Well Pump Keeps Running? No Pressure – but it’s Probably Your Well Pressure Tank

“It seems like our well pump is operating nonstop.”

If this sounds like your water system, there’s a technical term for it: “short cycling.” No sooner does the pump stop running, than it starts up all over. It’s desperately trying to sustain pressure within the system.

Why? The well pressure tank, which stores water drawn from the well prior to use, has an issue. The precise issue depends on the type of water pressure tank.

Most likely it’s “waterlogging,” which happens in a bladder tank. These well pressure tanks, the most common type, store water in a bladder within their metal shells. Surrounding air pushes on the balloon, keeping the water under pressure.

All is well until the bladder springs a leak … and the air pocket fills with water. Bye-bye, water pressure.

Homeowners in Wauwatosa, it’s time to replace the tank … which means a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank specialists in Wauwatosa. They’ll put in a new pressure tank the same day, and stop your well pump’s endless short-cycling.

Air spitting from faucets? It’s another symptom of a broken bladder. If the problem isn’t already fatal, it soon will be.

Not all Wauwatosa houses with well water systems have bladder tanks. Some use an air volume control tank, part of the well’s vertical in-ground pipe. The system uses bleeders, which allow a measured volume of water into the pipe. The water creates an air pocket, which generates pressure when the pump cycles to push in additional water.

Problems ensue when these bleeders become stopped up over time, reducing the starting water level in the pipe. With less water, pressure in the system goes down. The pump cycles in an endless effort to provide more water to maintain adequate pressure, and keep the system operating.

A third type of well water pressure tank is made of galvanized metal, which nessitates) that its internal air supply be manually replenished {each year. Usually found in older homes, these tanks eventually leak. Like an air volume control tank, the well pump runs near-constantly to sustain pressure as the internal water level goes down.

Galvanized and air volume control tanks can also be compromised by mineral buildups. These restrict water flow from the tank into the home. Low water pressure results. Again, replacement is the only practical option.

Wauwatosa residents: Tired of hearing your well pump run endlessly? Let Kelly James Service bring back the peace – not to mention water pressure – that you expect. You’ll be amazed how short a time they require to stop your pump’s short-cycling.