jimmyj
Elite Member
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2007
- Messages
- 4,145
- Location
- Ontario Canada
- Tractor
- Allis Chalmers 616 (Two) and a Kioti CK30 HST with loader and backhoe
I'm having this odd problem and I wonder if any of you have any ideas. I have a convertible jet pump that works on a 60 foot drilled well. Water is down about 30 feet and the pipes go down about 45 or 50 feet. Standard rig, injector at the bottom. Pump runs on 110 15 amp circuit and is in a well pit outside the house (actually it's like a basement under our gazebo). It is very humid in the pit, the walls are block and insulated with Styrofoam. The ceiling is insulated with styro and the floor is dirt with patio stones on it.
I have a fair bit of experience with wells and pumps and have replaced the entire setup twice over the years (very corrosive water, super high in iron and hard too). But this latest issue confuses me.
The switch on the pump, in cooler weather simply does not "cut in" when the water is run out of the system. I have changed the switch twice and new ones have the same issue in cooler weather. I have taken the diaphragm apart and the little pressure hose to clean, they aren't clogged. I've also adjusted the cut in and cut out pressure on the switches and have cleaned the switch points. All types of maintenance seem to resolve the problem for a couple of weeks and then, intermittently, not all the time, the darn switch doesn't kick in and we find outselves out of water.
To get it going again, in true hillbilly style, I walk out to the gazebo, open the trap door to the well pit and use a long stick to give the pressure switch a mild whack. Then, works great again for a while, sometimes weeks, sometimes hours.
I have not changed the pump, I have not tested the power draw to the pump. Thinking I should do the latter and see if maybe there is an issue there. Any ideas TBN'ers?
I have a fair bit of experience with wells and pumps and have replaced the entire setup twice over the years (very corrosive water, super high in iron and hard too). But this latest issue confuses me.
The switch on the pump, in cooler weather simply does not "cut in" when the water is run out of the system. I have changed the switch twice and new ones have the same issue in cooler weather. I have taken the diaphragm apart and the little pressure hose to clean, they aren't clogged. I've also adjusted the cut in and cut out pressure on the switches and have cleaned the switch points. All types of maintenance seem to resolve the problem for a couple of weeks and then, intermittently, not all the time, the darn switch doesn't kick in and we find outselves out of water.
To get it going again, in true hillbilly style, I walk out to the gazebo, open the trap door to the well pit and use a long stick to give the pressure switch a mild whack. Then, works great again for a while, sometimes weeks, sometimes hours.
I have not changed the pump, I have not tested the power draw to the pump. Thinking I should do the latter and see if maybe there is an issue there. Any ideas TBN'ers?