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

“It seems like our well pump is going all the time.”

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

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

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

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

Homeowners in Barton, it’s time to replace the tank … which necessitates a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank specialists in Barton. They’ll put in a new pressure tank the same day, and halt 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 serious, it soon will be.

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

Problems ensue when these bleeders become stopped up over time, lowering the starting water level in the pipe. With less water, pressure in the system falls. The pump cycles in an endless effort to provide more water to sustain required pressure, and keep the system functioning.

A third type of well water pressure tank is made of galvanized metal, which annually. Commonly found in older homes, these tanks eventually leak. Like an air volume control tank, the well pump runs near-constantly to maintain pressure as the internal water level goes down.

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

Barton residents: Tired of listening to your well pump run nonstop? 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 need to stop your pump’s short-cycling.