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

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

If this sounds like your water system, there’s a professional term for it: “short cycling.” No sooner does the pump stop going, than it starts up all over. 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 exact 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 model, store 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 Hartland, it’s time to replace the tank … which means a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank specialists in Hartland. 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 indication of a broken bladder. If the problem isn’t already terminal, it soon will be.

Not all Hartland 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 controlled 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 begin when these bleeders become plugged over time, reducing the starting water level in the pipe. With less water, pressure in the system goes down. The pump cycles in a nonstop effort to provide additional water to maintain adequate pressure, and keep the system operating.

A third type of well water pressure tank is made of galvanized metal, which annually. Typically used 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 suffer from mineral buildups. These restrict water flow from the tank into the home. Low water pressure results. Again, replacement is the only practical choice.

Hartland residents: Tired of hearing your well pump run constantly? Let Kelly James Service restore the peace – not to mention water pressure – that you expect. You’ll be amazed how short a time it takes them to stop your pump’s short-cycling.