Well pump - running out of water

[Donald]

With my wife's daughter living here we have run out of water a few times. Previously that only happened with a house full of guests during the holidays.

Going to talk to the company who installed the well tomorrow.

I am sure there are options. Drill the well deeper, hydrofrack it, and adding storage. Drill a new well.

The ground is still frozen so the acquifier is not getting recharged much. But we have many springs and I see those areas wet with water now.

Anyone have experience in this area?

 

[walterjay]

I have worked with wells for over 40 years and have found that there is no one answer for all. For starters be certain that none of your toilets are slowly leaking water through the flappers. This is a pretty common cause. Put some toilet tank dye or bluing in the tank. Keep an eye on it for about an hour and see if the blue is getting down and through a slow leak. Also make sure no dripping faucets. Also, an underground leak from the well into the house could be present. Have you seen any spots where water has surfaced. If it is leaking at the pitless adapter if you have one, you can usually hear the water spraying underground at the well. Go out and listen at the well while someone is using water when the pump is running. You could become conservative with water and see if it comes back in the late spring. I have also seen submersible pumps kick out on overload temporarily under extended use if there is a pump problem. Checking the amperage draw of the pump can help determine that. Lastly you could have two or three hour well yield done and see what it is producing. Usually done by a well guy. Good luck and I hope no need for drilling.

 

[Chris142]

Can you lower the pump a few feet? Our aquifer does not change too much. In 1965 when they drilled my well they hit water @257. In 2013 we had a pump replaced and the water was @270. Last dec we had another pump put in and the water was @265.

 

[wpod]

Is the water is getting sucked out faster than it can get refilled?

 

[walterjay]

Is the water is getting sucked out faster than it can get refilled?

He does not know for sure. A well yield will provide him with that answer conclusively. But first other problems should be ruled out.

 

[wpod]

I have a well and it will pup out the water faster that it can refill if certain faucets are opened together.

 

[Warstud]

How big is your well tank ?

 

[JimPghPA]

If you drill a new well, you can connect it with the existing well, instead of switching to only use the new one.

 

[wpod]

How big is your well tank ?

I don't know.

 

[SevenBizzos]

If you are running out of water during times of higher demand but not "normally", it may be it's just running out of water to pump. That's my first guess when I hear that.

I understand the leaks theory as well. You'd have to watch your pressure gauge.

Please follow up here on your well driller's theories.

 

[Donald]

I was told the well is 400' deep and pump is at 360'. When last tested the well was a little over 1 GPM, so marginal. Some 20 years ago a well pump company recommended hydrofracking but the previous owner declined having that done. The well pump itself is not spec'ed to pump water from as deep as it is, so its marginal. But probably not the issue.

 

[sloinker]

I was told the well is 400' deep and pump is at 360'. When last tested the well was a little over 1 GPM, so marginal. Some 20 years ago a well pump company recommended hydrofracking but the previous owner declined having that done. The well pump itself is not spec'ed to pump water from as deep as it is, so its marginal. But probably not the issue.

Wow! I thought upstate NY was covered in water. River's, Lakes etc. Your well depth and recovery sounds like places out west in the desert. I thought that less than 2.0 GPM was considered a dry hole and not used. Hopefully the water you do have isn't like a mineral sample. I would exploit a spring and treat as needed.

 

[spasm3]

Its possible the water table has dropped and you are using it faster than the well can refill.

 

[SevenBizzos]

I was told the well is 400' deep and pump is at 360'. When last tested the well was a little over 1 GPM, so marginal. Some 20 years ago a well pump company recommended hydrofracking but the previous owner declined having that done. The well pump itself is not spec'ed to pump water from as deep as it is, so its marginal. But probably not the issue.

Wow. That is a really low volume. Since that's pretty deep, your submersible pump could be undersized. You're going to need at least a 3/4HP pump to adequately provide volume. It's note worthy, but not what's creating your issue. With a properly sized pump, you'd just run out of water quicker.

This is beginning to sound expensive.

 

[PimTac]

One gallon per minute is really nothing. If that cannot be improved then a larger holding tank would be a consideration.

 

[Donald]

One gallon per minute is really nothing. If that cannot be improved then a larger holding tank would be a consideration.

They actually sell well storage solutions that are unpressurized and the well pump is timed to pump a few gallons every few minutes. Then another pump and a pressurized tank to pump the water into the house faucets.

And for $619 I can get a 119 gallon pressurized tank to add on to my current storage tank.

 

[walterjay]

They actually sell well storage solutions that are unpressurized and the well pump is timed to pump a few gallons every few minutes. Then another pump and a pressurized tank to pump the water into the house faucets.

And for $619 I can get a 119 gallon pressurized tank to add on to my current storage tank.

Bear in mind that a 119 gallon pressure tank only stores about 35 gallons of water. The rest is air above the bladder.
If you were my customer I would recommend an unpressurized storage system. Much less expensive than drilling.

 

[sloinker]

Get one of these and a low recovery pump that runs 24/7 until full.

 

[Andrew1972]

New England has been in drought not sure where she lives.

Others have pointed out leaky toilets cause issues. Laundry if she is using a top loader will consume 30-40 gallons per load instead of 10-20 for front loader which is massive different. Doing laundry over week if far better than all in one day.

I would have a well company evaluate the well pump motor(amp test) and also the line going down into ground (maybe is leaky or brittle). I thought I ran out of water but turned out to be a failed well pump and they also replaced line to it.