Need some help with a well

[Sterff]

I have a well that is strictly for filling up our pond and Im getting very little water out of it. The well itself is located in a well pit about 30 feet from the pond. The water comes up directly from the well casing into a tee. The one end is capped and the other end goes towards the pond. I turned the valve off (pond side) and opened the cap. It took about 3 minutes to fill a 5 gallon bucket. The pump itself is only a year old (1/2 hp grundfos) and I am getting full voltage at the pump. Also the water coming from the pump is crystal clear. What do you guys think the problem could be? Id like to have a bit of knowledge about it before I call for repairs.

 

[Egon]

A little more information on the well, pump seating depth etc. might help.

 

[psdx]

I have a well that is strictly for filling up our pond and Im getting very little water out of it. The well itself is located in a well pit about 30 feet from the pond. The water comes up directly from the well casing into a tee.

I'm not sure I understand that. I have never seen water come up the well casing - normally a pipe inside the well casing that terminates in a pitless adapter. Assuming I am describing your situation, where is the tee exactly? Also - In this example I don't imagine there's a pressure switch, so what controls the pump's operation?

 

[Sterff]

A little more information on the well, pump seating depth etc. might help.

Sorry Ill take a picture of the well tomorrow.

I'm not sure I understand that. I have never seen water come up the well casing - normally a pipe inside the well casing that terminates in a pitless adapter. Assuming I am describing your situation, where is the tee exactly? Also - In this example I don't imagine there's a pressure switch, so what controls the pump's operation?

The well is in a pit (upside down septic tank) and the piping is inside. I meant that the water comes up through black abs, then goes through the casing to a tee fitting. One end is capped and the other heads to the pond. The well used to be run with a pressure tank and switch but that has been removed. The well company told me that the pump would fill up the tank and then shut off. Once the tank was empty it would kick on again. Obviously that caused alot of wear and tear on the pump. Now I turn the pump on with an on/off switch in the pit. It takes a day or so to bring the water level up when it is working. The pond holds around a million gallons or so. Ill take a picture of the setup tomorrow.

 

[RoyJackson]

Does the well recover if you let it set for a day?

 

[Sterff]

Does the well recover if you let it set for a day?

The flow is the same no matter what as I checked it the last few days. It will run for a minute or so then slowly stop. Im wondering if there is some sort of screen on the well pump that is clogged.

 

[Egon]

Do an amperage check on the motor.

Try and determine the static water level in the well.

 

[RoyJackson]

Do an amperage check on the motor.

Try and determine the static water level in the well.

Foot valve stuck is a possibility...but definitely check the static water level!

 

[R_Walter]

What's the GPM rate of the well supposed to be?

 

[JD5210]

I have well in the back that is in a pit. I am guessing the well has been there some time as most wells now are pitless. My cap has 2 holes, you could lower a string with a nut tied to it and see how far you have to go down until you hit water.

I think you are going to have to pull it. Do you know how deep it is and how old is the well? What could be wrong is that the torque arrestor was not put on correctly and the wires have come loose. You may also have damaged the pump running it continuously the way you have it hooked up. Since it is a .5 hp pump and someone sized the pump correctly I would think the well is less than 200 feet.

If you have not pulled a pump, note the pipe is going to be full of water as there is a check valve down right above the pump. I pulled a 100ft by myself, but needed help putting it back in.

If you do pull it, make sure you put a safety rope on it, when putting back in. They make a plastic ring that you put around the black pipe and it is suggested that one be put on every 25 feet, this helps protect the pipe and the wiring. I went with all brass fittings and not plastic and double clamped everything. A heat gun works great getting the plastic pipe on and off the fittings.

 

[MadJack]

Assuming the well has plenty of water at or above the pump, then I would say the pump is shot. The pump needs to be pulled just to check the motor and foot valve [depending on where the foot valve is located].
I had to pull my one-year old deep well pump after it was only in 1 year. Mine was down a hundred feet, well is 184 feet. Motor was fried.
They replaced under warranty.

 

[Sterff]

For now here are a few pictures. Meanwhile Im trying to find the paperwork related to the well. The pump should still be under warranty and it sounds like it needs to be pulled.

 

[R_Walter]

For now here are a few pictures. Meanwhile Im trying to find the paperwork related to the well. The pump should still be under warranty and it sounds like it needs to be pulled.

If the casing has any holes in it, no matter how small, it will affect the ability of the pump to bring up the water.

 

[Egon]

Suggest checking the electrical cable where it contacts the casing for abrasion. That area should be protected as well as the rope.

If the casing has any holes in it,/QUOTE]

Maybe tubing?

 

[duke7595]

I just seen the pictures, you have a deep well with the pump inside the casing, so I deleted the info I gave for a shallow pump set up.

 

[Sterff]

The well guy is coming on Monday. I found the paperwork and it has a 5 year warranty. Also the well depth is 140', pump depth is 120', pump water level is 72', and apparently it is a 3/4 hp pump. Its a Grundfos 10SQ07-240 which is supposed to deliver 10 gpm at 240' and a maximum of 15 gpm. The well guy said most likely the pump is shot.

 

[Sterff]

Welp it's working again :thumbsup: The well guy came today as he had an opening. First we checked the water level and it was at 72' and then after the pump turned on it went down to 95'. So we got his t-handle thing and pulled the well up a foot, and sat the pitless adaptor piece on the casing, and tryed it again. It started working again but, the water was very red and murky. Then after running for around 20 minutes it started to clear up.

He then thought it would be a good idea to pull it while he was there so we did. It turns out that the filter sleeve was partially clogged so we cleaned it. After sticking it back in it has been running for around an hour now and the water level is at 77'.

The main problem is that the pump isn't run often enough. He believes that the iron in the well was clogging the filter and preventing the water from entering the well.

 

[Sterff]

This is what the screen looked like except mine is around 5' long...

 

[Jimbrown]

Go buy a swimming pool filter timer and set it to pump 30 minutes a day.

 

[Egon]

Good Show:thumbsup::thumbsup: