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

“It seems like our well pump is running without a break.”

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

Why? The well pressure tank, which contains 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 happens in a bladder tank. These well pressure tanks, the most common model, hold 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 ruptures … and the air pocket fills with water. Bye-bye, water pressure.

Homeowners in Pike Lake, it’s time to replace the tank … which means a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank specialists in Pike Lake. 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 indication of a broken bladder. If the problem isn’t already fatal, it soon will be.

Not all Pike Lake 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 measured volume of water into the pipe. The water creates an air pocket, which generates pressure when the pump cycles to push in more water.

Problems start when these bleeders become plugged 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 additional water to maintain sufficient pressure, and keep the system working.

A third type of well water pressure tank is made of galvanized metal, which requires. Usually used in older homes, these tanks eventually leak. Similar to 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 suffer from mineral accumulations. These impede water flow from the tank into the home. Low water pressure results. Again, replacement is the only viable option.

Pike Lake 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 appreciate. You’ll be amazed how short a time they need to stop your pump’s short-cycling.