Well pump light

[PatasColo]

Another idea that might be useful: If you wire into 120v of the line in parallel, you could wire in one of those analog on/off "lamp timers" (the kind you use to turn lamps on and off while you're away from home). You plug your indicator light (I like the LED nightlight idea) into that. Then make sure all the little "switches" on the timer are set to "on", and set the timer to a known start time (say 12 midnight).

What this gets you is a way to see if the pump is on (instantaneous indicator), and also you can look at it at the end of each day to get an idea of how much total time the pump is on for any given day (long-term indicator). I specified an analog timer because a digital one may just reset when it loses power (when your pump is off, or when it's off for a while), while the analog ones just keeps advancing while power is on, and rest while the power is off.
-Mitch

 

[chucko]

You could just put a pressure gauge somewhere else like under your kitchen sink

 

[jinman]

You could just put a pressure gauge somewhere else like under your kitchen sink

What an incredibly simple and brilliant idea. You are one of the smartest people I know.:thumbsup::laughing:

 

[Damifino]

What an incredibly simple and brilliant idea. You are one of the smartest people I know.:thumbsup::laughing:

Jinman, those Polk county boys are known for that!!!:thumbsup::laughing::laughing:

 

[thatguy]

WOW.. My brain is overwhelmed with all the suggestions.. Too bad im not smart enough to quite understand all of them right off LOL

RE - pressure gauge under the sink - I can only assume that when the faucet is OFF (no water flowing) that when the pump kicks on, the pressure will change??

Brian

 

[Damifino]

Larry, you don't have to check the tank gage. You can put a pressure gage in the cold water line under your kitchen sink; no wires - no worry. Remember, pressure is the same thoughout the system. If you want to watch your pressure and see if it is dropping, just open the door under the kitchen sink and look at the gage. If you have a leaking tank checkvalve or a leaky toilet, that gage will tell you as quickly as a light and require no wiring of any kind.

thatguy, jinman's suggestion, we were just pokin a little fun, the gauge he suggested under sink is for the convenience factor.

I myself would like the light because I would know when the pump was actually cycling, I would have one mounted in my bedroom too.

My :2cents:

 

[LarryD]

RE - pressure gauge under the sink - I can only assume that when the faucet is OFF (no water flowing) that when the pump kicks on, the pressure will change??

Brian

Brian, your pump has a cut-in and cut-out pressure. So if you were to check the gauge under your sink and didn't "use" any water for say an hour, there should be no change. If the gauge drops OR if there is a rise in pressure (pump cycled at cut-in pressure), you lost some water somewhere. No change in the gauge means you have tight lines.

 

[jinman]

Brian, your pump has a cut-in and cut-out pressure. So if you were to check the gauge under your sink and didn't "use" any water for say an hour, there should be no change.

The typical pressure is 40-60 psi. The pump comes on when pressure drops to 40 psi and shuts off when the pressure rises to 60 psi. Of course, that pressure is felt anywhere throughout the system. With a pressure gage you can see just how fast the pressure is dropping. As soon as the pump comes on, the pressure will rapidly rise back to 60 psi unless somebody has water running fast enough to keep the pressure from rising. So, if pressure is holding steady or decreasing, the pump is off. If pressure is rising, the pump is on. Pressure inside the house plumbing is the same everywhere, so you can just pick the most convenient spot to mount the gage.

BTW: Many/most people spell gage as g-u-a-g-e, but it has become standard practice in some areas of technical writing to use g-a-g-e instead because it saves a letter. After working 20 years for a company who chose to spell it g-a-g-e, I use the 4-letter spelling to mean a physical instrument and use the 5-letter spelling to refer to a system of measurement like the gauge of a shotgun, metal gauge, or wire gauge. I suppose either spelling is proper.

 

[chucko]

What an incredibly simple and brilliant idea. You are one of the smartest people I know.:thumbsup::laughing:

bahahahaha. Guess I should have read more than the first post or two before replying.

 

[jinman]

bahahahaha. Guess I should have read more than the first post or two before replying.

Great minds think alike.

 

[LarryD]

BTW: Many/most people spell gage as g-u-a-g-e, but it has become standard practice in some areas of technical writing to use g-a-g-e instead because it saves a letter. After working 20 years for a company who chose to spell it g-a-g-e, I use the 4-letter spelling to mean a physical instrument and use the 5-letter spelling to refer to a system of measurement like the gauge of a shotgun, metal gauge, or wire gauge. I suppose either spelling is proper.

Good point Jim. When I first came to NASWI I worked in the aircraft hangers. Now I work in the aircraft hangars.

 

[thatguy]

thatguy, jinman's suggestion, we were just pokin a little fun, the gauge he suggested under sink is for the convenience factor.

I myself would like the light because I would know when the pump was actually cycling, I would have one mounted in my bedroom too.

My :2cents:

The more I thought about the pressure gauge vs pump light I was really getting confused.. After thinking about it way too much, I was actually going to come back and get more information on how the gauge would help me .. lol

I agree with you, I think I would rather know when the pump cycles on/off..

thanks

Brian

 

[Phils]

I have what many have suggested... a 120V light that is on when the pump is operating. Simply wired to one hot on the pressure switch and then to neutral.

A couple of years ago I had returned to the house from some tractor work and noticed the light on. Nobody was in the house, so no water should have been running.

Some quick investigation discovered a split supply line to the house. No telling HOW long it'd have taken without the light since that line was under the home.

Phil

 

[chipsndust]

light vs gage

guess it depends on how good you are at wiring vs. plumbing.

My gage is fairly convenient to look at, but if I was going to add one or the other, I would add the light, because for me the wiring mod would be easier than the plumbing mod.

 

[Damifino]

The more I thought about the pressure gauge vs pump light I was really getting confused.. After thinking about it way too much, I was actually going to come back and get more information on how the gauge would help me .. lol

I agree with you, I think I would rather know when the pump cycles on/off..

thanks

Brian

Do you have any experience at all in electrical wiring, if so I will post later how I would do it.

 

[thatguy]

Do you have any experience at all in electrical wiring, if so I will post later how I would do it.

I would appreciate any help you can provide..

Thanks

b

 

[Damifino]

You have P.M.

 

[dieselscout80]

Can the wiring for the light be all done in the breaker box?

My well pump is a two wire pump.

 

[Damifino]

Can the wiring for the light be all done in the breaker box?

My well pump is a two wire pump.

If you want to monitor pump cycling, no, you would need to connect to load terminal on pressure switch.

 

[dieselscout80]

If you want to monitor pump cycling, no, you would need to connect to load terminal on pressure switch.

Thats kinda what I thought since my well is about a 100' from the house and is 20 years old I'd have to trench and bury a new wire back to the house four a light monitor.

I guess a pressure gage may have to do.