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

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

If this resembles 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 maintain pressure within the system.

Why? The well pressure tank, which holds 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 occurs in a bladder tank. These well pressure tanks, the most common type, 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 breaks … and the air pocket fills with water. Bye-bye, water pressure.

Homeowners in West Allis, it’s time to replace the tank … which necessitates a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank specialists in West Allis. 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 terminal, it soon will be.

Not all West Allis residences 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 employs bleeders, which allow a modulated 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 blocked over time, lowering the starting water level in the pipe. With less water, pressure in the system falls. The pump cycles in a nonstop effort to provide additional water to maintain sufficient 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. Typically installed in older homes, these tanks eventually leak. Like an air volume control tank, the well pump operates near-constantly to maintain pressure as the internal water level goes down.

Galvanized and air volume control tanks can also suffer from mineral buildups. These impede water flow from the tank into the home. Low water pressure results. Again, replacement is the only viable choice.

West Allis residents: Tired of listening to your well pump run endlessly? Let Kelly James Service bring back the peace – not to mention water pressure – that you value. You’ll be amazed how short a time it takes them to stop your pump’s short-cycling.