Leaking well tank

[herbenus]

I didn't get an answer to this on Countrybynet, so I thought I'd try here. I know I can get a new well tank for 2 or 3 hundred dollars.

When I drilled a new well I put in a new tank and kept the old one. It's plumbed up so that it only feeds my outdoor faucets. It's an old green fiberglass tank about 6' tall, about 24" OD (80 gallons?), about ten years old. A breather, or whatever you call it, on top lets a slow drip escape. Not enough to cause any puddling, just green slime on side of tank. But some law of hydraulics tells me the leak won't get smaller, only bigger. I'll probably replace tank this summer. My question is: can I repair or replace bladder? If so, cost advantage? Or am I on the right track to replace tank? I'll definitely put in a smaller tank when I do.

Also, it sat unused for a while so at first I thought it had just gotten rain water in it. But a year later it still leaks.

Thanks.

 

[beenthere]

Answer? I would replace the tank with a new one. I agree with your conclusion, that the leak will not "heal" and likely will just get bigger.

 

[WVBill]

My well pressure tank bladder has failed also, so I'll be replacing the tank as soon as I get around to it.

I'm seriously considering one of These "Smart Tanks" from Well-rite. Apparently the way they work is that as soon as the pump kicks on from reaching the lower pressure setting, they keep the pump on as long as water is flowing, then when you shut off the water, the tank gets filled back up to the cut off pressure. This would drastically reduce pump cycles (the killer of pumps) - particularly when the water is being used for long periods of outside watering.

I don't know the cost yet - I'm just in the early stages of research.

 

[beenthere]

I'm intrigued by this concept.

Seems if the pump kicks on and stays on until the water is shut off at a faucet, that the pump would still kick off when the upper limit at the pressure switch was reached. How is that any different than how it operates now? I think that is how my system works now.

If the water is running and upper pressure isn't reached, the pump doesn't kick off until upper pressure (top limit) is reached. Anything else - if pump runs as long as faucet is open because there is an over-ride on the pressure switch, would, IMO, cause the pressure to go above the upper limit. This condition doesn't sound very good for the system, and especially for the pump. What am I missing here? Please help me out.

 

[herbenus]

I think my switch works about the same. I'm not really having any trouble with it and with multiple tanks I don't see much pressure fluctuation. Except in summertime heavy watering when I empty tank. There's low pressure at that time but since a switch won't make the pump work any faster, or pump at higher pressure, I cannot see where it would benefit me.

Now I must confess, I did not read all of literature on switch, so there may be something more here. Like a "floating" set point for pressure. But since my switch works, and I have a spare from old well, I can't part with my money to buy a new one anytime soon. But I will bookmark site in case I'm shopping for one in future. Thanks for info.

 

[herbenus]

Actually I guess what I posted is not quite correct. I should have thought it through. Yes, a switch could make pump work at higher pressure. Since it will keep pumping if pressure switch were set higher. It will keep pumping regardless of resistance (pressure) until amps go up and breaker is thrown. Now I'm electrically challenged so if I mispoke here, forgive me. So this "smart" switch may have something to offer, but again, I'm too cash-poor (ok, I mean cheap) to consider one right now.