastic - we had a wellhead inside an addition in our home (under a trap door in the floor). It was flexible enough that it could be pulled and sent out a window in the room and across the backyard.

Another question you asked was about replacing the pipe. When the pump turns on and off, it can torque the end of the pipe. If the pipe finally cracks, the pump will run a lot as it is just recirculating the water back into the well. Sometimes people don't notice this problem until they get their electric bill. Around here, when people replace the pump, they always replace the pipe as well, although the new flexible black plastic piping can last for a long time.

 

[Highbeam]

There's a device called a torque arrestor that you install near the pump that prevents the twist from transferring to the pipe. It's like a split rubber football thing that clamps onto the black pipe and fits snugly to the casing. Another benefit is that the pump and wires are centered in the casing. The movement of the whole system is what chaffs wires.

 

[moeh1]

Highbeam is right on target with the torque arrestor. In addition, they also have some white plastic spacers that go over the pipe about every 20 feet to keep the whole pipe centered in the well. These have a spot to snap the wires in to keep them from getting whipped around. I got mine at Graingers years ago.

 

[turnkey4099]

Highbeam is right on target with the torque arrestor. In addition, they also have some white plastic spacers that go over the pipe about every 20 feet to keep the whole pipe centered in the well. These have a spot to snap the wires in to keep them from getting whipped around. I got mine at Graingers years ago.

re: torque arresters. I know about them but have always wondered how you pull the well with them in there. If they are tight enough to keep the pump from twisting it would also be too tight to pull up. Are they removable somehow?

Harry K

 

[turnkey4099]

How "bendable" is the black pipe?

I want to build a well house and one of my concerns is being able to pull the pump. I know some people who have fixed well houses with very little space inside. They have maybe 8 feet to the ceiling and a standard size door in front of the well. One well is very old maybe 75-100 years old and the other is 20ish years old.

I sure do not want to build a well house, say 12x12, and then have to tear it apart to repair the pump.

I THINK we have the black pipe for the well. I know its the supply to the house from the well. One of the things I did not get to see what the well drilling on our well.

Later,
Dan

Just my opinion but...

Why build a well house? Put the pressure tank and pump controls in the house or someother heated place. Accomplishes two things. All the normal maintenance items are easily accessible without crawling into a hole in the ground and there is no problem with freezing temps. Here, everyong I know with a well house has to keep a light burning 24/7 all winter to keep the tank from freezing. That tank does not have to be right at the well head.

As to access to pull the well. Either a 'skylight' set up or a removable roof - I have seen both.

Harry K